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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J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Occupational disease claim denied
J.M., a postal markup clerk, attributed back and upper extremity conditions to repetitive work duties. OWCP accepted several diagnoses but denied the occupational disease claim because it found no adequate medical link to his work. The Board found that his physician did not explain how the duties…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Facility
Shoulder condition claim denied
P.S., a postal parcel machine operator, attributed shoulder conditions to repetitive work. One physician recommended light duty without a diagnosis or causation opinion, and another diagnosed a shoulder strain and tendinitis without addressing their cause. The Board found that the medical evidence…
T.W. and Small Business Administration, Loan Division
Disability periods not established
T.W., an SBA loan servicing assistant, sought disability compensation for several periods after an accepted fall at work. The Board found that later medical reports did not adequately explain how the accepted conditions disabled her on the specific claimed dates. Some reports discussed symptoms or…
K.S. and Department of the Army, Pine Bluff Arsenal
Emotional condition claim remanded
K.S., an Army arsenal worker, reported an emotional condition after flash bang canisters ignited near her at work. OWCP denied the claim based on a second opinion that later questioned one diagnosis, but the Board found that the physician had not withdrawn his opinions linking other conditions to…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Back claim reconsideration denied
P.S., a postal mail handler, requested reconsideration of a denied back condition claim attributed to heavy lifting. His request repeated arguments about medical reports that the Board had already considered and included no new medical evidence about work causation. The Board found that he had…
P.P. and Department of the Air Force, Hill Air Force Base
Oral hearing request abandoned
P.P., an Air Force machinist, requested an oral hearing after OWCP denied his shoulder injury claim. OWCP mailed notice of a telephone hearing to his address of record. He did not call at the scheduled time, request postponement, or explain his absence within ten days. The Board applied the…
A.M. and Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers
Bipolar disorder aggravation claim denied
A.M., an Army Corps supply specialist, had an accepted aggravation of a cervical spine condition after a workplace injury. He asked OWCP to add an aggravation of preexisting bipolar disorder as a consequence of that injury. The Board found that his psychiatrist described stress and mood symptoms…
A.F. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center
Late reconsideration request denied
A.F., a VA medical technician, sought to reopen a decision terminating benefits for an accepted shoulder injury. OWCP received her reconsideration request one day after the extended one-year deadline. The Board found that her medical reports did not show clear evidence of error in the benefit…
Mansfield Industrial, Inc.
Chemical training and respirator items vacated
Six Mansfield Industrial employees were hospitalized after a chlorine release at a plastics facility. OSHA cited the company for allegedly inadequate hazardous-chemical training and for failing to provide one employee an annual respirator fit test. The judge found that OSHA did not identify how…
M.S. and Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration
Training run injury claim denied
M.S., a DEA trainee, reported near fainting and other symptoms during a training run. The Board accepted that the run occurred but found no reasoned medical opinion linking a diagnosed condition to it; one doctor attributed the symptoms primarily to illness, medication, and dehydration. It also…
R.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
No additional leg impairment award
R.A., a postal mail equipment handler, sought a larger schedule award for his legs after an accepted workplace injury. OWCP had already awarded two percent impairment of the right leg. The Board accepted the impairment rating of two percent for the right leg and zero for the left. It found that a…
K.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Overpayment upheld; fault finding set aside
K.E., a postal letter carrier, received total disability payments for five days after returning to part-time work. The Board upheld the $504.06 overpayment but found no evidence that she knew the first incorrect direct deposit was wrong when she received it. It set aside OWCP’s finding that she was…
V.T. and Department of the Navy, Navy Region Southwest
Benefit overpayment and recovery affirmed
V.T., a Navy administrative specialist receiving FECA benefits, also received Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP’s calculation of a $12,769 overpayment from February through December 2016. Although she was without…
L.G. and Department of the Treasury, Office of the Secretary
Additional conditions not accepted
L.G., a Treasury economist, had an accepted claim for knee, ankle, tibia, and back injuries after falling down stairs at work. She sought to add conditions including concussion, headaches, neck problems, and neuropathy. The Board found that the medical evidence did not adequately explain how the…
Keolis Commuter Services, LLC
In re Keolis Commuter Services, LLC (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 18-03): contested permit condition withdrawn and appeal dismissed
Keolis Commuter Services, LLC, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, and the Delaware North Corporation were co-permittees on an NPDES permit authorizing discharge from the North Station Railroad Terminal to the Charles River. Keolis petitioned the EAB to review the permit. EPA Region 1…
Secretary of Labor obo Justin Hickman v. Huber Carbonates, LLC
Response extension partly granted
Huber Carbonates asked the Judge to require the Secretary to return an email that Huber claimed was protected by attorney-client privilege and to bar its use in future Mine Act proceedings. The Secretary requested until November 16 to respond, arguing that Huber sought unprecedented relief and…
R.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Two reconsideration requests denied
R.R., a postal city carrier assistant, claimed injury after falling while avoiding a dog on her route. She filed two reconsideration requests after OWCP denied the claim. The Board found that her statements did not supply a new argument warranting review, and the new medical evidence did not…
K.S. and Department of the Army, Army National Guard
Back injury reconsideration remanded
K.S., an Army National Guard information technology specialist, sought reconsideration of a denied back injury claim after falling on icy stairs at work. New reports from his surgeon diagnosed an aggravation of a healing lumbar fusion and addressed its connection to the fall. The Board found those…
C.K. and Department of the Navy, Norfolk Naval Shipyard
Hearing loss claim not reopened
C.K., a Navy shipyard technician, sought reconsideration after OWCP denied his hearing loss claim as untimely. He submitted a corrected claim form changing when he said he first connected the loss to his work. The Board found that it repeated an argument OWCP had already considered and supplied no…
B.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Late prerecoupment hearing request denied
B.W., a postal letter carrier, requested a prerecoupment hearing after OWCP notified her of a proposed benefit overpayment. Even using the date she put on her request, it was submitted more than 30 days after the preliminary overpayment notice. The Board affirmed OWCP’s refusal to hold the…
A.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration
Overpayment upheld; fault split
A.B., a Veterans Health Administration employee, kept receiving compensation after her schedule award ended. The Board upheld a $39,681.18 overpayment. It found her without fault for the first two incorrect direct deposits, but at fault for later payments after enough time had passed to recognize…
H.H. and Environmental Protection Agency, Headquarters
Overpayment finding set aside
H.H., an EPA headquarters employee, disputed OWCP’s finding that he had received $47,836.73 in overlapping FECA and Social Security benefits. The Board found that the record did not substantiate Social Security payments or the offset calculation for the full period claimed. It set aside OWCP’s…
United States Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, Laredo Sector (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2455, National Border Patrol Council (Union)
Border Patrol Laredo Sector and AFGE Local 2455 (FLRA 0-AR-5362): Transfer award vacated as moot
A Border Patrol agent in Texas sought a compassionate transfer to his New York hometown after his son was diagnosed with a developmental disorder. The agency denied the request because it found no qualifying dire emergency, and an arbitrator later ordered the agency to place the agent on the…
Palmdale Energy, LLC
In re Palmdale Energy, LLC (EAB PSD Appeal No. 18-01): BACT and air-quality analyses upheld
EPA Region 9 issued a Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit for Palmdale Energy, LLC to construct and operate a 645-megawatt combined-cycle natural-gas power plant in Palmdale, California. Four conservation groups challenged the Region's Best Available Control Technology analysis and its…
P.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Increased shoulder award remanded
P.T., a postal mail handler, sought a larger right arm schedule award after previously receiving seven percent for an accepted shoulder injury. The Board found that OWCP had not obtained the complete comparison of diagnosis-based and range-of-motion rating methods required by its newer procedures…
C.S. and Department of Energy, Forrestal Building
Compensation and medical benefits termination upheld
C.S., a Department of Energy budget analyst, received compensation after a workplace fall. OWCP terminated her wage-loss and medical benefits effective August 18, 2016 after an impartial orthopedic examiner found no objective residuals and concluded she could return to her sedentary job. The Board…
S.S. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection
Shoulder condition claim denied
S.S., a customs and border protection officer, attributed a right shoulder condition to baton training, shooting drills, and moving barricades. OWCP accepted the work activities, but the Board found that his doctor mainly checked forms or referred generally to overuse without explaining how the…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Back injury claim not reopened
M.B., a postal rural carrier, sought reconsideration of a denied back injury claim after lifting newspapers at work. Her request argued that OWCP had undervalued the medical evidence and her preexisting condition, but she supplied no new medical evidence on causation. The Board found no new legal…
P.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Late reconsideration request denied
P.B., a postal letter carrier with an accepted plantar fasciitis claim, sought reconsideration of a finding that he had no ongoing disability. OWCP received his request more than a year after the last merits decision. The Board found that the additional medical reports did not show clear evidence…
S.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Mail loading injury claim denied
S.D., a postal rural carrier, reported back, neck, and shoulder symptoms after loading mail and packages into a vehicle. The Board accepted that the work incident occurred but found that the medical reports did not adequately explain how it caused or aggravated her diagnosed conditions. It affirmed…
John Miller v. Pine Branch Coal Sales, Incorporated
Miller v. Pine Branch Coal Sales (BRB 18-0323): Benefits award vacated for a new hearing
John Miller had received black lung benefits after an administrative law judge found that he qualified for the fifteen-year presumption of disability due to pneumoconiosis and that the employer had not rebutted it. The employer challenged the judge's appointment. The Board had first sent the case…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Atlanta Processing & Distribution Center
Claimed disability periods denied
T.J., a postal clerk with an accepted elbow condition, sought total disability compensation for August 13 through 25, 2016 and December 7, 2016 through January 14, 2017. The Board found that the medical reports did not adequately explain why the accepted condition prevented her from performing the…
M.G. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Air Station
Additional right knee award denied
M.G., a Marine Corps air station boiler plant operator, sought a larger right leg schedule award after an accepted knee injury and replacement. He already had an award for 31 percent permanent impairment. The Board found that his physician’s higher rating lacked a supported A.M.A. Guides…
L.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration
Shoulder occupational disease claim denied
L.M., a VA housekeeping worker, attributed shoulder conditions to pulling and moving heavy items at work. OWCP accepted the work factors, but the Board found that the submitted reports either described pain without a firm diagnosis or did not explain how the work caused a diagnosed condition. It…
S.T. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps
Wage loss claim remanded
S.T., a Marine Corps program analyst, had accepted work-related aggravations of asthma and allergic rhinitis from workplace allergens. OWCP denied her wage loss claim, relying in part on the view that work within her restrictions was available. The Board found that OWCP had not adequately addressed…
D.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Existing leg impairment awards upheld
D.W., a postal letter carrier, sought larger schedule awards after accepted knee and hip conditions and bilateral hip replacements. She already had awards for 32 percent impairment of the right leg and 31 percent of the left. The Board found that the medical adviser applied the sixth edition of the…
D.N. and Department of the Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, Marine Corps Air Station
Furniture moving injury claim denied
D.N., a Marine Corps air station employee, reported back, neck, and leg injuries after moving furniture at work. OWCP accepted that he moved the furniture, but the medical reports described diagnoses or pain without addressing whether that incident caused them. The Board found the missing causal…
Terrance McKitrrick d/b/a Great White Construction
Repeat roof fall violation affirmed
Four Great White Construction employees installed shingles on a residential roof about 11 feet above the ground without using available fall protection. The judge found actual and constructive knowledge based on the owner’s repeated prior fall citations, inadequate follow-up, and the foreman’s…
United States Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Passport Services Directorate (Agency) and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1998 (Union)
Passport Services and NFFE Local 1998 (FLRA 0-AR-5320): Three-week internship postings required
Passport Services posted two Pathways Internship Program vacancies for less than the three weeks required by its collective-bargaining agreement. An arbitrator found that the positions belonged to the bargaining unit, that the component posting the vacancies acted as the agency's agent, and that no…
Secretary of Labor v. Lehigh Anthracite Coal, LLC and Secretary of Labor v. Shane T. Wetzel, employed by Lehigh Anthracite Coal, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Lehigh Anthracite Coal, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2014-108): Reckless-disregard penalties set on remand
The Commission had ruled that Lehigh Anthracite and foreman Shane Wetzel acted with reckless disregard when a miner was exposed to hazards while recovering a buried dragline bucket, and it sent the case back solely for new penalties. Judge L. Zane Gill credited Lehigh's immediate investigation…
W.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Dominick V. Daniels Processing & Distribution Center
Shoulder condition claim denied
W.A., a postal clerk, reported right shoulder symptoms after casing mail during one work shift. Her physician’s later opinion assumed she reached above her head, contrary to her own account, and did not adequately explain how the accepted incident caused or worsened the shoulder condition. The…
A.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Additional carpal tunnel award denied
A.R., a postal letter carrier with accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, sought larger schedule awards for his arms. An impartial examiner rated two percent permanent impairment of each upper extremity using the A.M.A. Guides. The Board gave that reasoned opinion special weight and found no…
V.R. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service
Two life insurance overpayments reviewed
V.R., an IRS employee receiving FECA benefits, challenged two alleged overpayments involving life insurance premium deductions. The Board found that OWCP had not explained or supported the $1,314.04 calculation. It upheld a separate $31,660 overpayment for premiums that had not been withheld but…
R.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Joyfield Station
Compounded medication denied
R.C., a postal city carrier with an accepted left knee injury, sought authorization for a compounded topical medication. His physician requested it, but the Board found that the request lacked a reasoned narrative explaining its necessity. It upheld OWCP’s reliance on its medical adviser and…
A.P. and Department of the Army, Army National Guard
Lumbar condition claim denied
A.P., an Army National Guard mechanic, attributed a lumbar condition to physical duties inspecting and repairing vehicles. OWCP accepted the described work factors, but the Board found that diagnostic studies and physician reports did not explain how those duties caused or aggravated the diagnosed…
D.A. and Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service
Shoulder injury and reconsideration denied
D.A., a Forest Service materials handler, reported a shoulder injury after stopping a heavy forklift battery that rolled too far at work. The Board accepted the incident but found no adequate medical explanation connecting a diagnosed shoulder condition to it. His later reconsideration request…
Export-Import Bank of the United States (Agency/Petitioner) and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO (Labor Organization)
Export-Import Bank and AFGE (FLRA WA-RP-18-0034): Good-faith-doubt petition dismissed
The Export-Import Bank questioned whether AFGE still represented a majority of an approximately twenty-employee bargaining unit, citing an old agreement, no recent grievances, gaps in local officers, and a low dues-paying membership. A regional director found that AFGE remained active through…
Matter of Daniel Girmai Negusie
Matter of Negusie (BIA ID 3943): persecutor-bar issue referred for Attorney General review
The Attorney General directed the Board of Immigration Appeals to refer the respondent's case for review of whether coercion and duress matter when applying the Immigration and Nationality Act's persecutor bar. The order invited briefing from the parties and interested amici and set word limits…
M.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Freedom Station
Continuing disability claim denied
M.C., a postal carrier, sought continuing disability compensation after an accepted 2006 left knee strain. Earlier periods had already been adjudicated, so the Board considered disability beginning April 3, 2008. It found no adequately reasoned medical opinion showing that the accepted strain…
R.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Shoulder and back claim not reopened
R.S., a postal clerk, sought reconsideration of a denied claim involving shoulder and back conditions attributed to repetitive work. Her statement explained her duties and her view of causation, while the submitted medical reports were duplicative or repeated earlier findings. The Board found no…
C.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Delivery Center
Knee claim and late hearing request denied
C.K., a postal mail handler assistant, reported a left knee injury while pulling a container at work. The Board accepted the incident but found that reports from a physician assistant and physical therapist did not establish a diagnosed work-related condition under FECA. It also found that her…
M.R. and U.S. Postal Service, National Equal Employment Opportunity Investigative Service Office
Workplace stress claim denied
M.R., a postal EEO analyst, attributed emotional symptoms and a multiple sclerosis flare-up to workload, supervisory conduct, and an alleged hostile work environment. The Board found that the record did not establish the claimed events as compensable employment factors; some extra work was…
S.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Emotional condition claim denied
S.T., a postal engineer, alleged that harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and personnel actions caused an emotional condition. The Board found that the asserted personnel matters were not compensable work factors absent established error or abuse. It also found that the record did not…
S.V. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Outpatient Clinic
Endoscope injury claim not reopened
S.V., a VA physician, sought reconsideration of a denied claim involving thumb and finger conditions attributed to repeated endoscope use. He submitted another report from his surgeon linking his right thumb condition to gripping and twisting an endoscope. The Board found that the new report…
Secretary of Labor v. Northshore Mining Company
$3,706 settlement approved
Northshore Mining and the Secretary proposed resolving ten citations by reducing total penalties from $17,856 to $3,706. Two citations were vacated, several negligence or injury findings were lowered, and two significant-and-substantial designations were removed. Judge Margaret A. Miller repeatedly…
M.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center
Wrist and shoulder claim and reconsideration denied
M.G., a medical technician, claimed that repetitive laboratory work caused wrist and shoulder conditions. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim and later refused to reopen it. The Board found that her physician diagnosed conditions but did not explain medically how her accepted duties caused…
P.B. and Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency
Low back injury claim denied
P.B., an evidence custodian, reported low back pain after moving copier paper boxes at work on February 13, 2017. OWCP accepted the incident but denied the injury claim. The Board found that her physician diagnosed back ache, a symptom, and did not explain how the incident caused a diagnosed low…
J.O. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons
Additional schedule award denied
J.O., a correctional officer, sought a larger schedule award for impairment of his arms and legs after an accepted workplace injury. He had already received awards for one percent impairment of each upper and lower extremity. The Board found that his physician did not supply the physical findings…
C.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Left ankle claim denied
C.L., a postal carrier, said she twisted her left ankle when she stepped into a hole at work on June 12, 2017. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied her injury claim. The Board found that the hospital report identified an ankle sprain without explaining medically how the work incident…
R.V. and Defense Intelligence Agency
Emotional condition claim returned for further development
R.V., a supervisory budget analyst, sought compensation for an emotional condition she attributed to her work environment. The Board found that her unsupported allegations of overwork and several personnel actions did not establish compensable work factors. Her harassment and administrative error…
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.