Division of Occupational Safety and Health

The Solicitor's Occupational Safety and Health Division (OSH) provides legal support to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the agency that ensures safe and healthy working conditions for workers. OSH provides legal services related to several worker-protection statutes:

• The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970
• Whistleblower protection provisions of the Surface Transportation Assistance Act and the Seaman's Protection Act

The OSH Division is responsible for appellate litigation in the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals and the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission, and assists OSHA in developing standards, guidance, and interpretations. Division attorneys also work with OSHA to draft and review new regulations and supporting documentation. The OSH Division provides assistance to the SOL Regional Offices, particularly on high-profile, novel, and complex enforcement matters.

Accomplishments

• Won a favorable decision from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission affirming a citation against Integra Health Management, Inc., after an employee was killed while attempting to provide social services at the home of a client with a violent criminal background (opinion). In this case of first impression, the Commission held that the OSH Act covered workplace violence hazards where there is a direct nexus between the risk of violence and the work done by the employee.
• Assisted OSHA in promulgating a final rule clarifying employees' right to authorize a representative to accompany an OSHA compliance officer during a workplace inspection. Employee representation is vital to thorough and effective OSHA inspections, and this rule improves the effectiveness of OSHA inspections and benefits employee safety and health.
• Won a favorable decision from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirming a citation against Walmart after an employee was seriously injured in a Walmart warehouse when merchandise fell from an upper rack of an unstable shelving unit and struck the employee on the head (opinion). The court deferred to OSHA's interpretation of the Secure Storage standard, 29 C.F.R. §
  1910.176(b), which applies to items "stored in tiers," as covering the storage of items on multi-level metal racks even though the items were not stacked directly on top of each other. 
• Entered into a corporate-wide settlement agreement with the discount retailer Dollar Tree addressing nationwide egress issues within its retail establishments. The agreement includes a variety of enhanced abatement measures, as well as a ground-breaking provision that requires Dollar Tree and Family Dollar to abate alleged violations related to egress, fire extinguisher and electrical panel access, and material storage within a 48-hour period or be subject to monetary assessments for each day abatement has not occurred, up to $500,000. The Agreement holds Dollar Tree accountable and protects workers from hazards by ensuring the rapid abatement of egress hazards within the company's stores.
• Entered into a settlement agreement with Smithfield Packaged Meats Corp., the country's largest pork processor, following a COVID-19 outbreak at a plant in Sioux Falls, SD, that resulted in citations for violations of the OSH Act's General Duty Clause for failing to protect employees from COVID hazards. The company agreed to put together a team of experts to formulate a corporate-wide infectious disease preparedness plan that proactively monitors and identifies hazards associated with potential infectious disease outbreaks. The agreement also ensures the company has appropriate PPE on hand and conducts training in a language workers can understand.

What We Do

The Division's attorneys work on:

• Appellate litigation, including:
  • Briefing appeals before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission and U.S. Courts of Appeals in cases involving agency enforcement actions (which are usually brought by our colleagues in the regional offices);
  • Defending OSHA rulemakings against challenges in the U.S. Courts of Appeals; and
  • Presenting oral arguments before the U.S. Courts of Appeals.
• Drafting, reviewing, and advising OSHA on standards and guidance materials, as well as participating in public hearings and meetings related to rulemaking;
• Providing legal advice to the OSHA National office and litigation support to SOL regional offices on matters such as:
  • Agency policies;
  • Interpretations of law;
  • Enforcement initiatives and guidance; and
  • Novel, significant, and complex cases, including assisting with settlement negotiations.

Staff attorneys generally engage in all the functions of the Division (rather than receiving assignments only within a particular subject area). They receive individual assignments from each of the Division's counsels, the senior attorneys, and sometimes directly from the Associate Solicitor and the Deputy Associate Solicitor. There is limited travel, usually averaging one to three overnight trips per year, for oral arguments, trainings, and trial litigation assistance.

DOL Agencies Supported

• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Employment Opportunities

For employment opportunities, please visit the federal government's official jobs website or the DOL Honors Program website.

Contact OSHA

Contact OSHA at www.osha.gov/workers/file-complaint or 1-800-321-OSHA (6742).

Contact Information

200 Constitution Ave NW 
Room S-4004 
Washington, DC 20210

202-693-5445 
202-693-5466 (fax)

Published Legal Briefs