State and Federal Labor Guidance
Free state and federal labor-agency opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices, with plain-English summaries, current status, and the official source on every page.
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2015 poverty guidelines for SCSEP eligibility Rescinded
ETA instructed Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees to use the 2015 federal poverty guidelines, multiplied by 125 percent, when checking applicants' income eligibility. Its…
Unemployment insurance improper payment rate measure
ETA revised the unemployment insurance improper payment rate measure used for state performance. The calculation adds overpayments and underpayments, excludes payments treated as technically proper…
2015 pension adjustments and unemployment benefit offsets Withdrawn
ETA told state workforce agencies that Social Security survivor and retirement annuities and federal civilian pensions had a cost-of-living increase for 2015. States whose unemployment laws offset…
2015 military pension cost-of-living adjustments Withdrawn
ETA sent state workforce agencies military retirement and survivor annuity cost-of-living adjustment information for states whose unemployment laws offset benefits for pensions. This original letter…
Fiscal year 2015 sequestration of delayed benefit payments Withdrawn
ETA clarified how fiscal year 2015 sequestration applied when unemployment program benefits or related administrative costs from earlier years were paid late. It said the 2015 reduction applied to…
2015 federal salary rates for unemployment claims Withdrawn
ETA pointed state workforce agencies to the 2015 federal General Schedule salary rates for 31 locality pay areas. It said states could use those rates with other documentation to estimate…
2015 interest rate on federal unemployment advances Withdrawn
ETA told state workforce agencies that Treasury would charge 2.3385 percent interest on repayable Title XII unemployment advances during calendar year 2015. It reminded states that interest is…
Hepatitis B tests and protective equipment in dental offices
A dentist asked about hepatitis B antibody testing after vaccination, payment for source-patient testing, disposal of contaminated supplies and protective clothing. OSHA pointed to then-current CDC…
Treasury offsets for unpaid employer unemployment taxes
ETA updated state unemployment agencies on using the Treasury Offset Program to collect unpaid employer unemployment taxes from federal tax refunds. It describes eligible employer debt, how to…
Revised modification process for National Emergency Grants Withdrawn
ETA revised the process for National Emergency Grant recipients to request changes to existing grants. The letter explains the types of modifications and the documents grantees must submit through…
Replacement servers for state unemployment databases Withdrawn
ETA told state workforce agencies it planned to replace their unemployment database servers, with a projected completion date of March 2015. The letter explains the data transfer and return process…
Disaster unemployment assistance amounts for early 2015 Withdrawn
ETA sent state workforce agencies the minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly benefit amounts for major disasters declared from January through March 2015. Its attachment lists each state's…
2015 appropriations to continue Trade Adjustment Assistance Withdrawn
ETA told state agencies that new fiscal year 2015 appropriations allowed Trade Adjustment Assistance and related programs to continue through September 30, 2015. It said TEGL 14-14's warning about…
Hazard communication for railroad crews moving hazardous materials
A rail labor representative asked whether OSHA’s hazard-communication rule applies to train crews handling hazardous materials. OSHA said federal transportation rules do not preempt its…
Empty red pictogram frames on chemical labels
A chemical company asked whether unused preprinted red pictogram frames could say “Intentionally Blank” or be crossed out. OSHA said no; a red diamond without a hazard symbol is not an allowed…
Safety data sheets for concentrates and multi-component kits
A distributor asked about safety sheets for concentrates diluted by customers and for kits with separate chemical compartments. OSHA said the supplied concentrate needs a sheet reflecting its…
Uniform grant guidance for ETA awards and new funding
ETA explained how the new federal Uniform Guidance applies to its grants from December 26, 2014. New awards and new funds added to existing awards receive the new terms; earlier awards without new…
Kinesiology tape as medical treatment for injury records
A requester asked whether applying kinesiology tape counts as medical treatment under OSHA’s injury-recordkeeping rule. OSHA said yes: it is akin to physical therapy and exceeds the listed first-aid…
Respirator medical records shared across employers
A requester asked whether unions or contractor associations may maintain respirator medical evaluations and share clearance recommendations when workers change employers. OSHA said the employer…
Ammonium nitrate storage enforcement guidance
OSHA instructed inspectors how to assess ammonium nitrate storage under 29 CFR 1910.109(i) after the West Fertilizer explosion. The memorandum addresses ventilation, floors, bin materials, pile…
TAA program operations if 2014 funding expired Superseded
ETA told state agencies how Trade Adjustment Assistance programs would operate after December 31, 2014 if Congress did not extend funding. Its appendix reproduced the applicable termination…
Grouping hazard-label elements on chemical containers
A chemical maker asked whether all six required hazard-label elements must appear in one field of view on a product container. OSHA said only the signal word, hazard statements and pictograms must…
Sharing unemployment data with health insurance exchanges
ETA explained how state unemployment agencies share confidential wage and claims information with health insurance exchanges for eligibility decisions. The letter treats exchanges as participants in…
Ground hazards and crane modifications in railroad work
A railroad association asked when buried objects must be disclosed as ground hazards to equipment operators and whether past crane modifications need new approval. OSHA said hazard status depends on…
Combining skin-corrosion and eye-damage hazard statements
A chemical-label provider asked whether a separate “Causes serious eye damage” statement is needed beside “Causes severe skin burns and eye damage.” OSHA said the latter conveys the eye hazard and…
Revised FY 2015 WIA advance allotments after funding reduction Withdrawn
ETA revised the October 2014 advance allotments for state Workforce Investment Act Adult and Dislocated Worker programs to reflect a 0.0554 percent funding reduction. It said the reduction did not…
Domestic Worker Bill of Rights does not cover residential care facilities
A residential care facility caring for adults with disabilities asked whether California's 2014 Domestic Worker Bill of Rights applied to its business. DLSE explained the law expressly excludes…
Asbestos bulk content and worker air exposure
A consultant asked whether OSHA changed its bulk-sample point-counting requirements and whether disturbing material below one-percent asbestos can expose workers. OSHA said its bulk-analysis rule…
Electronic display of required OSHA notices
An employer asked whether required OSHA notices could appear in a repeating loop on break-room television monitors while paper copies sat in human resources. OSHA said that arrangement does not…
Hexavalent chromium on eating-area surfaces
An employer asked whether it must take dust-wipe samples in eating areas where hexavalent chromium is present, and whether a specific surface concentration decides compliance. OSHA said the rule…
Confidentiality of unemployment appeal records
ETA reminded states that unemployment appeal information is generally confidential. If state law allows, an advance hearing docket may identify the parties and hearing time and place; the rest of…
Rescission of older worker bulletins
ETA formally rescinded older bulletins used by Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees, including bulletins with obsolete material or guidance replaced by later TEGLs. It directed…
2014 WIA funds for WIOA transition activities Withdrawn
ETA explained how states and other WIA grant recipients could use program year 2014 funds to plan for WIOA. It set a two percent transition limit for specified state formula allotments and required…
Credit-history restrictions in public workforce job banks Withdrawn
ETA and DOL’s Civil Rights Center addressed employer credit-history screens in job postings handled by federally funded workforce programs. The letter explains how those screens may raise…
Unemployment-status restrictions in public job banks Withdrawn
ETA and DOL’s Civil Rights Center addressed job postings that exclude applicants because they are unemployed. It explained how this practice may raise nondiscrimination concerns in publicly funded…
Fiscal year 2015 sequestration of unemployment programs Withdrawn
ETA explained how fiscal year 2015 sequestration affected mandatory unemployment programs. It described a 7.3 percent reduction for specified federal funding, including the federal share of extended…
Combined-wage claim employer response and charging rules Unknown
ETA answered state questions about combined-wage unemployment claims involving more than one state. It explains when an employer's repeated failure to answer agency requests can prevent relief from…
Drug testing of certain unemployment applicants Unknown
ETA explained that states may require a drug test for an initial unemployment applicant only if the applicant was fired by the most recent employer for unlawful controlled substance use, or suitable…
2013 WIA annual report narrative instructions Withdrawn
ETA told states what to include in their program year 2013 WIA annual report narrative and how to submit it by November 14, 2014. It covered veterans' services and customer satisfaction reporting,…
SCSEP state plan modification instructions Withdrawn
ETA told Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees how to modify unified, integrated, or stand-alone state plans approved in 2012. Its attachments set out the modification requirements…
Technical citations for coal mine safeguards
An underground coal mine operator can ask the district manager for a technical citation when it wants Commission review of a safeguard notice. MSHA says the district manager may first try to resolve…
XRF screening for lead exposure scenarios
A consultant asked whether x-ray fluorescence screening could identify high-lead paint areas to plan initial exposure determinations for demolition or renovation work. OSHA said that approach…
Minimum disaster assistance amounts for late 2014 Withdrawn
ETA transmitted a state-by-state attachment showing 50 percent of the average weekly benefit amount, rounded to the minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly benefit, for major disasters…
Construction Plus training in YouthBuild Withdrawn
ETA explained how eligible YouthBuild grantees could add occupational training outside construction through Construction Plus. It described approval, program design, and credential considerations…
Using EUC funds for unemployment benefits to laid-off staff Withdrawn
ETA told state agencies that Emergency Unemployment Compensation administrative funds could pay unemployment benefits for employees who worked full time on EUC activities and were laid off directly…
2013–2015 performance reporting and data validation timelines Withdrawn
ETA reminded states and grantees of performance reporting and data validation requirements for WIA, Wagner-Peyser, veterans, trade assistance, farmworker, and Indian and Native American programs. It…
Nurses conducting respirator medical evaluations
A nurse asked whether registered nurses in Wisconsin may conduct medical evaluations required for respirator use. OSHA said eligibility turns on the services allowed under the professional’s state…
WIA Youth Program guidance for program year 2014 Withdrawn
ETA gave states and local areas guidance for using WIA Youth funds in program year 2014 after reviewing monitoring findings. It discussed youth councils, eligibility documentation, case management,…
Trade Adjustment Assistance data integrity Rescinded
ETA required state agencies to include data integrity checks in quarterly Trade Adjustment Assistance reporting. It set measures and targets, described state reviews and possible corrective action,…
Frequently Asked Questions About the Family Care Act
This L&I FAQ explains the Family Care Act (RCW 49.12.265-.295), which lets Washington employees who already have paid sick leave or other paid time off use it to care for a child with a health…
Planning the FY 2015 state UI service plan Withdrawn
ETA gave state unemployment agencies supplemental instructions for their FY 2015 State Quality Service Plans. The letter identifies national priorities, performance measures and corrective action…
Hard hats and heat risk for roofing workers
A senator relayed a roofer’s concern about wearing a hard hat in hot weather. OSHA said its head-protection rules require a hard hat where there is a risk of head injury, though an employer may have…
Implementing a job-driven workforce system Withdrawn
ETA described seven elements of job-driven employment and training, including employer input, work-based learning, data, outcomes, career steps, access, and regional partnerships. It encouraged…
Completing 2014 UI benefit accuracy data Withdrawn
ETA set procedures and deadlines for state agencies to complete and verify 2014 Benefit Accuracy Measurement cases before federal publication of improper payment data. The letter also describes the…
FY 2015 state UI resource planning targets Withdrawn
ETA sent state agencies preliminary FY 2015 funding and staff year targets for unemployment administration, together with the data inputs and allocation methods used to calculate them. The letter…
Fall protection for utility pole climbing
A utility asked whether pole climbers could use a BuckSqueeze work-positioning system without a separate self-retracting lanyard. OSHA said the system could provide required protection when used as…
Confined-space entry staffing and rescue
A maintenance company asked how many workers a permit-required confined-space entry needs and whether a supervisor may also be the attendant or entrant. OSHA said dual roles are possible when…
FY 2014 grants to detect worker misclassification Unknown
ETA announced FY 2014 supplemental grants for states to prevent and detect worker misclassification in unemployment insurance tax administration. It described eligible activities, application…
Definition of Wage
This short L&I administrative policy defines "wage" under RCW 49.46.010(7) as compensation owed for employment, payable in legal tender or by check convertible to cash, or by an alternative method…
Retail or Service Establishment Commission Overtime Exception
This L&I administrative policy explains the overtime exception in RCW 49.46.130(3) for commissioned employees of retail or service establishments, adopting federal FLSA definitions because the state…
How this guidance is useful
- See how the agency reads the law: An opinion letter shows how a state labor agency actually applied wage-and-hour law to a real employer's or worker's situation.
- Check the status before relying: Every page shows whether the document is still active or has been superseded, rescinded, or withdrawn, and when that status was last verified.
- Guidance, not law: These documents explain the agency's position but bind no court, and the agency can change its view. The official document linked on every page is the authoritative source.
- Research across states: Compare how different states treat the same question, from overtime and travel time to tips and independent-contractor status.
Browse guidance by state
This library covers 8 states plus federal guidance so far. Every document is checked against the agency's official source before it is published, so states are added as their labor departments' guidance is verified, not all at once. If your state is not listed yet, its labor department's own site is the place to check.