September 20, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Awards Susan Harwood Workplace Safety and Health Training Grants to Assist in Educating Workers and Employers

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has awarded approximately $10.5 million in Susan Harwood federal safety and health training grants to 79 nonprofit organizations nationwide. The grants will provide education and training programs to help workers and employers recognize serious workplace hazards, implement injury prevention measures and understand their rights and responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970.  

September 20, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Ohio Manufacturer For Exposing Employees to Multiple Safety and Health Hazards

OLMSTED FALLS, OH – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited American Wire and Cable Company – an appliance industry supplier – for more than two dozen serious violations of workplace safety and health standards at the manufacturer's facility in Olmsted Falls, Ohio. The company faces $185,640 in penalties.

September 20, 2019

County Court Sentences Ohio Roofing Contractor to 3 Years in Prison For Ignoring Safety Hazards Leading to Employee’s Fatal Fall

AKRON, OH – An Ohio county court has sentenced Jim Coon – a roofing contractor based in Akron, Ohio – to prison after he pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the death of a 39-year-old employee who fell from a three-story roof while working without required fall protection in November 2017. The court's action follows an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that found the contractor failed to install fall protection systems.   

September 20, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Announces Final Rule to Modernize and Improve the Recruitment of American Workers for Temporary Agricultural Jobs

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) has issued a Final Rule aimed at helping Americans find open agricultural jobs by modernizing the labor market test for H-2A temporary agricultural labor certification in the Federal Register.

September 19, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Awards National Dislocated Worker Grant To West Virginia to Assist Recovery from Severe Storms and Flooding

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today approved Disaster Recovery National Dislocated Worker Grant funding of $975,000 to Workforce West Virginia to assess workforce needs in response to severe storms in June 2019, which brought heavy rainfall that caused extreme flooding and extensive damage to waterways.

September 19, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Announces Chief Data Officer, Data Board, and Chief Evaluation Officer

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor announced Scott Gibbons as Chief Data Officer to lead the Department's Data Board and Christina Yancey as Chief Evaluation Officer for the Department.

"A commitment to rigorous program evaluations and an improved digital infrastructure are two key components of the Department of Labor's future success," Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Patrick Pizzella said.

September 19, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Colorado Utility Company For Exposing Employees to Trenching Hazards

GREENWOOD VILLAGE, CO – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited RMS Utilities Inc. – based in Alamosa, Colorado – for exposing employees to trenching hazards. The company faces $92,819 in penalties.

September 19, 2019

Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report

In the week ending September 14, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 208,000, an increase of 2,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 2,000 from 204,000 to 206,000. The 4-week moving average was 212,250, a decrease of 750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 500 from 212,500 to 213,000.

September 18, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Idaho Dollar Tree Stores After Finding Widespread Storage Violations

BOISE, ID – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Dollar Tree Stores at four Idaho locations for exposing employees to unsafe storage of merchandise, and blocked walkways and exit routes. The company faces $898,682 in proposed penalties.

September 17, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Announces Fifth Annual National Apprenticeship Week

WASHINGTON, DC – Today the U.S. Department of Labor announced that the fifth annual National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) will be held from November 11-17, 2019.

Established by the U.S. Department of Labor, NAW is a nationwide celebration that brings together business leaders, labor, educational institutions, and Americans interested in apprenticeships to showcase the impact apprenticeship programs have on closing the U.S. skills gap and preparing the American workforce for the jobs of today and tomorrow.

September 16, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Wisconsin Company For Exposing Employees to Machine Hazards

NIAGARA, WI The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Koller Industries ‒ operating as Aurora Castings Services ‒ for continually exposing employees to machine hazards at the facility in Niagara, Wisconsin. The company faces $206,291 in penalties.

September 16, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Illinois Masonry Contractor for Repeatedly Exposing Employees to Fall and Scaffolding Hazards at Chicago Job Site

CHICAGO, IL – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Polo Masonry Builders Inc. – based in Park Ridge, Illinois – for exposing employees to fall and scaffolding hazards while working on a commercial building project in Chicago, Illinois. The company faces penalties of $252,136. OSHA placed the company in the Severe Violator Enforcement Program.

September 16, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Fines Wisconsin Excavation Company For Exposing Employees to Trenching Hazards

NEW LONDON, WI - The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Wood Sewer & Excavation Inc. for willfully exposing employees to excavation hazards at a construction site in Fox Point, Wisconsin. The company faces $65,921 in penalties.

OSHA inspectors cited the company for failing to protect employees working inside an 8-feet-deep trench and provide a safe means of exit from the excavation area.

September 13, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Colorado Homebuilder For Exposing Employees to Fall Hazards

GREENWOOD VILLAGE, CO – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Century Communities Inc. – a Colorado-based homebuilder – for exposing employees to fall hazards. The company faces $132,598 in penalties.

September 13, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Ohio Roofing Contractor For Exposing Employees to Fall Hazards

DAYTON, OH – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Roofs by Antonio LLC – based in Dayton, Ohio – for exposing employees to fall hazards while they installed shingles on a sloped roof in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company faces penalties of $159,118 for repeatedly violating OSHA's fall protection standards.

September 13, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Cites Florida Roofing Contractor After Fatal Fall at Work Site

MELBOURNE, FL – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Hough Roofing Inc. – based in Palm Bay, Florida – for exposing employees to fall hazards after a worker suffered a fatal injury from a fall while performing roofing activities at a work site in Melbourne, Florida.

September 12, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Awards Dislocated Worker Grant to Massachusetts after Weetabix Manufacturing Facility Closure

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced National Dislocated Worker Grant funding of $372,945 to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development to provide reemployment services to individuals impacted by the closure of the Weetabix cereal manufacturing facility in Clinton, Massachusetts, operated by Post Holdings Inc.

September 12, 2019

Tennessee Management Company Pays $45,378 for Overtime Violations Found by U.S. Department of Labor in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina

NASHVILLE, TN – After an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD), Accelerated Learning Solutions Inc. – a school management company based in Nashville, Tennessee – has paid $45,378 in back wages to 59 employees for violating the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

September 12, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Investigation Results in Michigan Health Care Providers Paying $400,000 in Back Wages to 476 Employees

DETROIT, MI – Two Detroit area residential care facilities operated by Beaumont Health will pay $400,007 in back wages to 476 employees after investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) found the employer violated the Fair Labor Standards Act's (FLSA) overtime and recordkeeping provisions. Investigators determined 283 employees at Beaumont Commons in Dearborn, Michigan, are due $250,659 in back wages, and 193 employees at Botsford Commons in Farmington Hills, Michigan, are due $149,348.

September 12, 2019

U.S. Department of Labor Files Contempt Petition Against Massachusetts Companies Ordered to Pay $2.4 Million in Back Wages, Damages

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. Department of Labor has asked the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts to hold two Massachusetts construction companies and two of their officers in civil contempt for not fulfilling the terms of an August 2016 consent judgment and order that requires them to pay $2,359,685 in back wages and liquidated damages to 478 employees.