Recent Development by K.D. Pawlenko
An explosion on a drilling barge in a Louisiana bayou killed four workers and seriously injured two others. On June 16, 1997, Rig 52, a Mallard Bay Drilling (Mallard) barge, was drilling an oil well in the territorial waters of Louisiana. With the Mallard employees nearly finished drilling, an explosion occurred. The United States Coast Guard investigated the explosion. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), based on the information gathered by the Coast Guard, found three violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) and issued a citation against Mallard.
An Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) found that Rig 52 was a “workplace” within the meaning of the OSH Act and that the Coast Guard's regulatory authority over vessels did not preempt OSHA's jurisdiction. Mallard's Petition for Discretionary Review with the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission was denied. On appeal, Mallard asserted that OSHA lacked the authority to regulate the working conditions aboard Rig 52 because the rig was not a “workplace” as defined in the OSH Act and the Coast Guard has exclusive jurisdiction over the regulation of working conditions of seamen aboard vessels. The Department of Labor (DOL) argued that the Coast Guard has exclusive jurisdiction over the regulation of the working conditions of seamen only aboard inspected vessels, but not aboard uninspected vessels. Because Rig 52 was an uninspected vessel, the DOL claimed that OSHA's jurisdiction was not preempted by the Coast Guard's regulatory authority over vessels. The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that OSHA was preempted from exercising its regulatory authority over the uninspected fleet. On writ of certiorari, the United States Supreme Court reversed the Fifth Circuit and held that the Coast Guard does not have exclusive jurisdiction over the regulation of working conditions of seamen aboard uninspected vessels. Chao v. Mallard Bay Drilling, Inc., 122 S. Ct. 738, 743-44 (2002).
About the Author
K.D. Pawlenko.
Citation
76 Tul. L. Rev. 1775 (2002)