Compliance Roundup: August 2026

August 2026 at a Glance

This month brought 5 regulatory updates across 3 compliance areas, affecting employers in 5 jurisdictions.

2 updates are rated high impact — these require prompt review and may necessitate policy or program changes.

Month in Trends

OSHA and Occupational Health were tied this month with 2 updates each. Notably, 4 enforcement actions were recorded — a reminder that agencies are actively inspecting and citing violations. Federal-level changes this month affect employers in all 50 states regardless of their primary operating location.

Employers should use this roundup to prioritize their compliance review. We recommend starting with the high-impact updates and working through the full list based on your industry and operating states.

All Updates This Month

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1. OSHA Cites Wisconsin Food Manufacturer $364K After Two Kettle Failures Kill Three Workers in Janesville 🔴

OSHA cited IPMF LLC, operating as NaturPak, after two industrial-kettle incidents at its Janesville, Wisconsin plant released hot steam, liquid, and organic material — killing three workers and seriously injuring two. On February 12, 2026, a clogged vent line let pressure build until a kettle lid opened onto two employees; one suffered a concussion and one later died. On March 18, 2026, a second lid opened under pressure, burning three workers, two of them fatally. OSHA issued a serious citation for the kettle design and thermal-burn hazards, additional serious citations for exposing workers to thermal hazards without quick access to emergency water, an other-than-serious citation for failing to notify employees working adjacent to permit-required confined spaces, and repeat citations for fall hazards and for failing to develop, document, train on, and use lockout/tagout procedures. Penalties total $364,100 — $115,850 from the February 12 inspection and $248,250 from the March 18 inspection.

Impact: High · Scope: Wisconsin (state profile) · Topic: OSHA · Type: Enforcement action

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2. EEOC Settles ADA Suit for $36K After Cheerwine Bottler Imposed a Premature Agility Test and Impermissible Health Inquiries 🟡

Piedmont Cheerwine Bottling Company will pay $36,000 to settle an EEOC disability-discrimination lawsuit over how it handled a workplace medical exam at its Colfax, North Carolina facility. According to the EEOC, an employee whose multiple sclerosis medication had deteriorated her hip cartilage — causing her to walk with a limp — was prematurely required to take an agility test and asked impermissible questions about her health. Although she met the physical requirements of the job, the company placed her on unpaid leave pending full medical clearance, then rejected her doctor's return-to-work note and terminated her. Under the two-year consent decree (EEOC v. Piedmont Cheerwine Bottling Company, No. 1:25-cv-00821, M.D.N.C.), the company must revise its written anti-discrimination policies, train managers, supervisors, and HR staff, post an employee notice, and report to the EEOC. The case is a reminder that fitness-for-duty and agility testing must be job-related and consistent with business necessity, and must not become a vehicle for disability-related medical inquiries barred by the ADA.

Impact: Medium · Scope: North Carolina (state profile) · Topic: Occupational Health · Type: Enforcement action

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3. OSHA Proposes $497K Against Pennsylvania Brick Manufacturer for Willful Silica Overexposure and Missing Medical Exams 🔴

OSHA cited General Shale Brick Inc., doing business as Watsontown Brick Company, with three willful, four serious, one repeat, and one other-than-serious violation after a February 12, 2026 inspection under the agency's Site-Specific Targeting plan and national emphasis program on respirable crystalline silica. Investigators found workers in Plant 3, where molded brick is made, breathing silica dust above permissible limits while the company knew about the exposure but failed to fix it or require respirators. OSHA also found the employer failed to conduct annual respirator fit tests, establish regulated areas where employees are exposed to silica, check exposure levels for all silica-involved jobs, and provide the medical exams required for workers exposed to silica more than 30 days a year; a prior fit-test violation at the company's Augusta, Georgia site drove the repeat citation. Proposed penalties total $496,528.

Impact: High · Scope: Pennsylvania (state profile) · Topic: OSHA · Type: Enforcement action

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4. FMCSA Advances Two Hours-of-Service Pilot Programs Toward 2027 Launch — Flexible Sleeper Berth and Split Duty Period 🟡

FMCSA announced it has completed pre-tests for two Hours of Service pilot programs and is preparing a full launch in 2027. The Flexible Sleeper Berth Pilot Program would let participating drivers split their required off-duty time into two periods in any combination, provided the periods total at least 10 hours and one includes at least five consecutive hours in the sleeper berth. The Split Duty Period Pilot Program would let drivers pause their 14-hour driving window for up to three hours a day when they spend qualifying non-driving time at a pickup or delivery, off duty, or in the sleeper berth. Each program is expected to enroll 256 drivers (512 total), who will participate for four months. The pre-tests ran in spring and summer 2026 with nine drivers each; FMCSA says it will monitor for shipper-driven detention and use the findings to refine the programs. Motor carriers should watch for the 2027 rollout, which could reshape driver scheduling and fatigue-management practices.

Impact: Medium · Scope: Federal · Topic: DOT Physicals

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5. American Airlines to Pay $200K in EEOC ADA Suit for Failing to Accommodate a Blind Employee 🟡

American Airlines will pay $200,000 to settle an EEOC disability-discrimination lawsuit over its failure to accommodate an employee at its Fort Worth, Texas location who developed cortical blindness. The EEOC alleged the employee asked to use screen-reader software — or, alternatively, to transfer to another position — so she could perform her job, but the airline neither enabled the software nor helped her find another accommodation, instead keeping her on involuntary unpaid leave for nearly four years before firing her. Under the two-year consent decree (U.S. EEOC v. American Airlines, Inc., No. 4:25-cv-01056-P, N.D. Tex.), American Airlines must build the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines into new reservation software projected for 2027, audit that software for accessibility, train HR employees who handle accommodation requests, post an employee notice, and report to the EEOC. The settlement underscores the ADA duty to provide reasonable accommodations — including assistive technology — for employees with disabilities absent undue hardship.

Impact: Medium · Scope: Texas (state profile) · Topic: Occupational Health · Type: Enforcement action

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What Should Employers Do This Month?

Based on the updates above, here are the top priorities for August 2026:

1. Review high-impact updates immediately — 2 updates this month require prompt attention. Click through to the full analysis for detailed action items.
2. Check your compliance calendar — Review effective dates and deadlines for any updates that affect your operations.
3. Brief your team — Share relevant updates with your HR, safety, and compliance teams. Each full article includes specific action items.
4. Audit proactively — This month's enforcement actions highlight areas where agencies are actively inspecting. Use these cases as a prompt for self-auditing.

Stay Informed

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