Latest Contractors Headlines
All the headlines from our Contractors Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Freelancers File First Lawsuit Challenging Independent Contractor Rule
Jan 17 2024 // A group of freelance writers and editors has sued the U.S. Department of Labor, claiming the Biden administration’s new rule making it more difficult for companies to treat some workers as independent contractors is...
Added Protection or Opportunity Lost? New Independent Contractor Rule Issued
Jan 10 2024 // The U.S. Department of Labor on Jan. 9 issued a final rule, more than a year in the making, on the definition of an independent contractor. First proposed in October 2022, the rule provides guidance to employers in...
Illinois Contractor Faces $278K in Fines for Exposing Workers to Falls
Jan 9 2024 // Twice within a month, an Illinois roofing contractor — cited previously more than 20 times for violating federal workplace safety regulations — was again found exposing employees to falls as they did residential...
New Contractor Rule to Be Unveiled Soon That Could Upend Gig Economy
Jan 9 2024 // The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden will release a final rule as soon as this week that will make it more difficult for companies to treat workers as independent contractors rather than employees that typically...
‘Severe Violator’ Ohio Contractor Agrees to $730K OSHA Settlement
Jan 3 2024 // The U.S. Department of Labor has reached a settlement agreement to resolve litigation following a March 2022 investigation at a work site in Wheeling that resulted in a dozen citations issued against an Ohio-based...
Minnesota Construction Contractor Faces $1.8 Million in OSHA Penalties
Dec 18 2023 // Despite signing a 2021 settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor that included a promise to protect its employees from potentially deadly trenching and excavation hazards, a Minnesota construction contractor...
Illinois Roofing Contractor Fined $275K for Failing to Provide Fall Protection
Dec 15 2023 // Federal workplace safety inspectors found a Palatine, Illinois contractor did not provide roofing employees with required fall protection, exposing them to the risk of falls from elevation, the construction...
California Labor Commissioner Fines Contractor $1.1M for 74 Workers
Dec 14 2023 // The California Labor Commissioner’s Office collected $1.1 million in wages and penalties resulting from a prevailing wage assessment against general contractor Stronghold Engineering and its subcontractor, Perry...
New Hampshire Roofing Contractor Lied to Beat OSHA Penalties, Judge Says
Dec 5 2023 // A New Hampshire contractor has been accused of lying and being evasive in an attempt to avoid responsibility for safety hazards for roofers at his worksite. A federal administrative law judge has determined that Barry...
Florida Authorities Charge 4 in Fraudulent Roof Claims, Issue Warrant for Contractor
Dec 4 2023 // Florida authorities have announced the arrest of four people in connection with an alleged scheme to deliberately damage roofs in order to qualify them for insurance claims. And another contractor well known to insurers...
Boston Begins Requiring Contractors to Implement Site Safety Plans
Dec 4 2023 // The city of Boston began requiring construction and demolition contractors to file site-specific safety plans and attest to following them on December 1. The requirement is part of the city’s implementation of a new...
Wisconsin Roofing Contractor Faces $180K in Fines For Repeated Safety Violations
Nov 29 2023 // After an Overhead Solutions LLC manager attended an on-site training discussion on fall hazards on May 25, 2023, federal workplace safety inspectors observed the company’s employees working about 30 feet above ground...
Lawsuit Blames Negligence by Plant Owner, HVAC Contractors for Cannabis Worker’s Asthma Death
Nov 29 2023 // A lawsuit has been filed over what has been identified as the cannabis industry’s first asthma workplace death. The mother of a worker who died from an asthma attack at a Massachusetts cannabis processing plant in...
New York Contractor Faces $522K in OSHA Penalties for Exposing Workers to Fall Hazards
Nov 22 2023 // A federal workplace safety investigation alleges that a Huntington, New York contractor could have prevented a roofer’s fatal fall at a Glen Cove worksite in April by following legally required safeguards designed to...
Louisiana Contractor Gets Max Fine After Fatal Fall at Hyundai Plant Site
Nov 20 2023 // Federal safety regulators have brought the hammer down on a Louisiana contractor, deciding that the company failed to use correct safety equipment that would have prevented a fatal fall at an electric car plant...
US Contractors, Insurers Overlooking Some Safety Improvements in Construction
Nov 15 2023 // Many American construction firms are failing to implement obvious and inexpensive safety measures that could save lives, reduce injuries and avoid costly insurance claims. And many insurers are not nudging their insured...
Boston Begins Requiring Contractors to File and Vow to Implement Site Safety Plans
Nov 7 2023 // The city of Boston will begin requiring construction and demolition contractors to file site-specific safety plans and attest to following them starting December 1. The requirement is part of the city’s...
Louisiana Contractor Gets Max Fine After Fatal Fall at Georgia Hyundai Plant Site
Nov 3 2023 // Federal safety regulators have brought the hammer down on a Louisiana contractor, deciding that the company failed to use correct safety equipment that would have prevented a fatal fall at an electric car plant...
Oregon OSHA Cites Contractor for Repeatedly Violating Fall Hazard Requirements
Oct 30 2023 // Oregon OSHA cited Forest Grove contractor J&K Roofing Co. $39,000 for repeatedly violating a requirement to provide protection to safeguard workers from fall hazards that could injure or kill them. The citation...
New York Roofing Contractor Ordered to Provide Fall Protection for Workers
Oct 26 2023 // The U.S. Department of Labor has obtained a consent injunction ordering a Rockland County roofing contractor and its principal to provide employees with fall protection equipment and make sure it’s used at all...
