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.
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Secretary of Labor v. Perry County Resources, LLC
Unrelated abatement order was not required for settlement
Perry County Resources and the Secretary proposed settling four citations involving roof support, escapeways, a lifeline, and equipment guarding. A Judge denied approval because the Secretary would not provide a separate failure-to-abate order associated with a citation Perry accepted as written…
Kossen v. Empire Airlines
AIR21 reconsideration denied
Darren Kossen asked the Board to reconsider its affirmance of an administrative judge's denial of his AIR21 retaliation complaint. The Board explained that reconsideration requires previously unavailable material law or facts, later material developments, a change in law, or failure to consider…
United States Department of the Army, Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs, Arizona Army National Guard and Association of Civilian Technicians, Chapter 61
Arizona Army National Guard and ACT Chapter 61 (FLRA 0-AR-5860): Authority vacates delayed-separation award
The Arizona Army National Guard and the union agreed that dual-status technicians who lost military membership for medical reasons could seek renewable four-month extensions while disability-retirement claims were pending. The agency later rescinded that provision as inconsistent with federal law…
Secretary of Labor v. Blue Creek Mining, LLC
Safety director departure supported reopening
Blue Creek Mining missed its deadline to contest a proposed penalty assessment after the corporate safety director who normally filed contests left the company. The outgoing director did not submit the contest or alert another employee to the deadline. A paralegal discovered the oversight, and the…
Secretary of Labor v. Callender Construction Company, Inc.
Unopposed reopening request was granted
Callender Construction Company asked the Commission to reopen a penalty assessment that had become a final Commission order. The Secretary did not oppose the request. The Commission granted reopening and remanded the matter to the Chief Administrative Law Judge. It directed the Secretary to file a…
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 upholds denial of attorney fees for performance-award case
An arbitrator found that the IRS improperly evaluated an employee, raised the disputed performance scores, and ordered the performance award associated with the corrected rating. In a later fee ruling, the arbitrator denied the union's attorney-fee request because he found that the agreement made…
Gharda Chemicals International, Inc., and Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association, et al.
In re Gharda Chemicals International, Inc., and Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association, et al. (EAB FIFRA Appeal No. 23-02): Interlocutory review denied
Gharda Chemicals International, Inc. and grower organizations sought to pause a proceeding to cancel chlorpyrifos registrations while they challenged an EPA tolerance-revocation rule in the Eighth Circuit. The Administrative Law Judge denied the stay and declined to certify the order for…
Hendrix v. CSX Transportation, Inc.
FRSA settlement approved and sealing denied
An administrative judge found that CSX Transportation violated the Federal Railroad Safety Act by suspending Chad Hendrix after he refused instructions that he alleged would violate hours-of-service laws. The parties settled while CSX's appeal was before the Board. The Board denied their request to…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 12 and United States Department of Labor
AFGE Local 12 and Department of Labor (FLRA 0-NG-3631): Authority rejects performance-rating restrictions
The Department of Labor changed how it weighted elements in employee performance standards. AFGE Local 12 proposed a ninety-day adjustment period whose performance could not lower annual ratings, along with caps on the percentage weight assigned to individual elements. The Authority found both…
International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 1 and United States Department of the Navy, Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia
IFPTE Local 1 and Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center (FLRA 0-AR-5868): Authority upholds non-arbitrability ruling
The union grieved a requirement that its vice president report to a building each morning to request official time. After invoking arbitration, the union requested an arbitrator panel before the parties met to try to select an arbitrator as their agreement required. The arbitrator found that…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Marion Veterans Administration Medical Center, Marion, Illinois and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2483
Marion VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2483 (FLRA 0-AR-5852): Authority upholds environmental-differential pay
Housekeepers and plumbers at Marion VA healthcare facilities sought environmental-differential pay for regular exposure to potentially harmful micro-organisms. An arbitrator found that bloodborne-disease, splash, contaminated-waste, and patient-related hazards occurred daily and that safety…
Secretary of Labor v. CSI Sands NE, Ltd.
Unusual disruptions supported reopening
CSI Sands filed its penalty contest 12 days late while rebuilding its facility and dealing with an employee injury, a natural gas supply failure, and a management change. The proposed assessment had been delivered to the mine supervisor, who then accepted another job. CSI said the reconstruction…
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0148): Truck-safety settlement approved
The settlement covered five citations, including unsafe-condition and inadequate pre-operational-inspection violations involving two mine trucks. One truck had seven listed defects, and another had nineteen, while the related inspection records omitted most or all of those conditions. The parties…
Secretary of Labor v. Eagle Rock, Inc.
Deadline mistake supported partial reopening
Eagle Rock received a proposed assessment covering 14 citations but mistakenly believed its contest deadline was two days later than the actual deadline. After MSHA told the operator the contest was late, Eagle followed up when promised correspondence did not arrive. It paid the penalties for ten…
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Electrical Services
New assistant's error supported reopening
Vulcan Electrical Services missed the deadline to contest a proposed penalty assessment after a new administrative assistant received it but did not understand the 30-day deadline. The assistant did not forward the assessment to the safety director until after it had become a final order. Vulcan…
Secretary of Labor v. Highway Materials, Inc.
Conference timing mistake supported reopening
Highway Materials requested an MSHA conference on three citations and later received a proposed penalty assessment while waiting for the conference results. The operator mistakenly believed it had 30 days after the results letter to contest the penalties, rather than 30 days after receiving the…
Secretary of Labor v. Nufac Mining Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Nufac Mining Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0149): Five-citation settlement approved with installment plan
The parties settled five citations issued to Nufac Mining's No. 57 Mine. Three penalties were reduced by roughly half, while two remained unchanged, lowering the table total from $19,574 to $11,684. The judge noted substantial older unpaid penalties and prior noncompliance with an installment plan…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0141): Continuance granted and settlement question certified
Consol Mining asked to continue a scheduled hearing because of witness and discovery issues and pending disputes over a proposed partial settlement. The judge granted the continuance and deferred the Secretary's request to separate the unsettled citations from those proposed for settlement. He…
Secretary of Labor obo Victor Torres v. W. G. Yates & Sons Construction Company
Secretary of Labor obo Victor Torres v. W. G. Yates & Sons Construction (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0256): Reinstatement granted but tolled
Victor Torres exercised stop-work authority because he believed using a manlift to lower pipe was unsafe, documented the work with photographs, and was laid off three days later. The judge found a nonfrivolous issue as to whether the safety activity played a role in the layoff, so he granted the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC; Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2021-0163): Commission requested briefing on reinstatement finality
The Commission had granted cross-petitions for review in three consolidated proceedings involving Vulcan Construction Materials and miner Jason Hargis. After the parties filed their briefs, the Commission identified an issue they had not addressed. Mine Act section 105(c)(2) refers to a 30-day…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1858 and United States Department of the Army, U.S. Army Contracting Command-Redstone, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama
AFGE Local 1858 and Army Contracting Command-Redstone (FLRA 0-AR-5871): Authority dismisses unrecognized exceptions
AFGE Local 1858 filed exceptions to an arbitration award involving Army Contracting Command-Redstone, and the agency opposed them. The Authority selected the matter for an expedited, abbreviated decision. It found that the union's filing did not raise a recognized ground for review under the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2092 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs
AFGE Local 2092 and Department of Veterans Affairs (FLRA 0-AR-5857): Authority upholds compressed-schedule change
The Department of Veterans Affairs rotated a surgical technician's regular day off within her compressed work schedule because of patient needs. An arbitrator found that the agency gave the union advance notice and an opportunity to bargain before the change took effect, satisfying the agreement…
Secretary of Labor v. Marshall County Coal Resources, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Marshall County Coal Resources (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0214): Three-citation settlement approved
The settlement resolved three citations involving a coal feeder whose emergency-stop cable did not work, debris obstructing track clearance in violation of a safeguard, and a missing preshift examination for the same area. The first two penalties were reduced by 43 percent without changing the…
UHS of Denver, Inc., d/b/a Highlands Behavioral Health System
Workplace-violence citation affirmed after economic-feasibility review
This remand decision addressed whether OSHA's proposed measures for reducing workplace violence at a behavioral health facility were economically feasible. The original judge had affirmed the general duty clause citation through a discovery sanction, but the Commission set that sanction aside and…
Secretary of Labor v. Rockwell Mining, LLC
Reopening granted with processing-system warning
Rockwell Mining missed contest deadlines for three assessments after the corporate safety director who normally filed contests left the company without filing them or alerting another employee. A paralegal discovered the oversight, and Rockwell promptly retained counsel and sought reopening after…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0011): Escapeway obstruction citation affirmed
Six pressurized hoses from a pump car protruded into the secondary escapeway at Consol's Enlow Fork Mine. The judge found that the hoses narrowed and obstructed the path used with the escapeway lifeline and could impede miners, including a disabled miner on a stretcher, during an emergency…
Smith v. Franciscan Physician Network
HIPAA reports not protected under ACA Title I
Dr. Annette Smith alleged that Franciscan Physician Network fired her after she reported employees' unauthorized access to patient records as HIPAA violations. The Board held that her reports concerned patient privacy and medical-record safeguards, while the whistleblower provision at issue…
Turin v. Maiden Holdings, LTD
SOX complaint denied for lack of protected activity
Bentzion Turin, Maiden Holdings' former general counsel, alleged that the company discharged him for concerns he raised about financing an acquisition. The administrative judge found that he did not honestly believe the reported conduct violated SOX and that a reasonable corporate lawyer with…
Secretary of Labor v. River View Coal, LLC
Personnel transition excused one-day delay
River View Coal missed a proposed-assessment contest deadline during a transition in safety personnel following a retirement. An assistant safety director temporarily handled contests and miscalculated the filing date. The operator mailed the contest one day after the assessment became a final…
Secretary of Labor v. Benton County Stone Co. Inc.
Hospitalization excused default
Benton County Stone failed to answer the Secretary's penalty petition, and an order to show cause became a default order. The operator's safety director and MSHA consultant had been hospitalized for surgery and was on medical leave when MSHA emailed him about the case. Benton moved to reopen on the…
Baltimore Waterproofing, Inc. v. Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL
$41.46 waterproofer rate affirmed
Baltimore Waterproofing was a subcontractor on improvements to a wastewater treatment plant and asked to add a waterproofer classification at $24.00 per hour plus $6.52 in fringe benefits. The Wage and Hour Division instead approved $28.03 plus $13.43, a $41.46 total tied to the skilled…
Secretary of Labor v. Clay Trucking, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Clay Trucking (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0123): Coal-truck settlement approved with installment payments
The settlement resolved four citations involving two coal trucks with leaking brake components and defective lights, along with a broken fifth-wheel component on one truck. Three citations were affirmed at their original assessments. For one leaking-brake citation, the expected likelihood was…
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt (FMSHRC CENT 2022-0176): Mixed ruling on training, ground, escape, and storage citations
The judge resolved seven contested citations and orders from an inspection of Morton Salt's Weeks Island Mine and approved settlement of seven others. He vacated three training orders because the documented instruction on the Femco warning system was adequate, and he vacated a ventilation-door…
Nature Gas Import and Export Inc.
In re Nature Gas Import and Export Inc. (EAB CAA Appeal No. 23-04C): greenhouse-gas reporting settlement approved
Nature Gas Import and Export Inc., a Wyoming corporation with a registered office in Casper, was an industrial greenhouse-gas supplier subject to EPA's mandatory reporting requirements. EPA alleged that Nature Gas exceeded the 25,000 metric ton carbon-dioxide-equivalent reporting threshold and did…
Laborers International Union of North America, Local 1776 and United States Department of the Army, South Dakota Army National Guard
LIUNA Local 1776 and South Dakota Army National Guard (FLRA 0-AR-5846): Authority upholds workplace dress ruling and cost allocation
The South Dakota Army National Guard prohibited employees from wearing jeans and athletic shoes after a new collective-bargaining agreement took effect. An arbitrator found that the agreement's business-casual requirement was ambiguous, and bargaining history showed that the union knew the agency…
Barrett v. Empire Airlines
AIR21 appeal dismissed after settlement defects went unanswered
William Barrett petitioned for Board review of an AIR21 dismissal and attached what appeared to be a settlement with Empire Airlines. The agreement was not fully executed and contained other irregularities, so the Board denied approval without prejudice. It gave the parties 14 days either to submit…
Schaefer v. New York Community Bancorp, Inc.
Copper-theft reports were not SOX bank-fraud activity
Two longtime bank managers reported damage, copper salvage, and cash envelopes associated with a building renovation and later alleged that they had exposed bid rigging and kickbacks. The Board upheld findings that their actual reports described questionable conduct and possible theft or…
Good Food Concepts, LLC d/b/a Ranch Foods Direct
Meat-grinder guarding and reporting citations affirmed
Good Food Concepts operated a retail meat business where an employee's hand was caught in a meat grinder, resulting in the amputation of four fingers and inpatient hospitalization. OSHA cited the company for failing to guard the grinder and for failing to report the hospitalization within 24 hours…
Secretary of Labor v. John S. Lane & Son, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. John S. Lane & Son (FMSHRC YORK 2023-0051): Four-citation settlement approved
The settlement covered four citations at John S. Lane & Son's Westfield Quarry. A safe-access citation involving a miner climbing through and above a conveyor chute was reduced to low negligence and a $143 penalty. An unlocked-transformer citation was vacated, while a citation for mounting a…
Secretary of Labor v. Cemex Construction Materials South, LLC
Unclear delivery supported reopening
MSHA mailed Cemex a proposed assessment at the correct address, and postal records showed delivery, but the safety manager said he did not personally receive it until after the contest deadline. Cemex filed its reopening motion within 30 days after the assessment became a final Commission order…
Secretary of Labor v. Cemex Construction Materials South, LLC
Unclear COVID-era delivery supported reopening
Postal records showed that a proposed assessment was delivered to Cemex at the correct address, but Cemex had no record of receiving it. The delivery confirmation contained “COVID” in the signature block, and the exact confirmation method was unclear. Cemex moved to reopen within 30 days after MSHA…
Denaka Partners, LP, dba Home Rubber Company
Machine-guarding and bloodborne-pathogen violations affirmed
Denaka manufactured rubber products at a New Jersey facility where an employee's sleeve became caught in an operating slitter mill, pulling his arm into the machine and resulting in an amputation. OSHA cited the company for inadequate machine guarding and for failures involving hepatitis B…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Juan Smitherman v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC
Discrimination finding affirmed
Roof bolter Juan Smitherman raised a ventilation concern about missing fly pads and was discharged shortly afterward. Warrior Met said it fired him for sleeping and taking an unauthorized break under a last-chance agreement. The administrative law judge found discrimination, imposed a $20,000 civil…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 4156 and Social Security Administration, Atlanta Regional Office
AFGE Local 4156 and SSA Atlanta Regional Office (FLRA 0-AR-5870): Authority upholds five-day suspension
The Social Security Administration suspended a claims specialist for five days after she missed work-assignment deadlines. An arbitrator found that the agency proved both misconduct specifications and had just cause for the suspension, while rejecting the union's claim that the discipline resulted…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company LLC
Interlocutory petition denied for missing certification step
MSHA sought Commission review after an administrative law judge denied a proposed settlement and said the issues would be resolved at hearing. The Commission treated the filing as a petition for interlocutory review because the judge's order was not final. Commission rules required the judge either…
Secretary of Labor v. Pocahontas Coal Company LLC
Commission granted review and paused briefing
The Secretary filed a petition asking the Commission to review an administrative law judge's ruling in the Pocahontas Coal proceeding. The Commission granted the petition for discretionary review. It did not decide the underlying dispute in this order. Instead, it held briefing in abeyance until…
McMillan v. American Federation of Government Employees, Local Union 2145
Dues violation established but remedy remanded
Cassandra McMillan alleged that AFGE Local 2145 raised federal-union member dues without the notice and member vote required by the Standards of Conduct regulations. The union did not answer, respond to discovery, attend a prehearing conference, or answer a show-cause order despite receiving…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2382 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefits Administration, Phoenix Regional Office, Phoenix, Arizona
AFGE Local 2382 and VA Phoenix Regional Office (FLRA 0-AR-5869): Authority upholds denial of full-time official time
The Veterans Benefits Administration denied a union officer's request to spend all duty time on official-time work, citing staffing and workload while offering to review individual requests. An arbitrator found that neither the agreement nor a binding past practice entitled the officer to 100%…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 547 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, James A. Haley Veterans Hospital and Clinics
AFGE Local 547 and James A. Haley Veterans Hospital (FLRA 0-AR-5802): Authority revives promotion-interview grievance
The union first filed an unfair-labor-practice charge claiming the hospital changed its interview method without notice or bargaining. It later grieved on behalf of named employees who were interviewed but not selected, seeking individual compensation and other relief. An arbitrator dismissed the…
United States Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards, Division of Enforcement, Tracy Shanker, Chief and Patent Office Professional Association
Labor Department and Patent Office Professional Association (FLRA 0-MC-0035): Authority enforces election violation and remands remedy
A candidate for president of the Patent Office Professional Association asked the union's designated printer about mailing campaign postcards, but the printer never responded. The Labor Department's Administrative Review Board found that the union failed to honor a reasonable campaign-literature…
Secretary of Labor v. Carmeuse Lime
Person-in-charge citation affirmed; escapeway citation vacated
Three miners were working underground at Carmeuse Lime's Talona Mountain Mine while the designated person in charge was at a separately identified mine a few miles away and could not be reached by underground radio. The Judge affirmed the resulting citation under 30 C.F.R. § 57.18009 as significant…
Kossen v. Empire Airlines
AIR21 retaliation denial affirmed
Darren Kossen, an Empire Airlines pilot, made protected safety reports after a flight experienced stall-warning indications. The Board upheld findings that those reports did not contribute to his discharge. Substantial evidence showed that Empire had raised safety concerns about his piloting before…
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Eyewash and backup-alarm settlement approved
The settlement resolved two citations at Vulcan's 115 Quarry. For an expired four-ounce bottle of eyewash in a first-aid kit, negligence was reduced from moderate to low and the penalty from $133 to $50. For a nonfunctioning truck backup alarm, the expected injury was changed from reasonably likely…
Fama Construction, LLC
Roofing violations affirmed against controlling employer
Fama held the roofing contract for a residential townhome project and used subcontractors with a history of fall-protection violations. On remand, the judge found Fama liable as a controlling employer because it had stopped worksite safety inspections and did not take reasonable measures to prevent…
Secretary of Labor v. Sterling Materials
Similar citation numbers caused clerical error
Sterling Materials intended to contest the penalty for Citation No. 9870856 but confused it with the similarly numbered Citation No. 9870855, which it had timely contested in another docket. The operator paid all six penalties in the assessment after receiving a delinquency notice. The Secretary…
Martin v. Paragon Foods
Environmental and food-safety claims dismissed as late
Brandon Martin, a warehouse custodian for a foodservice distributor, complained to several agencies about workplace, food-safety, and environmental issues before and after his employment ended. He did not file an OSHA whistleblower-retaliation complaint until 225 days after his termination, missing…
Secretary of Labor v. Marfork Coal Company, LLC
Repeated processing defect barred reopening
Marfork Coal missed the deadline to contest seven citations because an executive assistant did not change the assessment's status from “New” to “Ready for Review” in the parent company's internal system. The same assistant and same error had caused another Alpha Metallurgical subsidiary to miss a…
Astro Auto Wrecking, LLC
In re Astro Auto Wrecking, LLC (EAB CWA Appeal No. 23-(01)): review declined and default order becomes final
The Presiding Officer issued a Default Order and Initial Decision involving Astro Auto Wrecking, LLC on May 1, 2023. Neither party appealed, and the Environmental Appeals Board declined to review the case on its own initiative. The Default Order and Initial Decision were therefore set to become a…
Secretary of Labor v. Miller Contracting Services, LLC
Lost mail supported reopening
Miller Contracting said it timely mailed a contest for Citation No. 9488618, but MSHA never received the form. The operator's short filing did not provide supporting details or documentation. Even so, Miller sought reopening promptly, filing 32 days after the assessment became a final Commission…
American Federation of Government Employees, Council 222 and United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Real Estate Assessment Center and Office of Public and Indian Housing
AFGE Council 222 and HUD (FLRA 0-NG-3632): Authority rejects duty-station and locality-pay proposals
HUD changed the official duty stations of traveling housing inspectors to their home residences, reducing locality pay for some employees. AFGE Council 222 proposed restoring duty stations associated with higher locality rates, providing personnel-action records, awarding retroactive pay…
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.