LAKEWOOD, NJ - The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited GMG Brito Contractors LLC for exposing employees to fall and other safety hazards at a residential construction site in Lakewood, New Jersey. OSHA has proposed penalties totaling $127,436.

CALVERT CITY, KY – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited five contractors for safety and health violations after three employees were fatally injured and two others critically injured following an explosion onboard a towboat in Calvert City, Kentucky. The five companies collectively received 55 of violations with proposed penalties totaling $795,254.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced today the availability of up to $250,000 in funding through its Brookwood-Sago grant program to support education and training to help identify, avoid, and prevent unsafe working conditions in and around the nation's mines. Brookwood-Sago grants focus on powered haulage safety, examinations of working places at metal and nonmetal mines, or emergency prevention and preparedness.

WASHINGTON, DC – The Women's Bureau at the U.S. Department of Labor has posted interactive career education information, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The information, including the median annual earnings in more than 300 occupations, is intended to help Americans make informed decisions about their career path.

NORTH CHARLESTON, SC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta toured the Boeing Company's North Charleston facility today as he highlighted President Trump's Pledge to America's Workers – a White House initiative that calls on job creators to invest in the workforce by providing opportunities for education and training that will help more Americans thrive in the modern workplace.

ATLANTA, GA – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) signed a strategic partnership with the Georgia Tech Enterprise Innovation Institute's Safety, Health, and Environmental Services Group; Associated General Contractors of Georgia Inc. (AGC Georgia); and Brasfield & Gorrie LLC to promote workplace safety and health during the construction of the Coca-Cola United South Metro Sales Center and Warehouse in Union City, Georgia.

AUBURN, AL – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited auto parts manufacturer Arkal Automotive USA Inc. for exposing workers to electrical and amputation hazards. The Auburn, Alabama, company faces $47,857 in proposed penalties.

WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta issued the following statement today regarding President Donald J. Trump's Executive Order establishing the National Council for the American Worker and the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board:

APPLETON, WI ‒ The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Carlos Ketz, who operates as Ketz Roofing, for the sixth time in the past five years for exposing employees to falls. OSHA proposed penalties totaling $48,777. 

OSHA inspectors cited the roofing contractor – based in Menasha, Wisconsin – after observing employees working without adequate fall protection on a commercial building in Appleton.

HASTINGS, FL – A U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found that Sauceda Contractor Inc., an H-2A farm labor contractor, violated the labor provisions of the H-2A visa program and the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act (MSPA) when it provided farmworkers to harvest cabbage at Barnes Farm in Hastings. As a result, the company has paid $19,847 in back wages to 53 employees, and WHD assessed the employer $5,526 in H-2A and MSPA civil money penalties.

ANN ARBOR, MI – Joak American Homes – operator of seven affiliated homecare companies in Michigan – will pay $125,793 in back wages owed to 58 employees after a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation found the company violated the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FL – An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD) has determined that Palm Valley Outdoors LLC, a north Florida seafood restaurant, violated child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). WHD issued the restaurant $4,294 in civil money penalties.

In the week ending July 14, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 207,000, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's revised level. This is the lowest level for initial claims since December 6, 1969 when it was 202,000. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 214,000 to 215,000. The 4-week moving average was 220,500, a decrease of 2,750 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 223,000 to 223,250.

LOS ANGELES, CA – More than 800 employees at 12 Southern California car washes will receive a share of a $4.2 million recovery obtained by the U.S. Department of Labor to conclude a lawsuit filed by the Department. In a consent judgment entered by the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles, car wash operator Vahid David Delrahim and his related businesses must pay $3.8 million in back wages and liquidated damages for violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), along with $400,000 in civil money penalties.

LEBANON, MO – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Karrenbrock Excavating LLC for allowing two employees to work in an unprotected trench while installing sewers. The company faces proposed penalties of $189,221.

SAN JOSE, CA – Full Power Properties LLC – prime contractor and employer for the 650-unit, high-rise Silvery Towers project in San Jose, California – has paid $250,000 to 22 employees to resolve violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) found during a U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division (WHD) investigation.

WHD investigators determined that Full Power Properties LLC benefited from the work done by employees supplied by Job Torres, an unlicensed subcontractor doing business as Nobilis Construction.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced $150 million in grants to support sector-based approaches to expand apprenticeships on a national scale in key industry sectors. When awarded, the grants will move a step closer to President Trump's vision set forth in Executive Order on Expanding Apprenticeship in America, which calls for increasing the number of apprentices in the U.S. across all industries. 

BRYAN, TX – Texas-based cabinet manufacturer Kent Moore Cabinets LLC will pay $175,458 in back wages to 59 employees to resolve overtime, minimum wage, and recordkeeping violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) found in an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD).

WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Department of Labor announced the availability of funding to help recruit, train, and retain more women in quality pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs, and pursue careers in manufacturing, infrastructure, cybersecurity, and healthcare, among other industries. The Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations (WANTO) grant helps to expand pathways for women to enter in, and lead in, all industries.

WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Labor has rescinded the 2016 Persuader Rule, which exceeded the authority of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA). The Persuader Rule impinged on attorney-client privilege by requiring confidential information to be part of disclosures and was strongly condemned by many stakeholders, including the American Bar Association. A federal court has ruled that the Persuader Rule was incompatible with the law and client confidentiality.