Introduction: Understanding the New Regulations on Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS) Respirable crystalline silica (RCS) is classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a human carcinogen. ...more
The Supreme Court’s recent landmark ruling that gives employers a powerful tool to fight back against regulatory overreach will have a broad impact on just about every area of workplace law – and every industry. We’re looking...more
The Supreme Court’s recent landmark ruling that gives employers a powerful tool to fight back against regulatory overreach will have a broad impact on just about every area of workplace law. We’re looking at the specific...more
Over the past several years, employers have seen a significant uptick in retaliation claims filed by employees and investigated by federal agencies. For example, in 2010, only approx. 30% of all charges filed with the EEOC...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) released its long-anticipated silica rule on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (See the rule here) The rule is aimed at reducing miners’ exposure to respirable crystalline silica,...more
We have an important update to share about the status of MSHA’s Respirable Crystalline Silica rulemaking, officially proposed as Lowering Miners’ Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica and Improving Respiratory Protection....more
This week we are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA Review Commission, the MSHA Review...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Occupational Safety and Health Law Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA Review Commission, the...more
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) appropriately held its last stakeholder meeting of 2023 on National Miners Day, which recognizes the Monongah Mine disaster that occurred on December 6, 1907, near Fairmont,...more
Another federal government shutdown appears imminent as lawmakers reportedly remain deadlocked along partisan lines on an agreement to extend funding ahead of a 12:00 a.m. October 1, 2023 deadline. A government shutdown—which...more
It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law, especially since the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace. In order to ensure you stay on top of the latest changes and have an action plan...more
After Lengthy Confirmation Fight, Brace For Intrusive EEOC Action. On July 13, the Senate finally confirmed attorney Kaplana Kotagal — whom we have had numerous occasion to discuss in this space — to join the Equal Employment...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently added some small clarity to the murky jurisdictional border between the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and the Occupational Safety and Health...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: This week we are attending the ABA Workplace and Occupational Safety and Health Law Committee Midwinter Meeting in San Diego, California. The meeting includes representatives from the U.S. Department of...more
On September 9, 2015, then U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Quillian Yates issued a memo, “Individual Accountability for Corporate Wrongdoing,” that sent shivers down the spines of those in the workplace safety community....more
To state the obvious, the pandemic has resulted in completely unexpected change across the country in so many ways. OSHA’s visibility and role are probably one of the most significant changes to any federal agency. Prior to...more
Mine operators may not be among the employers that will be impacted by OSHA’s mandate-or-test Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), but questions abound in the mining community about the state of the emergency rule and whether...more
On November 4, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) applicable to employers of 100 or more employees. The ETS requires employers to adopt a soft vaccine...more
On October 25, 2021 the US Senate confirmed President Biden’s nominee Doug Parker to be the next Assistant Secretary of Labor and leader of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Mr. Parker will be the...more
When the Biden administration announced on September 9 that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) would be issuing a rule requiring employers to ensure its workers are vaccinated against COVID-19 or...more
On September 30, 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR)issued guidance to help the public understand when the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996...more
In a September 28, 2021 Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) stakeholder meeting, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy Jeannette J. Galanis stated that MSHA does not intend to issue an emergency temporary standard...more