# 29 CFR § 1978.101: Definitions > Federal · Regulations · In force URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.101 ## Section - **Citation:** 29 CFR § 1978.101 - **Heading:** Definitions - **Jurisdiction:** Federal - **Kind:** Regulations - **Status:** In force - **Text as of:** September 22, 2026 - **Source:** Publisher's official text - **Location:** Title 29—Labor > Subtitle B—Regulations Relating to Labor > CHAPTER XVII—OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR > PART 1978—PROCEDURES FOR THE HANDLING OF RETALIATION COMPLAINTS UNDER THE EMPLOYEE PROTECTION PROVISION OF THE SURFACE TRANSPORTATION ASSISTANCE ACT OF 1982 (STAA), AS AMENDED > Subpart A—Complaints, Investigations, Findings, and Preliminary Orders ## Text (a) Act means the Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 (STAA), as amended. (b) Assistant Secretary means the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health or the person or persons to whom he or she delegates authority under the Act. (c) Business days means days other than Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays. (d) Commercial motor carrier means any person engaged in a business affecting commerce between States or between a State and a place outside thereof who owns or leases a commercial motor vehicle in connection with that business, or assigns employees to operate such a vehicle. (e) Commercial motor vehicle means a vehicle as defined by 49 U.S.C. 31101(1). (f) Complainant means the employee who filed a STAA complaint or on whose behalf a complaint was filed. (g) Complaint, for purposes of § 1978.102(b)(1) and (e)(1), includes both written and oral complaints to employers, government agencies, and others. (h) Employee means a driver of a commercial motor vehicle (including an independent contractor when personally operating a commercial motor vehicle), a mechanic, a freight handler, or an individual not an employer, who: (1) Directly affects commercial motor vehicle safety or security in the course of employment by a commercial motor carrier; and (2) Is not an employee of the United States Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State acting in the course of employment. (3) The term includes an individual formerly performing the work described above or an applicant for such work. (i) Employer means a person engaged in a business affecting commerce that owns or leases a commercial motor vehicle in connection with that business, or assigns an employee to operate the vehicle in commerce, but does not include the Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State. (j) OSHA means the Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the United States Department of Labor. (k) Person means one or more individuals, partnerships, associations, corporations, business trusts, legal representatives, or any other organized group of individuals. (l) Respondent means the person alleged to have violated 49 U.S.C. 31105. (m) Secretary means the Secretary of Labor or persons to whom authority under the Act has been delegated. (n) State means a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands. (o) Any future statutory amendments that affect the definition of a term or terms listed in this section will apply in lieu of the definition stated herein. ## Nearby sections - [29 CFR § 1978.100 § 1978.100 Purpose and scope.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.100.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.101 § 1978.101 Definitions.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.101.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.102 § 1978.102 Obligations and prohibited acts.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.102.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.103 § 1978.103 Filing of retaliation complaints.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.103.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.104 § 1978.104 Investigation.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.104.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.105 § 1978.105 Issuance of findings and preliminary orders.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.105.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.106 § 1978.106 Objections to the findings and the preliminary order and request for a hearing.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.106.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.107 § 1978.107 Hearings.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.107.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.108 § 1978.108 Role of Federal agencies.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.108.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.109 § 1978.109 Decisions and orders of the administrative law judge.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.109.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.110 § 1978.110 Decisions and orders of the Administrative Review Board.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.110.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.111 § 1978.111 Withdrawal of STAA complaints, findings, objections, and petitions for review; settlement.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.111.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.112 § 1978.112 Judicial review.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.112.md) - [29 CFR § 1978.113 § 1978.113 Judicial enforcement.](https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.113.md) --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/statutes/ecfr-29-1978.101. Check the current official text before relying on it. Not legal advice.