WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation today released advance informational copies of the 2014 Form 5500 annual return/report and related instructions.

DARIEN, Wis. — One would expect subzero temperatures in the Arctic Circle and understand the need for a coat, but employees working in a 40-degree-below-zero Fahrenheit freezer at Birds Eye Foods Inc. in Darien were left in the cold. An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that the company expected employees to work in extreme temperatures without properly insulated personal protective equipment.

MINE HILL, N.J. — Permanent and temporary workers were exposed to workplace dangers, including chemical hazards and vapors from flammable liquids, at a Fiabila USA Inc. facility in Mine Hill. Following a complaint, an inspection in May 2014 by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found Fiabila workers and temporary workers employed by two staffing agencies were exposed to hazards and other dangerous safety and health violations at the plant.

WASHINGTON — U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez today announced the appointment of five new members to the 2015 Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans — also known as the ERISA Advisory Council. He also announced the incoming chair and vice chair of the council.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $580,921 National Emergency Grant incremental award to provide continued training and other services to approximately 175 workers impacted by the closure of Mersen USA, a manufacturer in Newburyport, Mass., and Philips Lightolier, a lighting company in Wilmington, Mass.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $580,921 National Emergency Grant incremental award to provide continued training and other services to approximately 175 workers impacted by the closure of Mersen USA, a manufacturer in Newburyport, Mass., and Philips Lightolier, a lighting company in Wilmington, Mass.

GREELEY, Colo. — A 54-year-old worker was fatally injured when his hair and arm caught in an unguarded conveyor system. His employer, JBS USA LLC, failed to protect workers from moving machine parts by properly guarding or de-energizing the equipment, an inspection in June 2014 by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found. The agency cited the meat packing plant for one repeated and one serious violation.

BAYTOWN, Texas — Employees who perform maintenance work on a metal cutting machine must be trained to safely de-energize the machinery and conduct periodic audits of those procedures, according to the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration. An OSHA inspection on June 10, 2014, of the JSW Steel (USA) Inc. Baytown facility found the company violated 12 safety requirements. Proposed penalties total $126,000.

SEATTLE — Computer Sciences Corp. improperly laid off two employees for raising nuclear safety concerns about the Hanford nuclear facility, in violation of federal whistleblower laws. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has ordered the company to pay $186,000 in wages to the two employees.

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — Vallencourt Construction Co. Inc. knowingly endangered employees at a residential construction site by allowing them to work in an unprotected excavation on Las Calinas Boulevard in St. Augustine. Following a June 2014 inspection, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Vallencourt for two willful and five serious safety violations. Proposed penalties total $169,000.

BELVIDERE, Ill. — A 21-year-old machine operator was fatally crushed at Ventra Belvidere LLC while reaching into a machine to align parts made for Chrysler vehicles. Following an investigation into the incident on June 10, 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the Belvidere facility for one willful and four serious safety violations for exposing workers to dangerous machinery and other hazards.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced that $100 million in grants are available to expand registered apprenticeship programs in high-skilled, high-growth industries like healthcare, biotechnology, information technology and advanced manufacturing. Registered Apprenticeships have long been known as one of the best training models for skilled trades ("earn while you learn"), yet the model remains underutilized in the United States.

FOSTORIA, Ohio — All-Set Roofing and Construction Inc. allowed three employees to work 15 feet up on a roof to install shingles without fall protection at a residence in Fostoria. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the Bowling Green company for one willful and one repeat violation, with proposed penalties of $44,660.

LEWISBURG, Ohio — A 44-year-old machine operator suffered severe injuries when a part of his face was caught in a power press he operated at Parker Hannifin Corp.'s Lewisburg, Ohio, plant. An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued one repeat citation and two serious safety violations for exposing the worker to machinery operating parts with inadequate safeguards. Proposed penalties total $52,500.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of $1,189,280 to the State of Oregon to enhance the state's short-time compensation program, a layoff prevention program, also known as "work sharing."

PHILADELPHIA — Thousands of workers employed by contractors engaged in nat

MORTON GROVE, Ill. — Two workers installing a water main at Golf Road and Sayre Avenue in Morton Grove were exposed to cave-in hazards that can bury a person in mere minutes. An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found A. Lamp Concrete Contractors Inc. responsible for one willful violation because it failed to protect workers from cave-ins during trenching operations. The proposed penalty totals $69,300.

WAKEFIELD, Neb. — Violations of the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration confined spaces safety regulations led to the death of a worker on June 19, 2014, at Michael Foods Inc. in Wakefield. The 23-year-old Latino worker was found unresponsive in a tanker truck at the company's Big Red Farms facility. He was conducting sampling of the tank, which contained egg products and nitrogen.

BOISE, Idaho — Chapala Mexican Restaurant, a Boise-area restaurant chain, will pay $230,000 in back wages and liquidated damages to 51 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found overtime violations at its Boise, Nampa, Garden City and McCall locations.