United States of America

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

 1120 20th Street, N.W., Ninth Floor

 Washington, DC 20036-3457

 Office of Phone: (202) 606-5400

Executive Secretary Fax: (202) 606-5050

July 12, 2013

Stephen A. Yokich, Esq.

Cornfield and Feldman LLP

25 East Washington Street, Suite 1400

Chicago, IL 60602-1803

Re: Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. and USW, Local #207L

OSHRC Docket No. 11-0079

Dear Counsel:

The Petition for Interlocutory Review filed by the Authorized Employee Representatives was 

received on June 12, 2013. The Commission currently does not have a quorum and therefor no 

action may be taken on the Petition. Accordingly, the Petition will be denied at the close of 

business today. Commission Rule 73(b), 29 C.F.R. § 2200.73(b). 

Chairman Rogers’ separate statement concerning the Petition is attached.

Yours very truly,

/s/

Ray H. Darling, Jr.

Executive Secretary

cc: Hema Steele, Attorney

Paul Spanos, Attorney

Office of the Solicitor, U.S. DOL

881 Federal Office Building

1240 East Ninth Street

Cleveland, OH 44199
2

Dennis J. Morikawa, Esq.

Courtney Wirth Griffin, Esq.

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP

1701 Market Street 

Philadelphia, PA 19103-2921

Jonathan L. Snare, Esq.

Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, LLP

1111 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20004

Ken S. Welsch, Administrative Law Judge

Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission

1924 Building – Room 2R90

100 Alabama Street, SW

Atlanta, GA 30303-3104
 United States of America 

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

 1120 20th Street, N.W., Ninth Floor 

 Washington, DC 20036-3457

SECRETARY OF LABOR,

Complainant,

v. OSHRC Docket No. 11-0079

COOPER TIRE & RUBBER CO.,

Respondent,

UNITED STEEL WORKERS and LOCAL 

#207L

 Authorized Employee

 Representatives. 

OPINION OF CHAIRMAN ROGERS 

By: ROGERS, Chairman.

 On June 12, 2013, the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy 

Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union (the “International”), and Local Union 

#207L, (collectively referred to as the “Union”), jointly filed a petition for interlocutory review. 

In its petition, the Union seeks interlocutory review of former Administrative Law Judge Stephen 

J. Simko’s order regarding the Secretary’s discovery request for a plant visit of Respondent’s

facility in Findlay, Ohio. Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (“Cooper Tire”) filed a response in 

opposition to the petition for interlocutory review on June 20, 2013. 

 The judge’s order granted the Secretary’s discovery request and limited the total number 

of representatives who could participate in the visit for the Secretary, Cooper Tire, and the 

Union. In addition, the judge ruled that only Union representatives who were employees of 

Cooper Tire could participate for the Union. As a result, one of the Union’s selected 

representatives, a safety and health specialist employed by the International who appeared on 
2

behalf of the Union and participated in case-related matters, was not permitted by the judge to 

join in the visit—the Order specifically restricted his presence during the visit to the plant office 

or conference room area.

On review of the record, the judge appears to have erred in precluding the Union 

representative from joining in the plant visit. See Commission Rule 22(a), 29 C.F.R. 

§ 2200.22(a) (“Any party or intervenor may appear in person, through an attorney, or through 

another representative who is not an attorney.”) Although the judge provided a reasonable 

explanation for limiting the total number of representatives for the visit, he did not identify a 

legally cognizable basis for selecting which of the Union’s representatives could participate.

As the Executive Secretary explains in the attached letter to the parties dated July 12, 

2013, the Commission does not have a quorum to act on the Union’s petition for interlocutory 

review. I therefore leave for another day the question of whether such an error would be 

appropriate for interlocutory review. See Commission Rule 73(a)(1), 29 C.F.R. § 2200.73(a)(1). 

/s/

Thomasina V. Rogers

Dated: July 12, 2013 Chairman