U.S. Department of Labor Introduces Multi-Agency Opinion Letter Program

 

On Monday, June 2, the U.S. Department of Labor announced the launch of its opinion letter program. This expands the department’s longstanding commitment to providing meaningful compliance assistance that helps workers, employers and other stakeholders understand how federal labor laws apply in specific workplace situations. 

The program spans five key enforcement agencies within the department: 

  • The Wage and Hour Division will issue opinion letters.
  • The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will provide letters of interpretation.
  • The Employee Benefits Security Administration will release advisory opinions and information letters.
  • The Veterans’ Employment and Training Service will issue opinion letters.
  • The Mine Safety and Health Administration will provide compliance assistance resources through its new MSHA Information Hub, a centralized platform offering guidance, regulatory updates, training materials and technical support. 

“Opinion letters are an important tool in ensuring workers and businesses alike have access to clear, practical guidance,” said Deputy Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling. “Launching this program is part of our broader effort to empower the public with the information they need to understand and comply with the laws the department enforces.” 

Opinion letters provide official written interpretations from the department’s enforcement agencies, explaining how laws apply to specific factual circumstances presented by individuals or organizations. By addressing real-world questions, they promote clarity, consistency, and transparency in the application of federal labor standards. 

Why This Matters for Recyclers

One goal of OSHA is to help employers and workers understand how to comply with workplace health and safety standards. One of the compliance assistance tools is the Letter of Interpretation (LOI), the agency’s official response to questions about how OSHA requirements apply to specific workplace situations or hazards. These letters can help employers understand how to comply with Federal OSHA standards, regulations, and section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act in specific workplace situations.

To make LOIs more accessible, OSHA has updated the Letters of Interpretation webpage so users can now search by keyword, standard number, or date, and see direct links between standards and related letters.

To support this effort, the department has launched a landing page at dol.gov/opinion-letters. The new site allows users to explore past guidance and provides an easy way to submit new requests to the appropriate agency. 

For general questions about federal labor laws, individuals can visit dol.gov or call the department’s toll-free helpline at 1-866-4-USA-DOL (1-866-487-2365).