June 24, 2015

MSHA News Brief: MSHA announces results of May impact inspections [06/24/2015]

Who: Mine Safety and Health Administration

What: The Mine Safety and Health Administration announced today that federal inspectors issued 176 citations during special impact inspections in May at 10 coal mines and seven metal and nonmetal mines.

Where: MSHA conducted impact inspections at mines in Alabama, California, Kentucky, Illinois, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.

June 23, 2015

OSHA News Brief: OSHA reminds greater Baltimore-area employers to protect workers from heat illness [06/23/2015]

BALTIMORE — With sweltering temperatures impacting the greater Baltimore area today, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is reminding employers to protect their workers from heat illness.

June 23, 2015

OSHA News Brief: OSHA reminds Philadelphia-area employers to protect workers from heat illness [06/23/2015]

PHILADELPHIA — With sweltering temperatures impacting the greater Philadelphia today, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is reminding employers to protect their workers from heat illness.

June 23, 2015

OSHA News Brief: OSHA reminds DC metro employers to protect workers from heat illness [06/23/2015]

WASHINGTON — With sweltering temperatures impacting the DC metro area today, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is reminding employers to protect their workers from heat illness.

June 23, 2015

OSHA News Brief: OSHA reminds northern Delaware employers to protect workers from heat illness [06/23/2015]

PHILADELPHIA — With sweltering temperatures impacting northern Delaware today, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is reminding employers to protect their workers from heat illness.

June 23, 2015

$35 Million in job training grants will help more than 16,000 veterans overcome homelessness and secure employment

WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez announced today the award of nearly $35 million in grants to provide an estimated 16,000 veterans with job-driven training for in-demand jobs to help them successfully transition from homelessness to sustainable housing and good civilian jobs.

"In cities like Salt Lake City, Houston and Phoenix, through partnerships and the aggressive delivery of supportive services, we have shown that veteran homelessness is not a reality we have to accept," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez.

June 23, 2015

OPA News Brief: Civil and worker rights leader Frank Kameny enters Labor Hall of Honor [06/23/2015]

Who: U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez, U.S. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, and U.S. Department of Defense Chief of Staff Eric Fanning

What: Secretary Perez inducted civil rights leader and worker rights equality pioneer Frank Kameny into the Department of Labor's Hall of Honor at a ceremony today at 3 p.m.

June 22, 2015

WHD News Release: As widespread bridge repair and replacement effort continues in Oklahoma the US Labor Department steps up labor law education and enforcement [06/22/2015]

OKLAHOMA CITY — Heavy construction in Oklahoma continues to boom as the state's Department of Transportation repairs or replaces aging bridges and roads. An influx of contractors brings new jobs and often a host of labor law violations that apply to these projects.

June 22, 2015

OSHA News Release: Delaware poultry-processing plant exposed workers to serious hazards including musculoskeletal injuries [06/22/2015]

HARBESON, Del. — Workers cutting chicken fat, bone and cartilage eight hours a day at a Delaware poultry plant are suffering musculoskeletal injuries caused by their jobs, an inspection by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found.

June 22, 2015

EBSA News Brief: Employee retirement funds restored, $106K [06/22/2015]

Date of Action: June 16, 2015

Type of Action: Consent Judgment

Name of Defendant: The Estate of Richard Talley and American Title Services Retirement Trust

Allegations: Based on an investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefit Security Administration regarding a complaint filed on June 27, 2014 alleging:

June 22, 2015

WHD News Release: Federal enforcement effort finds more than 3,000 Gulf Coast workers owed nearly $3.5 million in back wages by staffing agencies [06/22/2015]

NEW ORLEANS — Six Gulf Coast staffing agencies have agreed to pay thousands of workers nearly $3.5 million in back wages after U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found part of their wages were mislabeled as "per diem" payments as reimbursement for expenses they never incurred.

Federal investigators found the agencies owed back wages to more than 3,000 workers – welders, electricians, pipe fitters, and other craftspeople – on maritime vessels and other oil and gas industry projects.

June 18, 2015

WHD News Release: US Labor Department investigation recovers nearly $355K for 25 workers owed back wages by Mexican food restaurant in Mankato, Minnesota [06/18/2015]

MANKATO, Minn. — Twenty-five employees of a Minnesota restaurant will receive almost $355,000 in back wages after U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division investigators found that the eatery violated minimum wage, overtime and record-keeping provisions in the Fair Labor Standards Act.

June 18, 2015

OSHA News Brief: OSHA cites construction company in death of heavy equipment operator [06/18/2015]

Employer name: Gehring Construction & Ready Mix Concrete Inc., Columbus, Nebraska

Investigation site: 3304 North Shore Drive Schuyler, Nebraska

June 18, 2015

OSHA News Brief: Melrose Park, Illinois, metal shop exposes workers to machine hazards [06/18/2015]

Employer name: Alin Machining Company Inc., doing business as Power Plant ServicesInvestigation site: 3131 W. Soffel Ave. Melrose Park, Illinois

Date investigation initiated and what prompted inspection: On March 4, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Chicago North Area Office initiated an inspection after Alin Machining Company reported that a worker had suffered a severe finger laceration while operating a lathe.

June 18, 2015

ETA News Release: $34M available to enhance, expand innovation and accountability in workforce development programs [06/18/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. labor market is in constant motion as businesses react to fluid marketplace demands. To stay current with these changes and equip workers with the skills needed to be competitive, job-training programs must be nimble and ready to respond as labor demands change.

Effective partnerships with industries and educational organizations also allow federally funded training programs to align better with the local economy and shift as changes occur.

June 17, 2015

OSHA News Release: Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway must reinstate injured conductor and pay $536K in damages for retaliation [06/17/2015]

SEATTLE — North America's second-largest freight railroad, Burlington Northern Santa Fe LLC, must reinstate a train conductor and pay the man $536,063 in back pay, damages and attorney's fees after a federal investigation found the rail operator retaliated against its employee after reporting a knee injury.

June 17, 2015

OSHA News Release: Open-flame heater likely cause of Coalgate oil rig fire; 3 deaths and serious injuries to 2 others, OSHA finds [06/17/2015]

OKLAHOMA CITY — An open-flame heater on the floor of a rig likely sparked the fire that killed three natural gas drillers and seriously injured two others in a December 2014 drilling rig fire in Coalgate, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has concluded.

In June 2013, OSHA cited the company for allowing the use of an open-flame heater.

June 17, 2015

OSHA News Brief: Newark construction company exposed workers to falls, safety hazards at Pennsylvania worksite [06/17/2015]

Employer Name and Location: Frame carpentry contractor Express Construction 3 Corp. is located at 64 Wright Street, 2nd Floor, in Newark, New Jersey. The investigation was conducted at The Mews at Liberty Village, a residential construction project in Coopersburg, Pennsylvania.

June 17, 2015

OFCCP News Release: Baltimore staffing agency allegedly harassed, discriminated against and allowed assault and abuse of Hispanic employees [06/17/2015]

BALTIMORE — A Baltimore staffing agency for federal contractors allegedly hired Hispanic construction laborers, and then harassed and discriminated against them. It also allowed supervisors of other federal contractors to assault them physically, make racial slurs, and threaten them with deportation. The allegations were made in a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.

June 17, 2015

OFCCP News Release: Baltimore staffing agency allegedly harassed, discriminated against and allowed assault and abuse of Hispanic employees [06/17/2015]

BALTIMORE — A Baltimore staffing agency for federal contractors allegedly hired Hispanic construction laborers, and then harassed and discriminated against them. It also allowed supervisors of other federal contractors to assault them physically, make racial slurs, and threaten them with deportation. The allegations were made in a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs.