Over the past several years, employers have seen a significant uptick in retaliation claims filed by employees and investigated by federal agencies. For example, in 2010, only approx. 30% of all charges filed with the EEOC...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently added some small clarity to the murky jurisdictional border between the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and the Occupational Safety and Health...more
On January 4, 2023, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the 2022 Unified Regulatory Agenda and Regulatory Plan (Fall 2022 Agenda) that reports on all planned rulemaking actions of administrative...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meeting in Sarasota, Florida. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, OSH Review Commission, the MSH...more
Appellate courts have been busy the last few weeks deciding a wide swath of insurance issues. The Eighth Circuit became the first federal appellate court to weigh in on pandemic-related business interruption claims. ...more
President Biden has ordered the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as well as the Mine Safety and Health Administration to evaluate whether a need exists for emergency temporary standards that protect...more
All bets are off as regulatory agencies are tugged in every direction in pandemic world. Normally, an election year probably would not have seen particularly aggressive enforcement or rulemaking. For a while, COVID-19 health...more
As companies plan to reopen, we’re getting lots of questions about how to prepare for workers wearing cloth face masks, as advised by the CDC and now required by some jurisdictions. Should your employees wear masks? Must...more
As part of its “Blurring the Lines” initiative, MSHA is now implementing plans to dramatically change its internal organization for enforcement and has released a map showing the new hierarchy. Before, individual coal and...more
Wheeling Resident David Zatezalo Confirmed to Lead MSHA - "In a strict party-line vote, the U.S. Senate confirmed Wheeling resident David Zatezalo to lead the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. The vote to...more
Groundbreaking Held for New Methanol Plant in Kanawha County, West Virginia - "US Methanol expects it will open its first American facility, Liberty One, in mid-2018, which will be capable of producing 200,000 metric tons...more
An Ohio court case on the validity of the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s 2013 rule on “pattern of violation,” or “POV,” may be near an end. At the joint request of the plaintiffs and MSHA, a judge for the U.S....more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) held its quarterly stakeholder teleconference on April 25, 2017. The call served three purposes: (1) It provided an update to the timeline of the agency’s final Examinations of...more
The Mine Health and Safety Administration has released a serious accident alert in the wake of an accident involving a haul truck driver in the metal and nonmetal mine industry. The operator of a loaded haul truck...more
The panel that reviews mine safety and health cases has prevailed in recent federal court filings on the issue of whether it has the legal authority to approve settlements of penalties that MSHA reaches with mining employers....more
After the deaths of 29 miners over the past decade from falls in metal and nonmetal mines, the Mine Safety and Health Administration has issued a safety alert on reducing the risk of dangerous falls, reminding employers of...more
As MSHA continues to issue citations and orders, it is essential that mine operators are aware of their contest rights. Just as important, operators need to know how to contest MSHA issuances while adhering to contest process...more
MSHA decided to move forward with its controversial Examination of Workplaces in Metal and Nonmetal Mines Rule without regard to a White House Memorandum requesting federal agencies to delay rules for sixty days. (see our...more
On January 23, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) issued its Final Rule for Examinations of Working Places in Metal and Nonmetal Mines. In light of the White House’s regulatory freeze on new rules, questions...more
The Mine Act of 1977 governs all mine operators and grants MSHA authority over the industry. It, along with the MINER Act of 2006, also specifically outline the rights of miners and operators. Yet, while the Mine Act directs...more
Regular MSHA inspections (aka E01 inspections) are commonplace for mines – an average of two to four inspections per year for surface and underground operations respectively. Yet, MSHA has in its arsenal a host of other...more
What has evolved (or devolved) into perhaps the most controversial election in American history, could translate in a couple of months into a whirlwind for labor and workplace safety policy. Stark differences between the...more
In just a couple of weeks, we will have the opportunity to enter the voting booth, and cast a ballot to elect the next President of the United States. The platforms and proposed polices of the candidates are more divergent...more
Special impact inspections in July that covered 13 states resulted in 161 citations, the Mine Safety and Health Administration has announced. This is a 41-percent increase from the 114 citations issued the previous month....more