Federal Agency Decisions
Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB), each with a plain-English summary, the law it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Matter of Chu
Permanent residency survived an invalid status change
A man born in Washington, D.C., while his father held diplomatic status applied to create a record of lawful permanent residence under former INA section 249. The Service had earlier changed his status to a United Nations household nonimmigrant without giving him or his guardian the notice and…
Matter of Bark
Marriage finding in deportation appeal later reversed
A Korean citizen appealed a deportation order and the denial of adjustment, a waiver, and voluntary departure. The Board held that the substitute hearing officer was available under the governing rule because the original officer was stationed elsewhere when the hearing reopened and no objection…
ESS-BEE Knitwear Company, Inc.
Failure-to-correct penalties affirmed after withdrawal
OSHA notified ESS-BEE Knitwear that it had failed to correct cited violations and proposed $630 in additional penalties. The company filed a timely contest, then asked to withdraw it. ESS-BEE represented that the violations had been abated, tendered the proposed penalty, promised continuing…
Ralph Morse Furniture Co.
Default set aside and withdrawal approved
The judge struck Ralph Morse Furniture's notice of contest because the company had not answered the Secretary's complaint. After that order, the parties jointly submitted a withdrawal motion and supporting stipulation that had not been before the judge. The Commission treated the new joint filing…
John Hicks Oldsmobile, Inc.
Seven citations affirmed with more abatement time
OSHA cited John Hicks Oldsmobile for seven non-serious violations and proposed penalties totaling $155. The company and the Secretary stipulated to withdrawal of the contest, payment of the penalties, and more time to correct item 4. The Secretary also agreed to provide an interpretation of the…
United Sheet Metal Co.
Withdrawal approved for all five citation items
OSHA cited United Sheet Metal for five non-serious violations. The employer first withdrew its penalty contests for items 2 through 5, then sought to withdraw its remaining contest to item 1. The judge found that the company had not yet documented abatement, payment, service, and posting for item…
Matter of Iqbal
Motion to reopen denied after nonimmigrant overstay
A Pakistani citizen had obtained permanent residence through his first marriage, but that adjustment was later rescinded and he was ordered deported for remaining beyond his authorized stay as a visitor. After he married another United States citizen and had a citizen child, he moved to reopen and…
Stylhomes, Inc.
Seven citations and $104 penalty affirmed
OSHA cited Stylhomes for seven other-than-serious violations and proposed penalties totaling $104. The company contested the case, then moved to withdraw its notice of contest. Stylhomes certified that it had corrected the cited conditions, would maintain abatement and continuing compliance, had…
Atlantic Concrete, Inc.
Mixed ruling on floor opening and crane citations
Atlantic Concrete was cited for an unguarded floor opening and several recordkeeping, posting, first-aid, and crane-related conditions. The parties stipulated that several non-serious items were unsupported, inapplicable, or abandoned. The judge vacated those items, affirmed two crane violations…
Becker Brothers Carbon Co.
Penalties reduced to $280 in withdrawal stipulation
OSHA cited Becker Brothers Carbon for 15 other-than-serious violations and proposed $330 in penalties. The parties stipulated that the company had corrected all cited conditions and would continue to comply. They also agreed to eliminate the $50 penalty for item 14 because the company president…
Matter of Sipus
Seven years of presence alone did not warrant reopening
A Philippine citizen sought to reopen a deportation case to apply for suspension of deportation after she had spent more than seven continuous years in the United States. The Board held that the passage of time made the earlier dispute about an absence moot, but her motion still lacked evidence…
Otis Elevator Company
Serious and non-serious citations affirmed
OSHA issued Otis Elevator one serious and one non-serious citation with proposed penalties of $500 and $150. The Secretary amended the description of the non-serious violation, then sought another amendment to return the citation to its original wording. Before the hearing, Otis moved to withdraw…
Detroit Printing Pressmen Local No. 13, International Printing Pressmen & Assistants Union of North America, AFL-CIO
Union's noise-abatement extension request dismissed
OSHA cited the Evening News Association for excessive workplace noise and set deadlines for temporary protection and longer-term controls. Neither the employer nor the union contested the citation, so it became final. The union later asked the Commission to extend the abatement period because the…
Chicago Lumber Co., Inc.
Serious citation and $550 penalty affirmed
OSHA issued Chicago Lumber serious and non-serious citations with proposed penalties of $550 and $400. The company contested only the serious citation, so the non-serious citation became final without review. Chicago Lumber later stipulated to withdrawal of its contest, paid the $550 proposed…
D. C. Taylor Roofing Co., Inc.
Serious citation and $500 penalty affirmed
OSHA issued D. C. Taylor Roofing a serious citation and proposed a $500 penalty. The Secretary's complaint listed the wrong worksite address, then the Secretary moved to amend it to restore the correct address from the citation. The company later stipulated to withdrawal of its contest, paid the…
Equipco Contractors, Inc.
Serious citation and $500 penalty affirmed
Equipco Contractors contested a serious citation and proposed $500 penalty, then asked to withdraw before the scheduled hearing. The company stated that it had completed abatement, tendered the penalty, and would continue to comply with the Act. It served the motion on the parties and employee…
Matter of Arteaga-Godoy
Petitioner had to see and answer adverse evidence
A U.S. citizen petitioned for immediate relative status for her husband. The District Director denied the petition after an investigation found records suggesting that the husband had an earlier marriage and children. The Board found no indication that the petitioner had seen this adverse evidence…
Colonial Craft Reproductions, Inc.
Seven items affirmed but all penalties vacated
Colonial Craft, a very small wooden-giftware manufacturer, was cited for nine non-serious violations, with $165 in penalties proposed for spray-area electrical wiring, exit signs, machine belts, and radial saws. The Commission agreed that the penalized conditions were not minor and ordinarily would…
Hydroswift Corporation
$120 penalty affirmed for four higher-gravity items
Hydroswift, a fiberglass-boat manufacturer, did not dispute 12 non-serious violations and contested only four $30 penalties. The penalized items involved missing stair and open-floor railings, improper storage of flammable liquids, combustible residue in spray areas and on sprinkler protection, and…
Matter of Janati-Ataie
Attorney General found return from Iran was an entry
A lawful permanent resident from Iran faced deportation proceedings after a Nevada embezzlement conviction. The charge depended on whether his returns from visits to Iran in 1965 and 1968 counted as entries into the United States within five years of the offense. The Board held that his month-long…
Banner Engineering Corporation
Nine items affirmed and $30 penalty vacated
OSHA cited Banner Engineering for nine non-serious violations and proposed a $30 penalty for item 1. The company did not dispute the violations and reported that it had corrected all items, but it challenged the penalty because it had little time to correct the conditions before inspection. The…
Matter of Kubicka
Father's birth registration legitimates daughter under Polish law
A U.S. citizen petitioned for a visa preference for his married daughter, who was born in Poland during his bigamous second marriage. The district director denied the petition because the father had not ended his first marriage before the daughter's birth and had not later entered a valid marriage…
Anderson Excavating & Wrecking Co., Inc.
Three items and $335 affirmed
OSHA cited Anderson Excavating & Wrecking for three other-than-serious violations and proposed penalties totaling $335. The company and the Secretary stipulated to withdrawal of the contest. Anderson paid the proposed penalties, stated that it had corrected the conditions and would maintain…
Singleton Sheet Metal Works, Inc.
Contest reinstated for timeliness hearing
Singleton Sheet Metal Works contested a no-serious citation carrying a $25 penalty. The judge first vacated the citation because the Secretary allegedly forwarded the contest too late, then reconsidered and dismissed the contest as untimely. The Commission held that the judge lacked jurisdiction to…
E. A. Roos & Company
Withdrawal order corrected to include all contested items
E. A. Roos contested citation items 1 through 5, 7, and 8, then stipulated that the violations existed and had been abated. The parties agreed that no penalty should be assessed for item 7's ungrounded electric hand tool and that $260 was reasonable for the remaining violations. The judge approved…
Matter of Ugricic
Conditional entry application denied
A Yugoslav citizen living in Italy applied for conditional entry to the United States under former INA § 203(a)(7). He said he disliked Yugoslavia's political system, was Catholic, and would face military service if returned. The District Director found that he gave no credible testimony or other…
Arnold Hansen, dba Hansen Brothers Logging
Loader-swing citation vacated
Hansen Brothers Logging used a rotating log loader whose counterweight created a hazardous swing area near a truck trailer. An employee entered that area during loading and was fatally injured. OSHA cited the employer under the general duty clause and proposed a $500 penalty. The Commission found…
Matter of Nakoi
Planned teaching stay in Canada counted as a departure
A lawful permanent resident was ordered deported after a federal kidnapping conviction. He challenged whether his return from a teaching stay in Canada in 1967 counted as an entry within five years before the offense. The Board held that a planned nine-month teaching contract abroad, undertaken for…
Matter of Tsoi
Board lacked jurisdiction over short-stay bond appeal
A Chinese crewman in custody under an outstanding deportation warrant sought release while the District Director considered his asylum request. The District Director had temporarily stayed deportation but denied release. The Board held that its bond appeal jurisdiction did not extend to a person…
Matter of St. Joseph's Hospital
Pharmacist needed a license to start H-1 work
St. Joseph's Hospital sought H-1 nonimmigrant classification for a pharmacist from the Philippines. She had an approved immigrant preference petition, but the hospital acknowledged that she needed more training and a New York license before she could work as a pharmacist there. The Regional…
Cook Ford Sales, Inc.
Contest dismissed after abatement certifications were not filed
OSHA cited Cook Ford Sales for nine non-serious violations and initially proposed $165 in penalties. The Secretary's complaint removed two items and their two $25 penalties, leaving $140. The company sent a $140 check and asked to end the case, but it did not respond to repeated requests to certify…
Waldinger Corporation
Citation vacated for insufficient evidence
OSHA issued Waldinger an other-than-serious citation and later amended the abatement date and proposed penalty notice. An earlier order had dismissed the company's contest for failure to certify service, but the case was reinstated. The Secretary then moved to dismiss the complaint and citation…
Matter of Essex Cryogenics Industries, Inc.
Mechanical engineer qualified for H-1 classification
Essex Cryogenics Industries, an aircraft components manufacturer, petitioned for H-1 classification so that an Iranian mechanical engineer could continue working in design and testing. The District Director denied the petition because the engineer had already worked for Essex during practical…
Matter of University of Oklahoma
Temporary worker petition approved for astronomer
The University of Oklahoma sought an H-1 nonimmigrant classification for a German citizen who taught and researched astronomy. The District Director denied the petition because the beneficiary had expressed a desire to immigrate and, in the Director's view, lacked a foreign residence he intended to…
Matter of Wong
Claimed Hong Kong adoption required factual findings
A U.S. citizen sought a family preference visa for a woman he described as his wife's adopted daughter. The District Director denied the petition because the claimed Hong Kong adoption did not meet a surname requirement in the civil code of the Nationalist Republic of China. The Board held that the…
Constructora Metalica, Inc.
Crane citation vacated after denial of a fair hearing
A crane collapsed during dismantling at Constructora Metalica's apartment project, killing one employee and seriously injuring another. OSHA issued a serious general duty clause citation and proposed a $750 penalty. The Commission found that the parties had received notice only of a prehearing…
Spencer Foods, Inc.
Two items vacated and all penalties eliminated
OSHA cited Spencer Foods for multiple non-serious conditions at its meat-processing plant, including access, ladder, guarding, fire-safety, vehicle, and protective-equipment issues. The judge found that the Secretary had not proved that a fixed ladder was covered by the cited portable-ladder rule…
Mayaguez Shoe Corp.
Pro se contest reinstated and remanded
Mayaguez Shoe received one serious and one other than serious citation with proposed penalties totaling $780. The company filed a timely contest without counsel, citing prompt abatement and good faith. In a later letter to the Secretary's solicitor, it certified posting of case papers and requested…
Matter of Treasure Craft of California
Pottery trainee petitions denied
Treasure Craft of California, a ceramic giftware manufacturer, sought trainee classification for four Mexican workers it already employed. The company proposed 18 months of pottery training but did not provide a program with planned stages or evidence showing why the training was unavailable in…
Matter of Hays
Brief marriage still met the fiancée visa condition
A woman from Honduras entered the United States on a fiancée visa and married the U.S. citizen petitioner 17 days after arrival. The couple separated soon afterward, and the husband later objected to her application for permanent residence. The District Director found that she had intended to enter…
National Realty & Construction Company, Inc.
Passenger-riding citation affirmed with reduced penalty
A foreman rode on the step of a front-end loader that was towing equipment down a dirt ramp. The loader stalled and overturned, fatally injuring the foreman after he left the step. OSHA cited National Realty under the general duty clause and proposed an $800 penalty for allowing passenger riding on…
Columbus Forge & Iron Company
Noise-abatement plan deadline extended
Columbus Forge & Iron contested a citation under OSHA's occupational-noise standard. The parties agreed that the company needed more time to prepare engineering and administrative control studies. They extended the deadline for a proposed compliance plan from August 9 to September 1, 1972, while…
Chrysler Corporation
Contested item vacated and remaining citation affirmed
OSHA issued Chrysler a citation and amended citation containing several non-serious items. Chrysler contested only item 6 and its proposed $30 penalty, so the complaint and answer addressed only that item. After reviewing the evidence, the Secretary moved to amend again and dismiss the complaint…
Matter of H—
Hardship waiver granted for spouse of U.S. citizen
A Mexican citizen applied for a waiver of a ground of exclusion based on her past prostitution. The District Director denied the application, finding that her exclusion would not cause extreme hardship to her U.S. citizen husband because he could continue living with her in Mexico. The Regional…
Spildie Construction Company
Abatement certification required to complete withdrawal
OSHA cited Spildie Construction for 20 non-serious violations and proposed $445 in penalties for 12 items. The company contested only the penalties, then moved to withdraw and tendered the full amount. The Commission found that the withdrawal papers did not certify correction of the cited…
Trailmobile Division of Pullman, Inc.
No-penalty item affirmed after withdrawal
OSHA cited Trailmobile's steel-fabricating plant for 13 violations. The company contested only item 7, so the other 12 items and their combined $425 penalties became final without review. The parties later stipulated that item 7 had been corrected, continuing compliance would be maintained, and the…
John H. Boyson, dba Boyson Construction Co.
Withdrawal conditioned on employee service
Boyson Construction moved to withdraw its contest after correcting the cited condition, tendering the $200 proposed penalty, and promising continuing compliance. The judge approved withdrawal even though the motion did not show that affected employees or their representative had received it. The…
Alaska Wood Products, Inc.
Poster item and $50 penalty vacated
OSHA cited Alaska Wood Products for 41 non-serious violations and proposed penalties totaling $645. The company contested only item 1, which alleged failure to display the official employee-rights poster and carried a $50 penalty. Further investigation showed that an authorized Labor Department…
Jaso-Carol Dress Co., Inc.
Contest reinstated after filing oversight
Jaso-Carol Dress timely contested four nonserious items involving fan guards, exit-sign illumination, exposed sewing-machine drives, and an uncovered junction box. The judge dismissed the contest because the record appeared not to contain proof that the contest and answer had been served on the…
Eller Brothers, Inc.
Power-line crane violations affirmed and electrical-installation items vacated
Eller Brothers used a crane beneath energized 13,500-volt lines while employees worked in a wet sewer ditch. The boom contacted a line and an employee was electrocuted. The judge vacated two electrical-installation items because those rules applied to jobsite electrical installations, not crane…
I. Steinman & Sons
Default affirmed for missing answer and employee service
I. Steinman & Sons did not file a timely answer to the Secretary's complaint. It also failed to respond to the Commission's request for proof that its contest had been served on affected employees or their representative. The judge dismissed the contest and affirmed the citation. The Commission…
Arlene Separates, Inc.
Citation affirmed after employee-service order was ignored
Arlene Separates moved to withdraw its notice of contest. The Commission ordered the company to certify that the withdrawal motion had been served on affected employees or their authorized representative, but the company did not comply. The Commission set aside its earlier order, denied withdrawal…
Standard Glass Company, Inc.
Hard-hat citation vacated as isolated employee conduct
Two Standard Glass employees left company vehicles and spent less than five minutes in a hard-hat area without protective helmets. The company had required hard hats before the OSH Act, supplied them to workers and visitors, instructed employees to wear them, and enforced the rule with discipline…
Matter of Remy
Father's acknowledgment did not legitimate child under Haitian law
A naturalized U.S. citizen sought immediate relative status for his daughter in Haiti. He had never married her mother but submitted a Haitian consular statement that his acknowledgment and support had legitimated the child. The Board read Haiti's Civil Code to require the parents' subsequent…
Paulmar Wire Products, Inc.
Contest reinstated because certified mail was not required
OSHA cited Paulmar Wire Products for seven non-serious violations and proposed $90 in penalties. The employer said it mailed a contest shortly after receiving the citation, but the judge dismissed because the file lacked certified-mail proof and a later copy appeared untimely. The Commission held…
Paulmar Wire Products, Inc.
Notice of contest reinstated before withdrawal
OSHA cited Paulmar Wire Products for seven nonserious machine, electrical, eye-protection, and fire-safety violations and proposed a total penalty of $90. A judge dismissed the company's notice of contest because the record lacked proof that it had been served by registered or certified mail. The…
Matter of Kwan
Adoption petition returned for factual review
A U.S. citizen sought a family preference visa for a woman she said she had adopted in China in 1949. The District Director revoked an earlier approval based on a Board decision about Chinese adoption law. The Board held that the cited decision did not govern this adoption and had since been…
Matter of Tang
Claimed adoption did not establish parent relationship
A U.S. citizen sought immediate relative status for her uncle, claiming that he had adopted her in China after her father's death. A written adoption agreement surfaced only after immigration officials requested one, and the Board found no credible evidence establishing its authenticity. The Board…
Permaneer Corporation
Abatement deadline extended after parts delay
Permaneer asked for more time to correct citation items 7 and 8 because required replacement parts were difficult to obtain from the manufacturer. The request came after the original May 8 deadline, but the Secretary agreed to waive the timing defect because the company had made a good-faith effort…
Packaging Products Incorporated
Amended citation affirmed after abandoned contest
Packaging Products contested only the proposed penalties on a 10-item citation. It did not respond to an order to show cause addressing employee service and its failure to answer the complaint, so the judge treated the contest as abandoned. The Secretary's complaint had already removed some items…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission, Board and Authority decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Authority at FLRA, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Review Board at Labor, and the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.