Federal Agency Decisions

Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.

16,281 decisions and counting · Latest decision September 10, 2026
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ALJ

Barry Billcliff, dba Barry James, et al.

Roofing violations and personal liability affirmed

OSHA inspected roofing work at a hotel and conference center in Devens, Massachusetts, where workers lacked required inspections, head protection, fall protection, training, and compliant ladder access. Barry Billcliff denied controlling the project or employing anyone there, but the judge found…

December 13, 2023 ·Dennis L. Phillips ·OSHRC
Citations affirmed
COMM

United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution Englewood, Colorado and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 709, Council of Prison Locals #33

FCI Englewood and AFGE Local 709 (FLRA 0-AR-5889): Authority sets aside COVID hazard pay and remands remedy

AFGE Local 709 alleged that FCI Englewood failed to protect correctional employees from COVID-19 and owed them a 25 percent hazard-pay differential. An arbitrator found both a regulatory hazard-pay entitlement and a violation of the agreement's requirement to reduce correctional hazards, then…

December 13, 2023
Remanded
ALJ

Secretary of Labor obo Samuel Coleman v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC

Secretary of Labor obo Samuel Coleman v. Warrior Met Coal Mining (FMSHRC SE 2024-0060): Temporary reinstatement granted

Samuel Coleman served as a designated miners' representative at Warrior Met Coal's No. 7 Mine. The Secretary alleged that Coleman questioned a supervisor about another miner's reported safety concerns and termination, said he would inspect the area, and raised a reflective-clothing issue before…

December 12, 2023 ·John T. Sullivan ·FMSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Sigma Air LLC

In re Sigma Air LLC (EAB CAA 23-08C): expedited settlement ratified

The Environmental Appeals Board issued a Final Order for Sigma Air LLC on December 12, 2023. The order says that the Board ratified an Expedited Settlement Agreement and Consent Agreement under 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(b)-(c), and ordered the company to comply with that agreement immediately. The public…

December 12, 2023 ·EPA EAB
Settled
COMM

American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2338 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center, Poplar Bluff, Missouri

AFGE Local 2338 and John J. Pershing VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-AR-5906): Authority denies additional-compensation exceptions

A VA employee challenged the denial of telework and official time following surgery, alleging disability discrimination and retaliation for union activity. During informal resolution, the agency approved temporary telework, removed the employee's absence-without-leave entries, and reimbursed…

December 11, 2023
Citations affirmed
ALJ

Cecil Matney, Jr. v. Rockwell Mining, LLC

Cecil Matney, Jr. v. Rockwell Mining (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0126): Part 90 complaint sustained

Cecil Matney developed black lung disease and exercised his Part 90 right to work in a lower-dust environment. The judge found that Rockwell Mining kept him as a move crew foreman whose required duties exposed him to excessive dust and changed his work conditions while dust sampling occurred…

December 8, 2023 ·William B. Moran ·FMSHRC
Mixed result
ALJ

Secretary of Labor obo Jordan Kelser v. Peabody Southeast Mining, LLC, et al

Secretary of Labor obo Jordan Kelser v. Peabody Southeast Mining and Jennmar Services (FMSHRC SE 2024-0025): Temporary reinstatement granted

Jordan Kelser worked at Peabody's Shoal Creek Mine through staffing company Jennmar Services. He testified that a conveyor started while he was working on it without lockout protection, causing ankle and lower-back injuries as he pulled himself off, and that a foreman then urged him not to report…

December 6, 2023 ·Michael G. Young ·FMSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. Select Materials

Uncollected certified mail barred reopening

Select Materials said it never received a proposed assessment and first learned of the penalties when MSHA hand-delivered a collection letter. Postal records showed that certified delivery had been attempted at the operator's correct Ohio address and that multiple notices went uncollected before…

December 6, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. St. Marys Cement

Proactive data review supported reopening

St. Marys Cement received a proposed assessment shortly before Christmas while personnel were absent and safety leadership was changing. The company also mistakenly believed the citation had been contested through a different assessment. It discovered the error while proactively reviewing MSHA's…

December 6, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Remanded
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials US Cement, LLC

Omitted scan page supported reopening

Heidelberg Materials timely contested five penalties but unintentionally omitted the assessment's fourth page when scanning the contest form. Three citations on that page were therefore not included. After the Secretary filed a petition on the timely contests, Heidelberg reviewed the filing…

December 6, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Remanded
COMM

American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2053, Council 243 and United States Department of the Navy, Commander, Navy Region Southeast

AFGE Local 2053 and Navy Region Southeast (FLRA 0-AR-5886): Authority enforces fourteen-day grievance deadline

Navy Region Southeast placed employees on a compressed schedule in 2018 and did not pay overtime for hours exceeding eight per day or forty per week. AFGE Local 2053 challenged the practice in 2022, but the collective-bargaining agreement required grievances within fourteen days after the incident…

December 6, 2023
Procedural
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. Entact

Returned assessment never became final

MSHA mailed Entact's proposed assessment to a former Pennsylvania address, and Postal Service records showed it was returned because the occupant had moved. Entact's current safety director and address of record were in Illinois, and the company found no copy of the assessment in its offices or…

December 4, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Remanded
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. Dyno Nobel

Holiday staffing and citation confusion excused delay

Dyno Nobel received a proposed assessment during the holiday period while personnel were absent and offices were closed. The assessment was not forwarded to counsel, and staff also confused the citation with a related citation issued on the same date. The company discovered the final order by…

December 4, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Remanded
ALJ

Wildcat Renovation, LLC

EAJA fee application denied after citations were vacated

OSHA cited Wildcat Renovation after a concrete wall fell during demolition and struck an employee, who died from his injuries. The judge later vacated both demolition citations, and Wildcat applied for attorney fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Although Wildcat was allowed to…

December 4, 2023 ·Heather A. Joys ·OSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Matter of M-R-M-S-, et al.

Family membership was incidental to a cartel’s land-acquisition goal

The Board reviewed Mexican family members’ applications for asylum and withholding of removal after a criminal cartel forced them from their land and killed a family member. The Board held that the evidence showed the cartel’s goal was to obtain control of the land, making family membership…

December 1, 2023
Citations affirmed
COMM

Federal Education Association, Stateside Region and United States Department of Defense Education Activity, Domestic Dependent Elementary and Secondary Schools

Federal Education Association and DOD Education Activity (FLRA 0-AR-5656): Authority upholds competitive-service hiring change

DOD Education Activity decided to fill certain vacancies and new positions through the competitive service while leaving current employees in the excepted service. After an earlier Authority remand, the arbitrator found that the change did not violate the agreement's priority-consideration clause…

November 29, 2023
Citations affirmed
COMM

Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc. (amended)

Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2021-0178): Reinstatement continued through finality and required full pay

Alvaro Saldivar received temporary economic reinstatement after alleging that Grimes Rock fired him for safety complaints, with the company initially paying the difference between his new wages and his former mine wages. After Saldivar was incarcerated and Grimes discovered additional…

November 28, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Mixed result
COMM

Kreb v. Integra Aviation, LLC

Untimely interlocutory petition not accepted

Robert Kreb asked the Board to review an administrative judge's denial of his motion to disqualify Integra Aviation's counsel in an AIR21 case. He filed 18 days after the judge's order, outside the regulation's ten-business-day deadline for a petition. The Board therefore did not accept the case…

November 28, 2023
Procedural
COMM

General Motors Company and Ultium Cells LLC

In re General Motors Company and Ultium Cells LLC (EAB TSCA 23-04C): TSCA penalty settlement approved

General Motors Company and Ultium Cells LLC voluntarily disclosed potential violations involving three confidential chemical substances that were imported, processed, used, or distributed before the required TSCA notices and certifications were complete. The Consent Agreement describes alleged…

November 20, 2023 ·EPA EAB
Settled
COMM

Kreb v. Integra Aviation, LLC

Judge-disqualification appeal denied

Robert Kreb sought immediate Board review of an administrative judge's refusal to recuse himself and certify that ruling for interlocutory appeal in an AIR21 case. Kreb alleged bias, case-assignment errors, erroneous rulings, and a constitutional defect in the judge's appointment. The Board…

November 20, 2023
Procedural
ALJ

Mar-Jac Poultry MS, LLC

Eviscerator guarding and warning-sign violations affirmed

Mar-Jac operated poultry eviscerators at its Hattiesburg, Mississippi processing plant. An employee cleaning chicken parts and viscera around an operating eviscerator was caught in the machine and suffered fatal injuries. The judge found that the machine was unguarded, lacked safety-instruction…

November 20, 2023 ·Sharon D. Calhoun ·OSHRC
Citations affirmed
ALJ

Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC

Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Met Coal Mining (FMSHRC SE 2023-0146): Summary decision denied and amended answer allowed

The Secretary alleged that Warrior Met interfered with Mine Act walkaround rights by pursuing state-court contempt sanctions connected to union representatives' efforts to accompany MSHA inspections during a strike. She sought summary decision based largely on facts stated in the pleadings. The…

November 17, 2023 ·Thomas P. McCarthy ·FMSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Frantz v. Hoselton Automotive Group

MAP-21 dismissal upheld on same-action defense

Laurie Frantz, a warranty processor at an automotive dealership, alleged that she was fired after objecting to warranty claims for corrosion-prevention work performed by technicians who lacked Toyota certification. The Board held that Toyota's private safety requirements were not federal…

November 17, 2023
Mixed result
COMM

Defense Health Agency; American Federation of Government Employees; American Nurses Association Illinois; Association of Civilian Technicians; International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers; International Brotherhood of Painters and Allied Trades; Metal Trades Council; National Association of Government Employees; National Association of Independent Labor; and National Federation of Federal Employees

Defense Health Agency successorship proceeding (FLRA WA-RP-22-0056): Authority upholds three-unit configuration

The Defense Health Agency reorganized 7,409 civilian medical employees from 82 bargaining units into its Small Market and Stand-Alone Military Treatment Facility Organization. A regional director found the agency was the successor employer and approved three larger bargaining units proposed by AFGE…

November 15, 2023
Procedural
ALJ

Ward Vessel & Exchanger Corporation

Lockout and injury-reporting citations vacated

Ward Vessel used a cord-and-plug plate roller to form metal cylinders at its Texas workshop. A supervisor troubleshooting an energized power problem activated the rollers without clearing the area, pinching an employee's fingertips and causing injuries later classified as amputations. The judge…

November 15, 2023 ·Joshua R. Patrick ·OSHRC
Citations vacated
COMM

United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Complex Victorville, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3969, Council of Prison Locals #33

FCC Victorville and AFGE Local 3969 (FLRA 0-AR-5880): Authority upholds missed-overtime remedy

FCC Victorville used a negotiated list to select employees for overtime but began marking some assignments list-exempt. An arbitrator credited testimony that the union learned of the practice on April 29, making its June 2 grievance timely under the agreement's forty-day deadline. She found that…

November 13, 2023
Citations affirmed
COMM

American Federation of Government Employees, Local 987 and United States Department of the Air Force, Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, 78 ABW/Civilian Personnel Office, Warner Robins Air Force Base, Georgia

AFGE Local 987 and Warner Robins Air Logistics Center (FLRA 0-AR-5867): Authority orders new arbitrator for overtime merits

AFGE Local 987 alleged that Warner Robins Air Logistics Center failed to schedule an employee for overtime. The agreement required one arbitrator to decide a threshold arbitrability question and, if the grievance was arbitrable, a different arbitrator to hear the merits. The first arbitrator found…

November 9, 2023
Remanded
COMM

American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2408 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Caribbean Health Care System, San Juan, Puerto Rico

AFGE Local 2408 and VA Caribbean Health Care System (FLRA 0-AR-5885): Authority denies unsupported exceptions

AFGE Local 2408 asked the Authority to issue an expedited, abbreviated decision on its exceptions to an arbitration award, and the VA did not oppose that request. The Authority granted the request after considering the case's complexity, possible precedential value, similarity to other decisions…

November 7, 2023
Citations affirmed
ALJ

United States Postal Service, Lehigh Valley PDCF

Obstruction citations affirmed, willful classification reduced

During the 2020 pandemic and holiday mail surge, staffing shortages and increased volume caused mail containers and equipment to accumulate at the Postal Service's Lehigh Valley processing plant. OSHA found blocked traffic aisles, emergency exit routes, a fire-alarm pull station, and insufficient…

November 1, 2023 ·Carol A. Baumerich ·OSHRC
Modified
ALJ

Asplundh Tree Expert, LLC

Dead-tree trimming citation vacated

Asplundh trimmed dead cottonwood trees near power lines in New Castle, Colorado. A climber fell about 35 feet after a cut tree section struck the branch supporting him, causing a broken leg and permanently disabling spinal injuries. The judge found that Asplundh and its industry recognized fall and…

November 1, 2023 ·Christopher D. Helms ·OSHRC
Citations vacated
COMM

National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 14 and United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service

NTEU Chapter 14 and IRS (FLRA 0-AR-5855): Authority denies reconsideration of attorney-fee ruling

An arbitrator sustained a grievance over an IRS employee's performance evaluation, raised the scores, and directed a related monetary award. He later denied the union's attorney-fee request because the agreement did not require performance awards, so the payment did not constitute pay under the…

October 27, 2023
Procedural
COMM

American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3184 and Social Security Administration

AFGE Local 3184 and Social Security Administration (FLRA 0-AR-5814): Authority remands attorney-fee calculation

An arbitrator sustained a grievance challenging an employee's suspension and, after an earlier Authority remand, awarded $5,925 in attorney fees. The union had also requested $5,400 for work litigating the fee dispute, but the two-paragraph remand award did not address those hours. The Authority…

October 25, 2023
Remanded
COMM

Collins v. Next Marketing, Inc.

STAA matter dismissed after no review petition

Danny Collins withdrew his STAA complaint before an administrative judge and said he intended to pursue his rights in federal district court. The judge dismissed the complaint with prejudice. Forty-eight days later, Collins sent the Board what appeared to be a copy of the dismissal order, not a…

October 24, 2023
Procedural
COMM

Trivedi v. General Electric

Third reconsideration request denied as late

The Board had affirmed dismissal of Madhuri Trivedi's SOX and Consumer Financial Protection Act retaliation complaint as several years late, then denied two reconsideration requests. More than six months after the second denial, Trivedi filed a motion to amend even though no pleading or other…

October 24, 2023
Procedural
COMM

Matter of Aldwin Junior BRATHWAITE

Pending direct criminal appeal prevented conviction finality for removability

The Board reconsidered a Trinidad and Tobago lawful permanent resident’s removability after the Second Circuit addressed the finality of his New York criminal convictions. The Board held that an appeal accepted under New York Criminal Procedure Law section 460.30 is a direct appeal, so the…

October 23, 2023
Other
ALJ

Romancing the Stone, Inc.

Contest dismissed after failure to answer

OSHA issued Romancing the Stone three failure-to-abate citations involving hearing conservation and crystalline-silica protections, with proposed penalties totaling $122,364. The company filed a notice of contest but did not answer the Secretary's complaint. It also did not respond to a show-cause…

October 23, 2023 ·Covette Rooney ·OSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3428

Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 3428 (FLRA 0-AR-5861): Authority vacates punitive damages but preserves compensation

An arbitrator found that the Social Security Administration discriminated and retaliated against an employee by timing her restroom use despite known medical issues and awarded $50,000 each in compensatory and punitive damages. The Authority held that the agency's exceptions were timely because the…

October 20, 2023
Modified
ALJ

Secretary of Labor v. Arepet Industries, LLC

Secretary of Labor v. Arepet Industries (FMSHRC CENT 2022-0221): MSHA jurisdiction over sand plant upheld

Arepet Industries argued that its Von Ormy sand plant belonged under OSHA because it bought commercially available wet sand and did not extract minerals. The plant stockpiled and dried the sand, used a separator to remove waste, and sold the processed material for use at oil and gas drilling sites…

October 19, 2023 ·Richard W. Manning ·FMSHRC
Procedural
COMM

American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1012 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, New Jersey Health Care System, Lyons Campus, Lyons, New Jersey

AFGE Local 1012 and VA New Jersey Health Care System (FLRA 0-AR-5887): Authority upholds employee lounge changes

After limiting employee use of a patient cafeteria, the VA New Jersey Health Care System prepared two rooms and other spaces for employee breaks. An arbitrator found that the agreement required lounges or similar spaces but did not prescribe their contents, define reasonable accessibility, or…

October 19, 2023
Citations affirmed
COMM

Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health and Becker v. Smithstonian Materials, LLC

Assistant Secretary and Becker v. Smithstonian Materials, LLC (DOL ARB 2021-0048): back pay reduced and interest extended until payment

Michael Becker was constructively discharged after refusing to drive an unsafe, unregistered dump truck for Smithstonian Materials, and liability under the STAA was already established. In resolving damages, the Board explained that back pay equals lost wages minus allowed offsets and that an…

October 18, 2023
Modified
ALJ

Ireland Contracting, LLC

Roofing citations vacated because subcontractors controlled the work

Ireland Contracting sold and scheduled two residential roof replacements in Gibsonia, Pennsylvania, then hired separate subcontractors to supply and supervise the roofing crews. OSHA cited Ireland Contracting for fall protection, eye protection, powered-industrial-truck, and scaffold violations…

October 12, 2023 ·Keith E. Bell ·OSHRC
Citations vacated
COMM

Secretary of Labor obo John Collins v. Crimson Oak Grove Resources, LLC

Loader safety concern supported temporary reinstatement

John Collins repeatedly told his supervisor that he was uncomfortable using a smaller front-end loader to lift heavy pan line. During the second lift, the loader's rear rose more than five feet, the load slid off, the machine crashed back down, and Collins injured his back. Crimson later discharged…

October 11, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Citations affirmed
COMM

Secretary of Labor obo John Collins v. Crimson Oak Grove Resources, LLC

Loader safety concern supported temporary reinstatement

John Collins repeatedly told his supervisor that he was uncomfortable using a smaller front-end loader to lift heavy pan line. During the second lift, the loader's rear rose more than five feet, the load slid off, the machine crashed back down, and Collins injured his back. Crimson later discharged…

October 11, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Citations affirmed
COMM

Gates v. UPS Freight

STAA appeal dismissed after opening brief was not filed

An administrative judge dismissed Horando Gates's STAA retaliation complaint on causation and same-action grounds. Gates initially sent the Board only a copy of the judge's decision, but he responded to a first show-cause order and later filed a petition that the Board accepted. He did not then…

October 6, 2023
Procedural
ALJ

Secretary of Labor obo Phillip Bowman v. Lexington Coal Company, LLC

Secretary of Labor obo Phillip Bowman v. Lexington Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0363): Economic reinstatement tolled after mine shutdown

Lexington Coal sought to toll Phillip Bowman's temporary economic reinstatement after the Twilight Surface Mine was idled and employees with Bowman's skill set were laid off. The judge accepted evidence that the shutdown resulted from losing a high-price coal sales contract and that no comparable…

October 4, 2023 ·Thomas P. McCarthy ·FMSHRC
Procedural
COMM

Charles Bridge, LLC

In re Charles Bridge, LLC (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 23-03): Default order remanded for service review

EPA Region 1 charged Charles Bridge, LLC with violations of section 409 of the Toxic Substances Control Act involving a civil penalty proceeding. After Charles Bridge failed to answer, the Regional Judicial Officer found it liable by default and assessed a $56,109 penalty. The Environmental Appeals…

October 3, 2023 ·EPA EAB
Remanded
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. GCC Dacotah, Inc.

Email-address typo treated as a unique mistake

GCC Dacotah attempted to email its contest on time, but a typo in MSHA's address prevented delivery and the company's system produced no error notice. After learning of the problem, it moved to reopen within 30 days and circulated a memorandum to safety personnel. The Commission majority…

October 3, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Remanded
COMM

Bryan K. Clark

In re Bryan K. Clark (EAB CERCLA Appeal No. 23-01): filing dismissed for lack of jurisdiction

Bryan K. Clark submitted a filing concerning a dispute with a contractor and seeking relief that included references to wages, fiduciary duties, pension statements, and CERCLA response costs. The filing did not identify an EPA permitting decision or other decision within the Board's jurisdiction…

September 29, 2023 ·EPA EAB
Procedural
COMM

United States Department of the Army, U.S. Army Garrison, Picatinny Arsenal, New Jersey and International Association of Firefighters, Local F-169

Picatinny Arsenal and IAFF Local F-169 (FLRA 0-AR-5864): Authority remands fire-staffing remedy for clarification

Picatinny Arsenal indefinitely closed one of two fire stations for budget reasons and reduced staffed positions per shift from twelve to nine. An arbitrator treated the union's grievance as alleging continuing staffing violations, found it timely, and ordered the agency to restore staffing as it…

September 29, 2023
Remanded
ALJ

Secretary of Labor v. Kingston Mining, Inc.

Snake-bite reporting citation affirmed, penalty reduced

Kingston Mining operated the Kingston No. 2 mine. MSHA cited it under 30 C.F.R. § 50.20(a) for not reporting within ten working days that a miner was bitten by a copperhead snake on the mine access road and missed nine days of work. The judge found that the access road was mine property and that…

September 28, 2023 ·William B. Moran ·FMSHRC
Modified
COMM

Tidewater Region Market, Defense Health Agency, United States Department of Defense; American Federation of Government Employees; and National Association of Independent Labor

Defense Health Agency Tidewater Market successorship proceeding (FLRA WA-RP-22-0035): Authority leaves professional-unit election pending

The Defense Health Agency reorganized employees from several military treatment facilities into its Tidewater Market. A regional director found the market was the successor employer, rejected facility-specific units sought by the National Association of Independent Labor, and found market-level…

September 28, 2023
Procedural
COMM

Dean v. South Carolina Department of Transportation

Late Clean Water Act hearing request remanded

Robert Dean requested a hearing one day after the 30-day deadline following OSHA's dismissal of his Clean Water Act retaliation complaint. He said that he miscalculated the deadline and waited for records from a Freedom of Information Act request that he thought might affect the case. The…

September 28, 2023
Remanded
COMM

Xanthopoulos v. Mercer Investment Consulting

SOX blacklisting claim rejected

Apostolos Xanthopoulos alleged that Mercer Investment Consulting blacklisted him by passing negative information through former colleagues and preventing Charles Schwab from hiring him. The Board upheld summary decision because the proposed chain of communications was speculation and the record…

September 28, 2023
Citations affirmed
ALJ

Americold Logistics, LLC

Powered-vehicle aisle and training citations vacated

Americold operated powered industrial vehicles in a large Georgia cold-storage facility where pedestrians and vehicles shared the loading-dock floor. An untrained and unauthorized employee drove a vehicle and severely injured his ankle while trying to avoid a bollard. The judge vacated the aisle…

September 28, 2023 ·Heather A. Joys ·OSHRC
Citations vacated
ALJ

Arrow Plumbing, LLC

Three excavation violations affirmed, spoil-pile item vacated

Arrow Plumbing replaced a residential sewer line in Grain Valley, Missouri, using an excavation more than nine feet deep. Its owner and project supervisor worked inside without hard hats, with exposed utilities and a near-vertical wall but no trench box or other cave-in protection. The judge…

September 28, 2023 ·Christopher D. Helms ·OSHRC
Mixed result
COMM

United States Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 0519, National Joint Council of Food Inspection Locals

USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service and AFGE Local 0519 (FLRA 0-AR-5849): Authority upholds bargaining remedies for inspector details

USDA changed its poultry-inspector positions and eliminated dedicated relief inspectors, leading to more frequent involuntary details and travel. An arbitrator found that those detailing changes had more than a minimal effect on working conditions and that the agency failed to bargain over their…

September 27, 2023
Citations affirmed
COMM

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 335

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and NTEU Chapter 335 (FLRA 0-AR-5756): Authority revises management-rights test and requests briefing

An arbitrator set aside a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau employee's reprimand because the employee did not receive an opportunity to respond before the agency decided on discipline. The Authority rejected the agency's claims that the arbitrator exceeded his authority, misread the agreement…

September 26, 2023
Procedural
COMM

Secretary of Labor v. R.E. Pierson Materials Corp.

Mail-processing errors excused two missed contests

R.E. Pierson received two proposed assessments, but mine administrative staff did not forward them to the operations manager for review and processing. The company discovered the errors only after MSHA sent delinquency notices and then contacted outside counsel. It reported taking corrective…

September 23, 2023 ·FMSHRC
Remanded
COMM

United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Southern Nevada Health Care System and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1224

VA Southern Nevada Health Care System and AFGE Local 1224 (FLRA 0-AR-5835): Authority dismisses pay-reduction exceptions

A VA dental hygienist accepted a move from Reno to Las Vegas at a lower grade but a higher salary after the agency offered GS-9, step 9. Three years later, the agency said the offer should have been step 7 and reduced the employee's pay. An arbitrator found that the employee reasonably relied on…

September 22, 2023
Procedural
ALJ

Secretary of Labor obo James Louis Groves v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC

Secretary of Labor obo James Louis Groves v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2023-0049): Default denied and late answer accepted

The Secretary sought default judgment after Consol Pennsylvania Coal did not answer a discrimination complaint by the deadline. Consol's original attorney stated under oath that the electronically sent complaint and related emails never reached his inbox, and new counsel filed an answer after…

September 21, 2023 ·William B. Moran ·FMSHRC
Procedural

What these documents are

  • The agencies: Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Each decision page names its agency.
  • Commission and Board decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, 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.