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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W.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Boston, MA
W.G. (ECAB 16-0667): Left hip osteoarthritis claim denial affirmed
W.G., a retired Postal Service letter carrier, claimed that years of physically demanding work accelerated osteoarthritis in his left hip. OWCP had accepted work-related acceleration of right hip and right knee osteoarthritis but denied the left hip condition. The Board found that his physician’s…
V.P. and Department of the Army, Corpus Christi Army Depot, Corpus Christi, TX
V.P. (ECAB 16-0614): Denial of renewed medical treatment affirmed
V.P., an Army human resource specialist, sought further medical treatment for headaches after an accepted head injury. OWCP had accepted a concussion and related conditions, but her treating neurologist released her to usual work in April 2012. Later physicians treated migraines and noted her…
L.A. and Government Publishing Office, Human Resources, Washington, DC
L.A. (ECAB 16-0348): Stairway injury claim denial affirmed
L.A., a Government Publishing Office human resources specialist, reported back and other conditions after slipping on stairs at work. The fall itself was undisputed. The Board found that physicians diagnosed sciatica and other conditions and attributed them to the fall, but did not explain…
C.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Media, PA
C.R. (ECAB 16-0126): Back injury claim denial affirmed
C.R., a Postal Service carrier, reported back and leg pain after slipping on ice while getting out of a delivery truck. OWCP accepted that the fall occurred but found that the medical evidence did not establish a resulting injury. The Board noted a prior lumbar disc herniation and degenerative…
V.M. and Department of Homeland Security, Customs & Border Protection, San Diego, CA
V.M. (ECAB 16-0062): Wage-loss denial affirmed in part and remanded in part
V.M., a Customs and Border Protection cashier, sought wage-loss benefits after leaving a light-duty job that accommodated his accepted wrist conditions. The Board found that his departure was unrelated to those conditions and affirmed denial of compensation from September 27, 2013 to April 6, 2015…
United Mine Workers of America on behalf of Mark A. Franks and Ronald M. Hoy v. Emerald Coal Resources, LP
UMWA obo Mark Franks and Ronald Hoy v. Emerald Coal Resources, LP (FMSHRC PENN 2013-305, et al.): Closed-mine discrimination cases settled for $20,000
After a divided Commission ruling and a Third Circuit remand, an ALJ found that Emerald Coal unlawfully interfered with miners Mark Franks and Ronald Hoy and assessed $40,000. By the time the parties settled, Emerald's mine had closed, Emerald and its parent were in bankruptcy, and all other…
Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Coal, LLC
MSHA may require employee contact information during safety investigations
After an inspector found hazardous roof and rib conditions at Warrior Coal's Cardinal Mine, MSHA opened a special investigation and requested the names, shifts, and contact information of all mine employees. Warrior refused to provide contact information without each employee's permission, leading…
In re Material Movement, LLC, Mary Talano, and Jeffery Talano
Material Movement (DOL ARB 2016-0061): Review deferred until judge rules on reconsideration
Material Movement and Mary and Jeffery Talano sought Board review of an administrative law judge's summary decision in a Service Contract Act case. Their request said they had already asked the judge to reconsider his decision and had not received a ruling. The Board held that the judge's decision…
N.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
N.D. (ECAB 16-0573): Foot impairment award denial affirmed
N.D., a Postal Service letter carrier, sought a schedule award for permanent foot impairment after OWCP accepted work-related exacerbation of bilateral heel bursitis and a gait disturbance. Her podiatrist described symptoms and examination findings but gave no impairment rating under the sixth…
R.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Buffalo, NY
R.P. (ECAB 16-0554): Denial of late hearing request affirmed
R.P., a Postal Service rural carrier, sought an oral hearing about OWCP’s denial of a schedule award for her accepted carpal tunnel syndrome. She requested the hearing more than a year after the award decision, outside the 30-day period for a hearing as of right. The Board found that OWCP…
B.B. and Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base, Midwest City, OK
B.B. (ECAB 16-0512): Hearing loss award and pay rate affirmed
B.B., an Air Force aircraft sheet metal mechanic, sought a larger hearing loss schedule award and disputed the pay rate used for it. The Board found that the audiogram supported 21 percent hearing loss in his left ear and no ratable loss in the right; the left ear award provided more compensation…
L.C. and Department of Labor, Mine Safety & Health Administration, Coal District 4, Mount Hope, WV
L.C. (ECAB 16-0465): Hearing loss award remanded for tinnitus review
L.C., a mine safety inspector, received a schedule award for 28 percent hearing loss in both ears after workplace noise exposure. The Board found that OWCP’s calculation of the hearing loss percentage followed the impairment guides and used the higher left ear audiogram value he sought. OWCP’s…
D.E. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Paramount, CA
D.E. (ECAB 16-0463): Disability claim remanded, schedule award denial affirmed
D.E., a Postal Service letter carrier, sought wage-loss compensation beginning May 7, 2012 and a schedule award after accepted back, hip, and groin strains. His treating physician and OWCP’s second opinion physician disagreed over whether spinal stenosis and spondylolisthesis were related to his…
E.S. and Department of the Army, Redstone Arsenal, Arsenal, AL
E.S. (ECAB 16-0267): Vehicle accident injury claim denial affirmed
E.S., an Army senior adviser, sought compensation for neck, shoulder, and psychological conditions after a work-related vehicle accident in Afghanistan. OWCP accepted that the vehicle struck a barrier but denied the injury claim. The Board found that one physician described the event without making…
L.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Delivery Center, Kansas City, MO
L.Y. (ECAB 16-0012): Leg impairment claim remanded for impartial examination
L.Y., a Postal Service clerk, sought a schedule award for leg impairment that he attributed to an accepted lumbar injury. His treating surgeon and a later examining physician disagreed about whether he had lasting leg nerve impairment. The Board found that OWCP had incorrectly designated the later…
Secretary of Labor v. Eagle Creek Mining, LLC
Five equipment citations reduced to $13,160
Eagle Creek Mining contested five citations involving four haul trucks and a water truck at its West Virginia surface coal mine after settling eight other citations. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy found that the MSHA inspector had shown bias against a mine foreman, gave unreliable testimony, and recorded…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Michael Murray v. Mach Mining, LLC
Missed agency deadline did not end temporary reinstatement
Mach Mining agreed to economically reinstate Michael Murray while MSHA investigated his discrimination complaint, and the judge approved that settlement. Mach later asked to dissolve the reinstatement order because the Secretary had not decided within 90 days whether to bring a merits case. Judge…
Secretary of Labor v. Triad Underground Mining, LLC
$52,500 settlement approved despite bankruptcy
Triad Underground Mining withdrew its contest and agreed to pay the full $52,500 proposed penalty for one citation at the Freelandville West mine. Its parent, James River Coal Company, was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, but Judge Thomas P. McCarthy held that the bankruptcy stay did not prevent MSHA from…
Secretary of Labor v. Blue Diamond Coal Company
$139,100 settlement approved despite bankruptcy
Blue Diamond Coal withdrew its contest and agreed to pay the full $139,100 proposed penalty for four citations at Mine No. 68. Its parent, James River Coal Company, was in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, but Judge Thomas P. McCarthy held that the bankruptcy stay did not prevent MSHA from pursuing its…
I.C. and Department of the Air Force, Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, Robins Air Force Base, GA
I.C. (ECAB 16-0613): Denial of reconsideration affirmed
I.C., an Air Force aircraft overhaul supervisor, sought reconsideration after OWCP denied his claim for left thumb arthritis. OWCP had accepted the described tool use and heavy work but found the medical evidence insufficient to establish causation. His reconsideration request supplied no new…
E.M. and Department of the Army, Fort McCoy, Sparta, WI
E.M. (ECAB 16-0471): Reconsideration denial affirmed in part and remanded in part
E.M., a former Army boiler fireman, asked OWCP to reconsider both a schedule award denial and an older termination of wage-loss benefits. The Board found that his request about the schedule award was timely but supplied no new relevant evidence or qualifying legal argument, so it upheld OWCP’s…
L.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Willingboro, NJ
L.R. (ECAB 16-0347): New lumbar condition claim denial affirmed
L.R., a Postal Service carrier, reported renewed back symptoms after returning to delivery work following an earlier accepted lumbar injury and surgery. OWCP treated the filing as a new occupational disease claim based on lifting and bending at work. The Board found that the later medical reports…
C.B. and Social Security Administration, Baltimore, MD
C.B. (ECAB 16-0265): Head injury claim denial affirmed
C.B., a Social Security Administration benefit authorizer, reported being struck in the face by her car trunk lid while on an approved lunch break in the agency parking lot. OWCP eventually accepted that the incident occurred in the performance of duty but denied her injury claim. The Board found…
J.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
J.W. (ECAB 16-0112): Disability claim remanded for referee examination
J.W., a Postal Service letter carrier, sought disability benefits for an accepted aggravation of lumbar and left hip conditions. In an earlier decision, the Board had directed OWCP to obtain an impartial medical opinion on whether those conditions disabled her beginning September 10, 2008. OWCP…
P.C. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Cleveland, OH
P.C. (ECAB 16-0100): Recurrence of disability claim denial affirmed
P.C., a retired Veterans Affairs program support assistant, sought wage-loss benefits for renewed carpal tunnel symptoms after working as a nursing assistant for a private employer. OWCP had accepted carpal tunnel syndrome from her earlier federal work. The Board found that her physicians had not…
J.L. and Defense Commissary Agency, Newport Commissary, Newport, RI
J.L. (ECAB 15-1951): Knee impairment ratings affirmed
J.L., a Defense Commissary Agency store associate, sought a larger schedule award for impairment of both knees. OWCP had accepted bilateral knee bursitis and awarded one percent impairment of each leg. The Board found that the medical adviser properly applied the impairment guides and that a…
Social Security Administration (Respondent) and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 220, AFL-CIO (Charging Party)
Social Security Administration and AFGE Council 220 (FLRA AT-CA-12-0544, CH-CA-14-0369): Call-routing complaints dismissed
The Social Security Administration introduced a call-routing system that sent public inquiry calls among field offices based on employee availability. AFGE Council 220 alleged that the agency had to bargain before the Atlanta pilot and nationwide implementation because the system increased call…
K.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Port Gibson, MS
K.J. (ECAB 16-0611): Denial of injury claim reconsideration affirmed
K.J., a Postal Service rural carrier, asked OWCP to reconsider its denial of an injury claim following a vehicle incident while delivering mail. She argued that a report had been signed by a physician as well as a nurse practitioner. The Board found that the cosigned report had already been…
J.M. and Department of the Air Force, Alabama Air National Guard, Birmingham, AL
J.M. (ECAB 16-0526): Hearing loss award denied; hearing aids remanded
J.M., an Air Force aircraft maintenance coordinator, claimed hearing loss from workplace noise and sought a schedule award and hearing aids. The Board found that audiograms did not show enough loss under the applicable formula for a schedule award. It also found that OWCP had denied hearing aids…
V.W. and Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Lee Vining, CA
V.W. (ECAB 16-0524): Campground injury claim denial affirmed
V.W., a Forest Service campground host, reported back and leg symptoms while moving logs and rocks and cleaning campsites. The Board accepted that she performed the described work activities but found that her physicians did not explain how those activities caused or aggravated a diagnosed…
J.M. and Department of Defense, Defense Contract Audit Agency, Littleton, CO
J.M. (ECAB 16-0249): Soccer refereeing injury claim denial affirmed
J.M., a Defense Contract Audit Agency auditor, ruptured his left Achilles tendon while refereeing a youth soccer match on a nonwork day. He argued that the match was part of a physician recommended exercise program for obesity that he claimed was related to his work. The Board found that the match…
C.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Atlanta, GA
C.B. (ECAB 15-1953): Life insurance premium overpayment remanded for election evidence
C.B., a postal carrier receiving disability compensation, was told she had a $614.62 overpayment because OWCP had not withheld certain life insurance premiums. OWCP relied on a letter from the Office of Personnel Management reporting her postretirement insurance election. The Board found that the…
M.G. and Department of the Navy, Naval Aviation Depot, Cherry Point, NC
M.G. (ECAB 15-1715): Asthma disability claim remanded after unsupported separation finding
M.G., a Navy aircraft painter, had an accepted occupational asthma claim and could not resume painting. His employer tried several alternative assignments, sent him home in April 2000, and removed him from service in March 2001. OWCP denied his claim for disability beginning after the removal on…
R.H. and Department of the Army, Installation Management Command, Fort Drum, NY
R.H. (ECAB 15-1159): Hip disability recurrence claim remanded for medical opinion
R.H., an Army motor vehicle operator, had an accepted right hip and thigh strain after stepping off a truck at work. He later stopped working and claimed a recurrence of disability related to right hip avascular necrosis. OWCP denied the claim because that condition was not accepted as work…
Dietz v. Cypress Semiconductor Corp.
Dietz v. Cypress Semiconductor (DOL ARB 2015-0047): Fee award affirmed
Timothy Dietz prevailed on a Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower complaint against Cypress Semiconductor. An administrative law judge awarded him $241,923.50 in attorneys' fees and $10,492.87 in litigation costs. Cypress appealed the award, arguing it should fall if the Board reversed the underlying…
P.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Aurora, CO
P.M. (ECAB 16-0483): Vehicle collision injury claim denial affirmed
P.M., a postal carrier, claimed a shoulder injury after another vehicle allegedly struck his mail truck. OWCP asked him and the Postal Service for details about the collision, but neither responded to its factual questions. The Board found that his claim form gave too little information about the…
J.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Diego, CA
J.H. (ECAB 16-0314): Wage earning capacity modification denial affirmed
J.H., a former postal carrier with accepted right foot and adjustment disorder conditions, sought total disability benefits. OWCP had calculated her wage earning capacity in 1992 using her earnings as a secretary. The Board found that her physicians did not explain how the accepted conditions had…
J.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bloomsburg, PA
J.G. (ECAB 16-0017): Intermittent medical visit wage loss denial affirmed
J.G., a postal clerk with an accepted back injury, sought wage loss compensation for time spent attending authorized acupuncture appointments. Her assigned schedule was 30 hours a week during most of the claim period, and her employer’s time records showed she worked her full assigned hours in each…
J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Zachary, LA
J.M. (ECAB 15-1964): Disputed wrist injury claim denial affirmed
J.M., a rural postal carrier, claimed that her postmaster grabbed and twisted her right wrist during a workplace dispute. The postmaster denied any physical contact, and coworkers’ accounts did not corroborate J.M.’s description of the surrounding events. The Board found serious doubt about whether…
T.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Piqua, OH
T.H. (ECAB 15-0772): Back injury claim denial affirmed for lack of medical reasoning
T.H., a postal carrier, reported back pain after lifting mail at work. OWCP accepted that the lifting incident occurred but denied his injury claim for lack of adequate medical evidence. The Board held that a later x-ray diagnosis could qualify his chiropractor as a physician under FECA for a later…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Boston, MA
J.C. (ECAB 15-0534): Left leg impairment award increased to 37 percent
J.C., a postal carrier, received a schedule award for 31 percent impairment of his left leg after a work related aggravation of knee osteoarthritis and knee replacement surgery. His surgeon and OWCP’s medical adviser disagreed about how to apply impairment grade modifiers. The Board found that the…
B.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Edison, NJ
B.D. (ECAB 15-0400): Refusal to reconsider wage loss termination affirmed
B.D., a former postal mail handler, sought reconsideration of OWCP’s December 2012 termination of wage loss benefits. His new claim forms concerned periods before that termination, and the Board found them irrelevant to whether the termination was proper. The Board also rejected his argument that…
Richard Snader Installation Partners
Roofing violations affirmed for $33,600
Richard Snader Installation Partners performed roofing work at an apartment building with three workers on the roof. The judge found that the workers were employees under the OSH Act because Richard Snader controlled their work and pay, despite his claim that they were partners. The inspection did…
Secretary of Labor v. Dominion Coal Corporation
$12,500 discrimination penalty approved
Dominion Coal reduced Scott G. McGlothlin's pay after he began seeking Part 90 protection as a miner with pneumoconiosis. An earlier ALJ decision found that the pay reduction violated the Mine Act's anti-discrimination provision, and the Commission essentially affirmed that liability finding…
Secretary of Labor v. The Ohio Valley Coal Company
Coal-dust and examination orders affirmed for $14,536
An MSHA inspector found extensive black coal dust and fines along the South Mains belt at Ohio Valley Coal's Powhatan No. 6 Mine, including compacted material around the turning tail roller. MSHA issued one order for prohibited accumulations and another because the on-shift examiner had not…
Productos de Agregados de Gurabo v. Secretary of Labor
Late attorney-fee application denied
Productos de Agregados de Gurabo prevailed when Judge John Kent Lewis vacated an MSHA safe-access citation for lack of sufficiently reliable evidence. The operator later sought attorney fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Its February 22, 2016 application came almost two months…
D.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bronx, NY
D.N. (ECAB 16-0627): Vehicle incident injury claim denial affirmed
D.N., a postal letter carrier, reported that his body jerked when his vehicle’s bumper caught another vehicle’s bumper at work. OWCP accepted that the incident happened, but found insufficient medical proof linking a back condition to it. The Board agreed because his physician’s later causation…
B.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Houston, TX
B.H. (ECAB 16-0575): Upper extremity impairment award denial affirmed
B.H., a postal processing center employee, sought an impairment award for both arms after a workplace fall that led to accepted neck and other injuries. One physician rated impairment from cervical nerve problems and loss of right shoulder motion. The Board credited a later evaluation and…
C.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Corydon, IN
C.S. (ECAB 16-0416): Arm and neck condition claim denial affirmed
C.S., a rural postal carrier, reported left arm, shoulder, and neck symptoms after lifting mail tubs and doing other work tasks. OWCP accepted his account of the work activities but found that the medical evidence did not connect them to the claimed conditions. The Board found that his physicians…
L.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Tampa, FL
L.S. (ECAB 16-0368): Back injury claim denial affirmed after package delivery incident
L.S., a rural postal carrier, reported back and leg pain after losing her balance while carrying a heavy package near a dog. OWCP accepted the delivery incident but denied her claim for lumbar radiculopathy. The Board found that a physician’s causation opinion relied on an inaccurate history that…
L.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
L.M. (ECAB 16-0334): Right leg impairment award denial affirmed
L.M., a postal carrier, injured his right leg and back after stepping in a hole while delivering mail. After OWCP terminated his injury benefits, he applied for a permanent impairment award. The Board explained that termination of ongoing benefits does not itself bar a later schedule award. His…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Royal Oak, MI
J.S. (ECAB 16-0286): Flood escape injury claim denial affirmed
J.S., a postal carrier, said she struck her head while escaping a mail van surrounded by floodwater during her route. The Board found serious inconsistencies between her account of being overcome by water and her supervisors’ descriptions of what she reported and how she appeared after returning to…
M.V. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration Federal Air Marshal Service, Chantilly, VA
M.V. (ECAB 16-0218): Air marshal headache claim denial affirmed
M.V., a Federal Air Marshal, developed persistent headaches during a return flight from Belgium and attributed them to flying and disrupted sleep schedules. OWCP accepted that his duties involved long periods in aircraft cabins but found insufficient medical evidence of causation. The Board found…
National Treasury Employees Union and United States Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection
NTEU and CBP (FLRA 0-NG-3278): Kiosk barrier proposal outside bargaining duty
NTEU proposed that CBP officers at automated passport control podiums could sit or stand and that CBP would install clear barriers between officers and travelers. A pending unfair labor practice charge concerned the same standing policy, so the Authority dismissed the seating proposal without…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 12 (Union) and United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (Agency)
AFGE Local 12 and Bureau of Labor Statistics (FLRA 0-AR-5173): Information-request remedy upheld
AFGE Local 12 alleged that the Bureau of Labor Statistics discriminated against employees over forty in twenty-one GS-13 promotion selections and failed to provide requested information. An arbitrator found the age-discrimination evidence too speculative but held that two information responses were…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of George M. Scoles v. Harrison County Coal Co.
Twenty-day-late discrimination complaint allowed
George Scoles filed a Mine Act discrimination complaint 80 days after Harrison County Coal suspended him with intent to discharge, which was 20 days beyond the statutory filing period. He had first pursued a grievance and arbitration, and filed with MSHA 26 days after the arbitrator reduced the…
C.H. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Forrest City, AR
C.H. (ECAB 16-0668): Weightlifting injury claim denial affirmed
C.H., a correctional officer, developed groin pain while lifting weights as part of a work fitness requirement. Medical examination found a scrotal mass that was later removed. The Board found that the medical reports did not explain whether the lifting caused or aggravated the condition, which had…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Bulk Mail Center, Philadelphia, PA
J.S. (ECAB 16-0488): Nine percent right leg impairment award affirmed
J.S., a postal mail handler, sought a larger right leg impairment award after a work related knee and ankle injury. Her physician proposed ratings of 34 and later 13 percent without adequately explaining the calculations under the impairment guides. The Board accepted a supported nine percent…
S.C. and Social Security Administration, Salinas, CA
S.C. (ECAB 16-0293): Physical and emotional condition claim denial affirmed
S.C., a Social Security teleservice representative, attributed neck, shoulder, and wrist symptoms to typing and computer work. She also attributed stress to workplace personnel disputes. The Board found that her physician diagnosed physical conditions but did not explain medically how typing caused…
M.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Bulk Mail Center, Memphis, TN
M.T. (ECAB 16-0229): Schedule award overpayment and recovery affirmed
M.T., a retired postal employee, received a right leg schedule award that did not subtract an earlier award for the same leg and used the higher payment rate reserved for claimants with eligible dependents. The Board found that she was owed 15 additional percentage points at the regular rate…
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.