Ray MARSHALL, Secretary of Labor, Petitioner-Appellant, v. BURLINGTON NORTHERN, INC., Respondent-Appellee

The Secretary of Labor appeals the district court’s order preventing an Occupational Safety and Health Administration compliance officer from inspecting Burlington Northern, Inc.’s railroad yard facilities at Laurel, Montana. The district judge ruled that OSHA’s jurisdiction did not extend to Burlington’s Laurel operations because the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) declared an intent to exercise its statutory authority in promulgating and enforcing standards affecting the occupational safety and health of Burlington’s Laurel employees. We find that Burlington prematurely raised, and the district court improperly considered, the question of OSHA’s jurisdiction, because the doctrine of exhaustion of administrative remedies requires that this jurisdictional dispute be initially ruled upon by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. We therefore reverse and remand.

Facts

On March 11, 1975, Duane Edgar, an OSHA compliance officer, acting pursuant to § 8(a) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 29 U.S.C. § 657 (a), conducted a safety inspection at Burlington’s Laurel facilities. He found what he contended were numerous violations of various OSHA safety…