August 31, 2023

READOUT: Department of Labor joins Boston ironworkers for roundtable discussion on importance of mental health in the construction trades

BOSTON – Leaders of the U.S. Department of Labor convened yesterday in Boston for a roundtable discussion on the importance of mental health friendly workplaces, particularly in the building trades. The event was held at the Iron Workers Local 7 Union Hall.

August 31, 2023

Department of Labor finds Houston-area manufacturer failed to correct 2022 hazards; yields 16 repeat, serious violations, $298K in penalties

HOUSTON – The U.S. Department of Labor has cited a Stafford engine component manufacturer again for failing to correct safety hazards that caused an employee’s finger amputation in March 2022.

August 30, 2023

Colorado contractor awaits sentencing on manslaughter charge after failing to protect employees in 2021 trench collapse that killed 23-year-old worker

BRECKENRIDGE, CO The owner of an Avon construction company whose failure to follow required federal safety standards led to the 2021 trench collapse death of a 23-year-old employee in Breckenridge now awaits a November sentencing date after pleading guilty to manslaughter on Aug. 3, 2023.

August 29, 2023

Department of Labor announces proposed changes to clarify regulations on authorized employee representation during workplace inspections

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a notice of proposed rulemaking to revise regulations regarding who can be authorized by employees to act as their representative to accompany the department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration compliance officers during physical workplace inspections.

August 29, 2023

US Department of Labor, Mexican Consulate sponsor worker rights event

SAN ANTONIO – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, along with the Consulate of Mexico in San Antonio, hosted an outreach event for low-wage and at-risk workers and their advocates Aug. 29, 2023, at the Mexican Consulate in San Antonio as part of Labor Rights Week, August 28, through September 1.

August 24, 2023

Federal investigators find Texas contractor exposed employees to struck-by hazards that led to crane collapse, employee’s death

AUBREY, TX – A federal workplace safety investigation has found that a Farmersville construction contractor could have prevented the loss of a 23-year-old employee by following required safety procedures for operating a mobile crane at an Aubrey work site.

August 24, 2023

Risks Ignored: NOX US faces $545K in new penalties after 14th worker in 6 years suffers injuries at Fostoria vinyl manufacturing plant

FOSTORIA, OH – An Ohio-based vinyl tile manufacturer with a history of failing to protect workers from hazards at its Fostoria plant dating back to 2017, now faces an additional $545,853 in federal penalties after investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor.

August 24, 2023

Department of Labor orders Vermont agricultural equipment company to reinstate employee fired for raising environmental concerns

BOSTON – In early June 2022, an employee of a Vermont company that sells and services agricultural equipment observed their employer pumping wastewater from the facility’s service bays onto the ground bordering the Winooski River in Berlin. The employee reported their concerns about the potential harm to the river, first to supervisors and then to the state’s Department of Environmental Conservation.

August 24, 2023

US Department of Labor sues Waukegan contractor who refuses to pay more than $360K in penalties for repeatedly endangering roofing employees

CHICAGO – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit in federal court to force a Waukegan roofing contractor to pay $360,531 in penalties for repeatedly exposing employees to falls from elevations, the leading cause of fatal injuries in the construction industry.

August 23, 2023

Department of Labor announces corporate-wide settlement agreement with Dollar Tree, Family Dollar to address hazards at thousands of US stores

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced today that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration has entered into a corporate-wide settlement agreement with the operators of one of the nation’s largest discount retail chains to improve workplace safety significantly in stores nationwide. A key pillar of President Biden’s plan — Bidenomics — is empowering to grow the middle class.

August 23, 2023

US Department of Labor orders North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality to remove reprimand from employee’s personnel file

BISMARCK, ND A federal whistleblower investigation has found the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality illegally retaliated against an environmental scientist after they reported safety concerns about the public water system to management and later contacted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

August 22, 2023

Contractor’s safety failures continue as federal inspectors find employees exposed to deadly fall hazards twice within 2 months

WASHINGTON, MO – Twice within two months in 2023, U.S. Department of Labor inspectors observed Cheltenham Construction Services — a contractor with a history of workplace safety violations dating back to 2015 — once again exposing employees to deadly fall hazards as they performed siding and roofing work in Lake St. Louis and O’Fallon.

August 22, 2023

Alabama manufacturing facility exposed employees to safety hazards by using unguarded saws, Department of Labor investigation finds

ECLECTIC, AL ‒ The Texas-based operator of an Eclectic manufacturing facility could have prevented a 20-year-old worker from suffering an amputation if the employer had followed required federal safety standards, a U.S. Department of Labor investigation determined.

August 21, 2023

Department of Labor seeks reinstatement, back wages from Tyler pipe manufacturer that allegedly fired employee who raised safety concerns

TYLER, TX – The U.S. Department of Labor filed a lawsuit against Tyler Pipe Company alleging violations of federal whistleblower protections after the company fired an employee because they requested to use a respirator to protect them from smoke and fumes in the work area.

August 21, 2023

Federal investigation into employee’s fatal fall finds San Antonio wire drawing company willfully exposed workers to unsafe forklift hazards

SAN ANTONIO – A federal investigation has found that a San Antonio wire drawing company could have prevented an employee from suffering fatal injuries by following required workplace safety standards.

August 21, 2023

Rite Aid Corp. agrees to develop, implement bloodborne pathogen safety program for retail employees at all New Jersey, New York stores

NEW YORK – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an agreement with Rite Aid Corp. to implement a program to better protect employees, including front-end customer service staff, against hazards related to bloodborne pathogens at all its approximately 370 stores in New Jersey and New York.

August 18, 2023

Federal inspectors find Dixon Ticonderoga again failed to protect employees from unguarded machines during investigation of amputation injury

NEENAH, WI – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation into an employee’s amputation injury at a Neenah manufacturing plant in February 2023 found one of the nation’s oldest and most recognized companies again failed to follow required safety procedures.