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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F.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Reconsideration request denied
F.M., a postal mail handler, sought compensation for left hand pain she attributed to repetitive work. OWCP denied the claim, and she asked it to reconsider. The Board reviewed only the later refusal to reopen because the appeal came too late for review of the underlying merits. Her reconsideration…
United States Department of Labor (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 12 (Union)
Department of Labor and AFGE Local 12 (FLRA 0-AR-5314): Pathways conversion award vacated
A Department of Labor student intern first served under a temporary STEP appointment and later under a Pathways appointment, both of which stated that she had no entitlement to permanent conversion. After she completed her degree, the agency allowed the appointment to expire rather than convert…
Matter of M-A-C-O-
Immigration Judge had jurisdiction after respondent turned 18
The Board reviewed a Salvadoran respondent's challenge to an Immigration Judge's jurisdiction over his asylum application. He had entered the United States at age 17 and had been determined to be an unaccompanied alien child, but he turned 18 before filing the asylum applications. The Board held…
M.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, North Texas Health Care System
Continuation of pay denied as untimely
M.B., a VA timekeeper, sought continuation of pay after reporting a workplace head and neck injury. He filed the written injury claim well beyond 30 days after the October 13, 2016 incident. The Board held that FECA has no exception to that filing deadline for continuation of pay. It affirmed…
M.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Overpayment and recovery affirmed
M.P., a postal employee, challenged OWCP’s finding that she had received $11,249.98 too much in wage-loss compensation from October 31, 2009 through February 1, 2010. The Board found that the overpayment was correctly calculated and that OWCP properly denied a waiver. It also upheld recovery by…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Reconsideration denial set aside
C.F., a postal employee, asked OWCP to reconsider its denial of a claimed workplace injury. Her counsel argued that minor differences between her account and a physician’s history did not justify rejecting the incident. The Board found that this was a new legal argument that warranted merits…
J.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Lumbar surgery authorization denied
J.T., a postal employee, requested authorization for lumbar fusion surgery after an accepted work injury. Her treating physicians recommended surgery, while OWCP’s second opinion physician disagreed. An impartial specialist reviewed the record and concluded that fusion was not medically warranted…
S.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Recurrence and expanded claim denied
S.A., a postal worker, sought compensation for a claimed disability recurrence from April 27 through June 9, 2017 and asked OWCP to add right hip conditions to an accepted injury claim. The Board found that the evidence did not establish disability during that period caused by the accepted injury…
B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Schedule award claims sent back
B.B., a postal employee, sought a larger left arm schedule award and awards for lower extremity impairment after accepted back and shoulder injuries. OWCP had rejected the additional awards and then refused to reopen the claims. The Board found that the left arm rating required a consistent…
K.C. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons
Disability denial reversed
K.C., a prison secretary, sought wage-loss compensation for September 1 and 6, 2016 after an accepted workplace injury. She returned to work, but her employer sent her home while it sought clarification of medical restrictions tied to that injury. The Board found that the employer prevented her…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Leg and foot condition claim denied
E.R., a postal distribution supervisor, claimed that work factors caused conditions in both knees and feet. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim. The Board found that the medical reports did not adequately explain how the accepted work factors caused or aggravated the claimed conditions. It…
W.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Schedule award claim sent back
W.M., a postal clerk, sought a schedule award for permanent impairment following an accepted back injury. Her physician and OWCP’s medical adviser disagreed about whether she had left lower extremity impairment. The Board found an unresolved medical conflict and set aside OWCP’s denial. It remanded…
L.P. and Department of the Army, Pine Bluff Arsenal
Shoulder injury claim denied
L.P., an Army munitions inspector, reported right shoulder pain after lifting a lid at work on July 31, 2017. OWCP accepted the incident but denied his injury claim. The Board found that the medical evidence did not adequately establish a diagnosed condition caused by the incident. It affirmed the…
D.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Los Angeles Processing & Distribution Center
Reconsideration refusal affirmed
D.D., a postal maintenance mechanic, asked OWCP to reconsider an earlier injury claim decision. The Board could review only the later refusal to reopen, because the merits decision was outside its appeal period. It found that the request did not raise a qualifying new argument or submit relevant…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Reconsideration refusal affirmed
S.S., a postal motor vehicle operator, sought reopening of an earlier compensation decision. The Board could review only OWCP’s later refusal to reconsider, because the underlying merits decision was outside its appeal period. It found no new legal argument or relevant new evidence satisfying the…
G.M. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons
Pulmonary embolism claim denied
G.M., a prison employee, claimed that work-related travel caused a pulmonary embolism. OWCP denied the occupational disease claim. The Board found that the medical evidence did not adequately explain how the accepted work factors caused or aggravated the embolism. It affirmed OWCP’s denial.
J.R. and Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship & Immigration Services
Injury denial affirmed and reconsideration sent back
J.R. sought benefits for a claimed lumbar condition after a workplace incident. The Board agreed that the medical evidence did not establish that condition was caused by the incident. It found, however, that OWCP overlooked a new addendum from his physician when it refused to reconsider the claim…
J.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Bulk Mail Center
Benefit termination reversed
J.H., a postal clerk with an accepted bilateral carpal tunnel claim, challenged OWCP’s termination of wage-loss and medical benefits. The Board found that the physician OWCP relied on had not adequately explained why the accepted conditions had resolved. His opinion also conflicted with its premise…
S.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center
Suitable-work termination reversed
S.B., a postal tractor-trailer operator, challenged the termination of his compensation for allegedly abandoning suitable work. The Postal Service had offered him a Sales and Solution Team Member position, which he briefly performed; OWCP later found the job suitable. The Board found that OWCP had…
Adam Ham Construction, LLC
Roof fall citation affirmed after default
An Adam Ham Construction supervisor worked for three to four hours on a snow- and ice-covered residential roof about 33 to 35 feet above the ground without fall protection. The judge found the company could have discovered the condition through reasonable diligence, and the supervisor’s own…
Matter of M-S-
Bond-hearing issue referred for review
The Attorney General directed the Board of Immigration Appeals to refer a case for review of whether immigration judges may hold bond hearings for certain people placed in removal proceedings after expedited removal screening. The order asked whether the Board's earlier precedent on that question…
Matter of M-G-G-
Bond determination remanded after respondent's removal
The Attorney General had directed the Board of Immigration Appeals to refer its bond decision for review. The respondent had since been removed to Guatemala under a final removal order and was no longer in the United States. Because the respondent was no longer present, the Attorney General…
W.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Network Distribution Center
Late hearing request denied
W.B., a postal mail handler, requested review of the written record after OWCP denied his workplace injury claim. OWCP denied that request as untimely. The Board reviewed the timing decision and found no abuse of discretion. It affirmed the refusal to hold a written-record review without deciding…
D.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Aloha Branch
Suitable-work benefit termination upheld
D.L., a letter carrier with an accepted right shoulder injury, challenged the end of wage-loss compensation and schedule award eligibility after refusing offered work. The Board found that OWCP had established the position was suitable and that he refused it. It affirmed termination of those…
A.S., representative of the estate of R.S., and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center
Disability and nerve condition claims denied
A.S., representing the estate of a VA orthopedic surgeon, sought disability benefits from October 1, 2010 and acceptance of several arm and hand nerve conditions. The Board found that the evidence did not establish total disability caused by the accepted cervical conditions. It also found…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Richmond, Virginia (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2145 (Union)
Richmond VA and AFGE Local 2145 (FLRA 0-AR-5369): Dues-posting remedy upheld
The Richmond VA failed to process several employees' union-dues deduction forms on time. An arbitrator found that the delay violated the collective-bargaining agreement and the federal labor statute, and he ordered a notice posting among other remedies. The agency challenged only the posting…
City of Harrison, Wastewater Treatment Plant
In re City of Harrison, Wastewater Treatment Plant (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 18-04): petition dismissed after permit provisions withdrawn
The Idaho Conservation League petitioned the Environmental Appeals Board to review an NPDES permit that EPA Region 10 issued to the City of Harrison for a wastewater treatment plant. The Region withdrew the permit provisions challenged in the petition and planned to issue a new draft permit subject…
J.H. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Reconsideration refusal affirmed
J.H., an FBI employee, asked OWCP to reopen an earlier compensation decision. The Board considered whether the reconsideration request met the requirements for another merits review. It found no qualifying new argument or relevant new evidence and affirmed OWCP’s refusal to reopen.
E.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Shoulder and neck conditions sent for impartial review
E.C., a postal mail handler, asked OWCP to add a left shoulder tear and bulging cervical discs to an accepted injury claim after a falling fence struck her. Her physician attributed both conditions to the incident, while OWCP’s referral physician disagreed. The Board found an unresolved conflict…
M.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Capital Performance Cluster
Knee injury claim sent back for medical development
M.F. reported a left knee injury after slipping on black ice at work. OWCP accepted the January 28, 2016 incident but denied the injury claim. The Board found that his physician’s explanation linking the fall to a quadriceps tendon rupture was enough to require further medical development, although…
J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Fall claim reopened for merits review
J.M., a postal letter carrier, asked OWCP to reconsider its treatment of a workplace fall as caused by a personal medical condition. She and counsel argued that a hamstring injury while returning to her vehicle preceded the fall. The Board found that this was a new relevant legal argument about…
P.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Expanded claim and hospital stay denied
P.M., a postal worker, asked OWCP to add medical conditions to an accepted injury claim and authorize a March 2016 inpatient hospital stay. The Board found that the record did not establish that the additional conditions were caused by the accepted February 3, 2015 injury. It also found that OWCP…
S.U. and U.S. Postal Service, Fort Hamilton Station
Late reconsideration denial reversed
S.U. challenged OWCP’s refusal to reconsider an earlier termination of wage-loss compensation for refusing suitable work. His request was late, so he had to show clear evidence of error. The Board found that OWCP had failed to give him the required additional 15 days to accept the position after…
Excelsior Mining Arizona, Inc.
In re Excelsior Mining Arizona, Inc. (EAB UIC Appeal No. 18-04): petition dismissed with prejudice after settlement
EPA Region 9 issued Excelsior Mining Arizona, Inc. a Class III Underground Injection Control area permit for an in-situ copper mining operation in Cochise County, Arizona. Five conservation organizations petitioned the Environmental Appeals Board, arguing that the Region's permitting analysis…
Beverly Hale v. BAE Systems San Francisco Ship Repair
Beverly Hale v. BAE Systems (BRB 17-0523): unapproved third-party settlement bars death benefits
Beverly Hale sought Longshore Act death benefits after her husband, a former shipyard worker, died following lung cancer. His daughter settled asbestos claims with third parties, including Pfizer, using a release that covered the decedent's heirs. Hale argued that she had privately disclaimed any…
George N. Gindo v. AECOM National Security Programs, Incorporated
George N. Gindo v. AECOM (BRB 17-0418): post-retirement disease claim needs permanent impairment
George Gindo worked as an adviser in Iraq and later developed depression and post-traumatic stress disorder related to that work. The parties agreed he had been temporarily totally disabled since July 2014 and was entitled to medical care, but disputed disability compensation. An administrative law…
B.H. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant
Late oral hearing request denied
B.H. asked OWCP for an oral hearing after the deadline for doing so. OWCP denied the request as untimely. The Board found that OWCP properly applied the filing rule and affirmed its decision. The Board did not decide the underlying claim’s merits.
S.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Reconsideration refusal affirmed
S.P., a postal employee, asked OWCP to reconsider an earlier compensation decision. The Board reviewed the later refusal to reopen the claim. It found that her request did not satisfy the requirements for another merits review and affirmed OWCP’s decision.
D.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Vehicle accident injury claim denied
D.J. reported soreness after his postal vehicle tipped over on July 23, 2017. OWCP accepted that the accident occurred but denied the injury claim. The Board found no medical evidence establishing a diagnosed condition caused by the incident. It affirmed the denial, while noting that OWCP had not…
A.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration
Lumbar injury claim denied
A.B., a VA employee, reported back pain while leaning over a sink at work on November 20, 2015. She had an earlier accepted back injury. The Board found that reports about the older injury did not establish that the later incident caused a new lumbar condition. The remaining evidence did not supply…
A.O. and Department of Transportation, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy
Exposure claim and hearing request denied
A.O. claimed that work duties at the World Trade Center attack site exposed him to substances that later caused an eye tumor. The Board found that the evidence did not establish the claimed exposure in the performance of his federal duties; the employer disputed his account of the assignment. It…
D.A. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection
Wage-loss termination reversed
D.A., a customs import specialist with accepted cervical conditions, challenged OWCP’s termination of wage-loss compensation. OWCP relied on a second opinion physician to find that she no longer had work-related disability. The Board found that OWCP had not met its burden to support termination of…
G.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office
Reconsideration refusals affirmed
G.R. asked OWCP twice to reconsider an earlier compensation decision. The Board reviewed the two refusals to reopen the merits. It found that the requests did not satisfy the requirements for another merits review. It affirmed both OWCP decisions without resolving the underlying claim anew.
A.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Chicago Network Distribution Center, Forest Park, IL
Upper extremity schedule award denied for lack of impairment evidence
A.T. sought a schedule award after accepted shoulder and cervical conditions from postal work. Her physician said she had reached maximum medical improvement, but she submitted no impairment evaluation for either upper extremity. The Board held that the record did not establish permanent impairment…
P.W. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Metropolitan Correctional Center, Chicago, IL
Late reconsideration denial affirmed
P.W. asked OWCP to reconsider a denial of his traumatic injury claim. OWCP received the request in May 2017, almost three years after its last merits decision, so the request had to show clear evidence of error. The Board found that the new medical records either did not address causation or did…
W.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Locust Valley, NY
Left knee schedule award sent back for medical clarification
W.W. sought a larger schedule award than the two percent left leg impairment OWCP had already compensated. OWCP treated the medical opinions as conflicting and relied on a later examination, but the Board found that the treating physician’s rating lacked enough explanation to create a formal…
T.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Indianapolis, IN
Lower extremity award denied; right arm award sent back
T.C. sought schedule awards for both lower extremities and additional impairment of her right arm. The Board credited an impartial examiner’s finding of no permanent impairment in either lower extremity and affirmed that part of OWCP’s decision. For the right arm, the two physicians whose opinions…
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Francisco, CA
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service (ECAB 17-1685): Disability and reconsideration denials affirmed
L.W., a postal mail processor with accepted shoulder conditions, claimed disability from April 7 to June 7, 2017 after a training class that required extensive typing. Her physician recommended time off but did not explain why the accepted conditions prevented her from performing her modified job…
G.A. and Department of Defense, Sharpe Army Depot, Lathrop, CA
Denial of adjustable bed request affirmed
G.A. asked OWCP to pay for an adjustable bed after a longstanding accepted back injury. A medical report said the bed would help with pain and daily activity, and an OWCP medical adviser accepted a relationship to the injury. The adviser nevertheless found the specific equipment was not medically…
T.Q. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Air Marshal Service, College Park, GA
Refusal to reopen hearing loss claim affirmed
T.Q. sought reconsideration of a denied claim for work-related hearing loss. His representative argued that audiograms showed progressive hearing loss, but OWCP had already considered the same audiograms. The Board found that neither the repeated tests nor the arguments supplied new evidence about…
R.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Santa Clarita, CA
Refusal to reopen foot condition claim affirmed
R.W. asked OWCP to reopen a denied claim for left foot conditions attributed to postal work. She submitted a physician’s report that repeated diagnoses of a bone spur and plantar fasciitis. The Board found that the report offered no new relevant opinion on whether work caused those conditions and…
M.L. and Department of Energy, Human Resources Management, Washington, DC
Medical conflict over car slip injury sent for impartial examination
M.L. reported slipping while opening her car at work in July 2015 and described a twisting movement as part of the incident. OWCP discounted medical opinions because its hearing representative treated the later description of twisting as inconsistent with the original claim. The Board found her…
J.S. and Department of the Air Force, Bien Hoa Air Base, Vietnam
1967 exposure claim sent back for correct filing deadline
J.S. claimed several conditions from alleged herbicide exposure while working in Vietnam in 1967. OWCP denied the 2016 claim using a three-year filing rule for injuries after September 1974. The Board held that the last alleged exposure in December 1967 set the injury date for choosing the…
S.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Charlotte, NC
Back injury claim sent back for medical development
S.W. reported back and leg pain after lifting a heavy tray of mail at work in December 2013. His physicians described a possible connection between that incident and lumbar instability, but the Board found their reports did not yet prove causation. The reports raised an uncontradicted inference of…
United States Small Business Administration (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2959 (Union)
SBA and AFGE Local 2959 (FLRA 0-AR-5270): Higher-grade-duty grievance barred
AFGE filed an ongoing grievance for thirty-one SBA employees alleging inaccurate position descriptions and performance of higher-graded duties without temporary promotions. An arbitrator issued an interim award allowing the grievance to proceed to a merits hearing. The Authority granted…
Matter of Eduardo VELASQUEZ-RIOS
Retroactive sentence reduction did not change immigration consequence
The Board reconsidered a Mexican citizen's eligibility for cancellation of removal after California retroactively reduced the maximum sentence for certain offenses from 365 days to 364 days. His 2003 forgery conviction had carried a possible sentence of one year when he was convicted, even though…
G.M. and Department of State, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, Washington, DC
Emotional condition claim held untimely
G.M., a former diplomatic security officer, filed an occupational disease claim in December 2016 for an emotional condition he attributed to earlier work events. The Board found that he knew or should have known of a possible connection to work by June 1993, after his last exposure to the claimed…
M.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Vehicle Maintenance Facility, Providence, RI
Late challenge to schedule award date denied
M.H. challenged the January 2014 date of maximum medical improvement used for his 2014 bilateral arm schedule award. OWCP received his reconsideration request in December 2017, more than one year after the award decision. The Board found that he supplied no medical evidence or legal reason…
S.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Santa Clarita, CA
Multiple condition occupational claim denial affirmed
S.F., a city letter carrier, attributed knee, hip, back, neck, shoulder, and arm conditions to years of walking, lifting, and handling mail. OWCP accepted the described job duties but denied that the medical evidence linked the conditions to them. The Board found that her physician largely repeated…
H.O. and Department of Agriculture, Food Safety & Inspection Service, Minneapolis, MN
Hearing loss claim sent back for a new medical opinion
H.O., a former inspection liaison officer, claimed hearing loss from noise exposure at meat processing facilities. OWCP’s second opinion physician gave inconsistent statements about whether workplace noise was sufficient to cause the hearing loss. After a prior remand for clarification, the…
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.