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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Jointly owned benefit-plan administration corporation Unknown
Related pension and welfare funds asked about forming a jointly owned corporation to provide administration services to the funds and other plans. EBSA explained how plan-asset rules and…
Military service members and spouses in dislocated worker programs
ETA said an honorably discharged service member could satisfy the termination part of the Workforce Investment Act dislocated worker definition, but still had to meet the other eligibility criteria.…
GFCI duties for electrical subcontractors on construction sites
An electrical contractor asked whether it had to install GFCIs for other subcontractors using temporary construction power. OSHA said each employer with exposed employees must use either GFCI…
2005 poverty guidelines for senior employment eligibility Withdrawn
ETA instructed Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees to use the 2005 federal poverty guidelines and the 125 percent amounts to assess applicants' income eligibility. The attached…
Tax credit certification for family assistance recipients Withdrawn
ETA told state workforce agencies that a person in a family receiving assistance for the required period could qualify for certain employment tax credit target groups even if that person was…
One public employee with exempt and nonexempt duties
A public employer asked how to pay an office assistant who also worked as an exempt coordinator. WHD said the employee’s primary duty across the job as a whole controlled exemption; if the office…
Live-in domestic service overtime exemption for agency nurses Unknown
A care agency asked whether a nurse living with a client could qualify for the live-in domestic service overtime exemption. WHD answered yes under its 2005 interpretation, while still requiring…
2005 policy on third-party companionship exemption Unknown
A requester asked whether a court decision had changed WHD’s policy for third-party employers of companionship workers. WHD said in 2005 that its policy still allowed the exemption outside the…
Personnel entry controls under process safety management
A process operator asked whether trained maintenance staff who were planning future work had to follow facility-entry controls. OSHA said the process-safety rule covers maintenance supervisors and…
Release schedule for 2004 UI benefit accuracy data Withdrawn
ETA set deadlines for states to finish and check their calendar year 2004 unemployment benefit accuracy cases before federal publication in 2005. It supplied sample paid and denied claims reports,…
Minimum disaster unemployment benefit amounts, April–June 2005 Withdrawn
ETA supplied a state-by-state table of average weekly unemployment benefits and the resulting minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared from April 1…
Experience Rating Index for unemployment tax rate year 2003 Withdrawn
ETA published the Experience Rating Index for each state for unemployment tax rate year 2003, alongside historical figures for 1988 through 2003. The index measures how much of unemployment benefits…
Prime contractor responsibility for construction safety violations
A contractor asked whether the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act imposed broader responsibility for subcontractor safety violations than OSHA’s Multi-Employer Citation Policy. OSHA said…
FY 2005 Alien Labor Certification grant guidance Withdrawn
ETA told state workforce agencies how to use FY 2005 alien labor certification grants while permanent certification cases moved to federal processing centers. It set tasks for prevailing wage…
Box-truck confined spaces during hazardous-materials response
An emergency-response professional asked whether a box van becomes a permit-required confined space after a hazardous-materials release. OSHA said it could not determine the space’s classification…
Inspection timing for infrequently used forklifts
An employer asked whether a forklift used only once or twice a month had to be examined daily. OSHA said a powered industrial truck must be examined before it is placed in service, so a stored truck…
Emergency medical services on construction sites
A construction worker asked about AEDs, first-aid staffing, emergency communication, respirators, and foreman qualifications. OSHA said construction employers must plan for prompt medical attention…
Planned common performance reporting measures Rescinded
ETA told states it planned to revise existing workforce program reports so several federal programs could use common performance measures. It gave proposed 2005 implementation dates, described the…
Native American Employment and Training Council nominations Rescinded
ETA asked WIA section 166 grantees and eligible Native American organizations to nominate candidates for expiring seats on the Native American Employment and Training Council. It identified which…
Climbing roof trusses for bracing under residential construction guidance Unknown
An OSHA regional office asked whether workers could climb the lower chords of roof trusses to install bracing where a residential structure had no interior walls. OSHA said that method was outside…
Insurance broker compensation reported on Schedule A Unknown
A requester asked which insurer-paid broker commissions and fees must be reported for policies funding ERISA plans. EBSA said insurers must allocate the attributable compensation to each policy…
Self-employment training for Workforce Investment Act clients Rescinded
ETA encouraged state workforce agencies and local boards to make entrepreneurial training available to people interested in self-employment under the Workforce Investment Act. It asked states to…
Toilet access for workers on high-rise construction sites
A worker asked whether toilets only on the ground floor are sufficient for crews working on the tenth floor without elevators. OSHA said it could not decide without knowing the travel time, but…
Changes to UI Performs unemployment insurance measures Unknown
ETA revised the UI Performs system for measuring state unemployment insurance administration. It reduced the measures with performance targets to a smaller group of core measures, kept other data…
Process safety at remote natural gas facilities Unknown
A natural-gas operator asked whether a compressor station and processing plant qualified for the process-safety rule’s normally unoccupied remote-facility exemption. OSHA said the facts were…
Fall-protection tie-off to structures beside aerial lifts Unknown
A device maker asked OSHA to expand its de minimis enforcement policy for workers tied to structures beside aerial lifts. OSHA declined to broaden it, explaining that the exception depended on an…
Different overtime rates for firefighters doing two jobs
A city asked whether firefighters assigned to higher-paid investigation and training jobs could receive overtime at the rate for whichever job they performed during overtime hours. WHD said section…
Georgia agricultural commissions in state health plan Unknown
Georgia asked whether employees of its agricultural commodities commissions could join the state health benefit plan without ending its governmental-plan exemption. EBSA found the commissions were…
Ambient-noise checks for audiometric testing rooms
A medical group asked how often to evaluate room noise for employee hearing tests. OSHA said the room must meet the required background-noise limits whenever a test is performed. A fixed booth may…
OSHA approval of machine design and risk assessments Unknown
A machinery maker asked OSHA to accept its packaging-machine design and risk assessment under OSHA and ANSI standards. OSHA said it had not reviewed or approved the design and does not test,…
European machine-guarding standards and OSHA requirements
A machine maker asked whether guards built to European standards could satisfy OSHA’s U.S. machine-guarding rule. OSHA said a European-standard method may be used if it actually protects workers as…
Extension of the ETA 5130 Benefit Appeals Report collection Withdrawn
ETA told state unemployment agencies that federal approval to collect the Benefit Appeals Report, ETA 5130, had been extended through November 30, 2007. It also supplied the required paperwork…
2005 increases in Social Security and federal civilian annuities Withdrawn
ETA notified state unemployment agencies of cost of living increases in Social Security and federal civilian retirement annuities. Its attachment lists the prorated 2005 increases for Civil Service…
2005 locality pay adjustments for federal civilian workers Withdrawn
ETA alerted state unemployment agencies to 2005 locality pay changes for General Schedule federal employees. Staff handling Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees claims could use the rates…
Interest on Title XII unemployment fund advances in 2005 Withdrawn
ETA told states how interest on federal Title XII unemployment fund loans is calculated and when it must be paid. The letter's heading addresses calendar year 2005, but its rate sentence prints…
Ground-fault protection on construction branch circuits Unknown
An electrical-contractors group asked whether 208-volt construction outlets need ground-fault protection and whether the electrical subcontractor must monitor other trades. OSHA said protection…
Seasonal business overtime waiver for a private club open 119 days a year
A private club open to members for 119 days a year (running a restaurant, bar, and sailing/tennis programs) asked whether it qualified for the seasonal-business overtime waiver under M.G.L. c. 151,…
Residential-use cooling fans in industrial workplaces
A manufacturer asked whether employees could bring home-use personal fans into an industrial workplace. OSHA said acceptability depends on the fan’s listing and labeling and on how and where it is…
Documenting process-hazard analysis of failed controls
A process-safety consultant asked what documentation satisfies OSHA’s requirement to evaluate the possible employee effects of failed controls. OSHA said the standard is performance based: teams may…
Asbestos regulated areas during construction demolition
A construction contractor asked when demolition work needs an asbestos regulated area and what controls apply to sheetrock with less than one percent asbestos. OSHA said regulated-area duties depend…
Ticket to Work eligibility for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit Rescinded
ETA explained to state workforce agencies how the 2004 Ticket to Work amendment affected Work Opportunity Tax Credit requests. It said eligible ticket holders could be processed under the vocational…
Clarifications for 2004 workforce information grants Rescinded
ETA clarified its 2004 workforce information grant guidance for state agencies. It moved the plan submission date to September 30, 2004, said the published suballocations were guidelines rather than…
Automatic restart of woodworking and metalworking equipment
A manufacturer asked whether low-voltage woodworking and metalworking tools need protection from restarting automatically after a power outage. OSHA said its woodworking rule applies regardless of…
Advance notice of 2005 WIA state planning guidance Rescinded
ETA alerted states that it planned to revise Workforce Investment Act and Wagner-Peyser planning guidance for 2005. It previewed priorities for the new plans, set a May 31 submission target, and…
Pneumatic cleaning tools on construction sites
A tool maker asked which construction safety rules would apply to a pneumatic cleaner for concrete forms, bridge decks, and roads. OSHA identified hose-security, safe-pressure, chip-guard, and other…
Safety chains on pile-driving hydraulic hoses
A safety consultant asked whether the pile-driving rule’s hose-chain requirement covers hydraulic hammers and their power packs. OSHA said it does: the rule applies to each pressurized hose…
Why construction workers must secure compressed-gas cylinders
An insurance professional asked whether evidence disputing the risk of a fallen cylinder becoming a projectile made OSHA’s cylinder-securing rule unnecessary. OSHA said the rule also addresses…
Brush eradication and the agriculture overtime exemption
A brush-clearing business asked whether its workers qualified for the agricultural overtime exemption. WHD said clearing uncultivated growth and processing it into mulch were not primary…
Intrastate petroleum deliveries and motor carrier overtime
A petroleum carrier asked whether drivers completing in-state deliveries of fuel that arrived from out of state qualified for the motor carrier overtime exemption. WHD said deliveries to named…
2005 cost of living increases in federal military pensions Withdrawn
ETA listed cost of living increases in federal military retired pay effective December 1, 2004, with percentages varying by the service member's entry and retirement dates. State unemployment…
SCSEP income eligibility definitions and calculations Rescinded
ETA told Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees how to count income and define a family when checking applicant eligibility. It excluded several benefits from income, used a six-month…
Professional exemption for paralegals
A paralegal asked whether a four-year degree, certificate, and experience made the role exempt as a learned professional. WHD said paralegals generally do not qualify because an advanced specialized…
Administrative exemption for clerical office work
An employer asked whether an employee handling data entry, word processing, receptionist work, and routine office supplies qualified for the administrative exemption. WHD said those clerical and…
Paid time off banks and exempt salary deductions
An employer asked whether it could reduce exempt employees’ paid time off balances for partial-day absences and dock salary after leave ran out. WHD said leave banks may be reduced for partial days…
Retail establishment sales attributed across dealership locations
A vehicle dealer asked whether wholesale sales made by one location should count against two retail locations merely because they recorded those sales under their dealer codes. WHD said the sales…
Timekeeping policy for salaried exempt city employees
A city asked whether weekly timesheets and attendance notices would undermine the salary basis of exempt employees. WHD said the described policy could track hours, leave balances, and full-day…
Effect of 2004 overtime rules on a national service opinion
A requester asked whether the 2004 federal overtime regulation changed a 1998 WHD opinion about National and Community Service Act participants. WHD said the relevant statutory provision had not…
Prepayment plan for overtime
An aircraft repair and maintenance contractor asked whether it could pay hourly employees for 40 hours each week and treat excess pay in short weeks as an advance against later overtime. WHD said…
Junior-level claims examiners and the administrative exemption
A state workers’ compensation office asked whether its junior-level claims adjusters qualified for the administrative exemption. WHD said their standardized interviews, form processing, and limited…
Project and business development managers’ FLSA coverage
A public benefit corporation asked whether two salaried managers were protected by the FLSA after their pay was reduced for working less than a scheduled week and their time records omitted meal…
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.