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. Blackjewel, LLC
One violation resolved by default
This case involved one alleged violation at Blackjewel's D-17 mine and a proposed penalty of $1,380. Blackjewel's counsel stated that, because of pending bankruptcy proceedings, the company expected a default order and did not respond to the judge's show-cause order. Judge Priscilla M. Rae entered…
Secretary of Labor v. Blackjewel, LLC
Seven violations resolved by default
This case involved seven alleged violations at Blackjewel's P-7 Pigeon Creek mine and proposed penalties totaling $2,170. Blackjewel's counsel stated that, because of pending bankruptcy proceedings, the company did not expect to respond to administrative orders. After Blackjewel failed to answer an…
Veolia ES Technical Solutions, LLC
In re Veolia ES Technical Solutions, LLC (EAB CAA Appeal No. 19-02): permit review denied
RoseMary Howard filed a one-page petition that appeared to challenge a federal operating permit issued by EPA Region 5 to Veolia ES Technical Solutions, LLC under the Clean Air Act's Title V program. She said that an asthmatic respiratory condition had been aggravated by the company's negligence…
Tower King II, Inc.
Communications-tower rigging citation vacated
Tower King performed antenna work about 1,000 feet above ground on a communications tower. A gin pole detached from the tower, and three employees who were tied to it fell and died. OSHA cited Tower King under the general duty clause, alleging that an incomplete rigging plan created fall and…
Matter of P. SINGH
Marriage-fraud findings require substantial and probative evidence
The Board reviewed a visa petition filed by a United States citizen for his stepfather, whose prior marriage had been found fraudulent. The Board held that a petition may be barred under section 204(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act when substantial and probative evidence shows that the…
Juan C. Garcia d/b/a Master Roofing and Restoration
In re Juan C. Garcia d/b/a Master Roofing and Restoration (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 19-(02)): Board declines sua sponte review
Juan C. Garcia d/b/a Master Roofing and Restoration was the respondent in a Toxic Substances Control Act penalty proceeding. On July 18, 2019, the Presiding Officer issued an Initial Decision and Default Order. Neither party appealed, and the Environmental Appeals Board declined to review the case…
Henry Marine Service, Inc.
Attorney-fee application denied
Henry Marine previously won summary judgment vacating OSHA citations concerning safe access to a tugboat and personal flotation devices. The company then sought $92,402.64 in attorney fees, expert fees, and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. The judge found Henry Marine eligible and a…
Secretary of Labor v. Lehigh Cement Company, LLC
Temporary economic reinstatement approved
The Secretary alleged that Lehigh Cement terminated James McGaughran in retaliation for protected safety activity and sought his temporary reinstatement while the discrimination claim was investigated. The parties settled the temporary-reinstatement request without resolving the merits. Judge…
Farley v. Altasource, LLC d/b/a Meta Labs, LLC
Food-safety retaliation complaint denied on same-action defense
Lan Farley worked for a dietary-supplement and cosmetics company for about eleven days before her discharge. The ALJ found that she engaged in some protected food-safety activity but credited testimony that she did not follow instructions, perform the compliance duties for which she was hired…
Secretary of Labor v. Blackjewel, LLC
Ninety-seven violations resolved by default
These 12 consolidated dockets involved 97 alleged violations at five Blackjewel mines and proposed penalties totaling $125,543. Blackjewel missed the deadline for its prehearing report and initially said that pending bankruptcy proceedings meant it would not answer the judge's show-cause order. The…
Knight Hawk Coal, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Ventilation-plan revocation vacated
MSHA revoked Knight Hawk Coal's long-approved ventilation plan for perimeter mining at the Prairie Eagle Underground Mine and cited the company for operating without an approved plan. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy found that MSHA relied on unreliable smoke testing and evidence of agency bias against…
Budri v. FirstFleet, Inc.
Reconsideration of jurisdictional dismissal denied
The Board had vacated its March 2019 decision in Adriano Budri's Surface Transportation Assistance Act case because Budri filed a federal district-court action first. FirstFleet sought reconsideration, arguing that the district court lacked jurisdiction until Budri filed a final amended complaint…
Knight Hawk Coal, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Initial ventilation-plan ruling later amended
MSHA revoked Knight Hawk Coal's approved ventilation plan for perimeter mining at the Prairie Eagle Underground Mine and cited the company for operating without an approved plan. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy found that MSHA relied on unreliable smoke testing and evidence of agency bias, while failing…
Global Sourcing Solutions, A Division of Turner Logistics, L.L.C.
In re Global Sourcing Solutions, A Division of Turner Logistics, L.L.C. (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 19-01C): consent agreement ratified and civil penalty imposed
Global Sourcing Solutions, a company that procures construction products and materials, self-disclosed potential violations involving imported composite wood products. EPA alleged that, between March 27 and June 14, 2019, the company imported noncompliant finished goods on eight entries and failed…
In re Kevin M. Tracy and Susan M. Jeannette
BALCA representative review denied for lack of authority
The Chief Administrative Law Judge, acting as chair of the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals, barred Susan M. Jeannette from representing clients before BALCA and ordered her to stop using letterhead resembling the Office of Administrative Law Judges' letterhead. Jeannette asked the…
Secretary of Labor v. Richmond Sand & Stone, LLC
All on-site deaths require immediate reporting
An excavator operator at Richmond Sand & Stone's mine suffered a fatal heart attack unrelated to his work. The company learned of the event that afternoon but did not notify MSHA until the next morning. The Commission held that Part 50 expressly defines every death at a mine as an accident…
Investment Properties, L.L.C.
In re Investment Properties, L.L.C. (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 19-01): penalty reduced after sua sponte review
EPA alleged that Investment Properties, L.L.C. violated the Toxic Substances Control Act and the federal lead-based paint disclosure rules while leasing nine residential apartments. The Regional Judicial Officer issued a default order assessing an $82,896 civil penalty for 20 violations. The EAB…
Jordan Development Company, L.L.C.
In re Jordan Development Company, L.L.C. (EAB UIC Appeal Nos. 18-06, 18-07, 18-08, and 18-09): UIC permit review denied
Four petitioners challenged EPA Region 5's Class II Underground Injection Control permit for Jordan Development Company's Grove #13-11 oil well in Michigan. Their arguments addressed environmental justice, induced seismicity, rock fracturing and dissolving, injection volume and pressure, the area…
Estabrook v. Federal Express Corporation
Pilot grounding not caused by protected activity
FedEx pilot Mark Estabrook refused to fly through thunderstorms, filed an OSHA complaint, and later raised concerns about terrorists using public package-tracking data. The Board affirmed that the refusal and OSHA filing were protected and that FedEx's temporary groundings and medical-evaluation…
New Finish Construction, LLC
Electrical and conductive-ladder violations affirmed
New Finish Construction installed a metal roof at a Pennsylvania residence. After the owner threw a steel roof anchor from the roof and it caught on a 12,000-volt power line, an employee climbed an aluminum ladder and used a metal pole to try to dislodge it; he was electrocuted and died. The judge…
Goodnight Midstream Bakken, L.L.C.
In re Goodnight Midstream Bakken, L.L.C. (EAB UIC Appeal No. 19-01): appeal dismissed as moot after permit expired
The Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation petitioned for review of an Underground Injection Control permit that EPA Region 8 issued to Goodnight Midstream Bakken, L.L.C. The permit authorized construction and operation of a saltwater disposal well in Dunn County, North Dakota. During a stay of the…
Lloyd v. Thomas Petroleum
Administrative complaint dismissed after district-court filing
Juan Lloyd alleged that Thomas Petroleum violated the Surface Transportation Assistance Act's employee protections. An ALJ granted summary decision against him, and he timely petitioned the Board for review. Lloyd later invoked the Act's option for a federal district-court action when the Secretary…
Secretary of Labor v. Northshore Mining Company
Radio announcement gave prohibited advance notice
An MSHA inspector arrived before dawn at Northshore Mining's iron ore processing plant and asked the control room operator to find an escort. The operator announced over the department radio that someone was needed to accompany MSHA on an inspection. Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck held that the…
Jersey City Medical Center
Electrical-safety and willful training violations affirmed
A Jersey City Medical Center maintenance mechanic received an electric shock while working on a 277-volt light fixture, fell from a ladder, and later died from his injuries. OSHA cited the hospital for failing to deenergize live parts, use electrical lockout/tagout procedures, maintain compliant…
Matter of H-G-G-
TPS does not cure an uninspected entry for adjustment of status
The applicant, a citizen of El Salvador, entered the United States without inspection or admission in 1990 and later received Temporary Protected Status. After receiving a family-based immigrant visa classification, he applied to adjust status to lawful permanent residence. The Administrative…
Rimini v. J.P. Morgan Chase & Company
Successive SOX complaints dismissed as late
Thomas Rimini filed successive Sarbanes-Oxley complaints concerning a 2011 email exchange that he discovered during litigation in October 2016. His December 2017 complaint came 414 days after that discovery, and neither it nor his April 2018 complaint identified an adverse action within the…
Booker v. Exelon Generation Company, LLC
Nuclear-access retaliation claims require a hearing
Exelon employee Patricia Booker reported backdating of safety-related records at the Peach Bottom nuclear plant, then alleged harassment, loss of duties, revocation of unescorted access, and eventual termination. The ALJ granted summary decision to Exelon after weighing competing evidence and…
Matter of L-E-A-
Family-based asylum group must be particular and socially distinct
The Attorney General reviewed a Board of Immigration Appeals decision involving a Mexican citizen who sought asylum after a drug cartel threatened him because his father refused to sell drugs at a family store. The Attorney General held that a proposed family-based particular social group must have…
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, United States Department of Labor v. Google, Inc.
OFCCP v. Google, Inc. (DOL ARB 2017-0059): ALJ information-request ruling made final
An ALJ denied an Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs request that Google provide certain information. OFCCP appealed but later voluntarily dismissed the appeal, and the Board rejected a later request to clarify that dismissal. Both parties then jointly asked for a final order because the…
Matter of D-A-C-
Immigration Judges may deny temporary protected status as a matter of discretion
The Board reviewed an appeal from the denial of temporary protected status to a respondent from El Salvador. The Immigration Judge found that the respondent was statutorily eligible for temporary protected status but denied the application as a matter of discretion after considering the record…
Secretary of Labor v. James C. Scott and Donnie B. Thomas, employed by Mill Branch Coal Corp.
Secretary of Labor v. James C. Scott and Donnie B. Thomas (FMSHRC VA 2018-104): Individual penalty cases dismissed for delay
MSHA sought individual penalties against James Scott and Donnie Thomas for allegedly knowingly failing to report a water inundation within 15 minutes. The penalty notices were issued 36 months after the underlying order, and the Secretary declined to explain the length of the investigation despite…
Lempa v. Hawthorne Global Aviation and Heartland Aviation
AIR21 complaint filed after 90-day deadline
Joseph Lempa alleged that Heartland Aviation fired him for raising air-transportation safety concerns. The ALJ found that his employment ended on May 31, 2016, but he did not file with OSHA until September 12, more than 100 days later. The Board held that substantial evidence supported those dates…
MLB Transportation, Inc. and Owl, Inc. v. Administrator, Wage and Hour Division
Post-award wage review denied
MLB Transportation and Owl asked the Board to review Service Contract Act wage determinations associated with Veterans Affairs transportation contracts. The Board explained that it ordinarily does not review a wage determination after a contract award, option, or extension unless a regulatory…
R. K. Wallace Construction Inc. d/b/a Wallace Steel Erectors
Eye and fall-protection violations affirmed
Wallace Steel Erectors was a subcontractor on a Mississippi construction project. OSHA observed one employee cutting metal with an angle grinder without eye protection and five employees working about 15 feet above concrete without being tied off or otherwise protected from falls. The judge found…
Echo Powerline, LLC
Power-line contact-prevention violation affirmed
Echo Powerline crews restored distribution lines in Oklahoma after an ice storm. While workers raised a quarter-mile section of distribution wire beneath an energized 69-kilovolt transmission line, the wire contacted the transmission line; one employee suffered burns and another died from…
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Ungrounded space heater violated enclosure rule
An MSHA inspector found a metal-cased portable space heater with a two-prong plug in a quarry control room. Vulcan argued that the heater's UL listing, polarized plug, dry office-like setting, and extensive product testing provided protection equivalent to grounding. Judge William B. Moran held…
Douglas Products and Packaging Company, LLC
In re Douglas Products and Packaging Company, LLC (EAB FIFRA Appeal No. 19-01Q): $143,500 penalty paid and matter resolved
EPA alleged that Douglas Products and Packaging Company, LLC distributed and sold misbranded pesticides in violation of section 12(a)(1)(E) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. EPA's complaint sought a $143,500 penalty. The company paid the full penalty, waiving its rights to…
Yelinek v. All City Bail Bond Co. d/b/a All City Bail Bonds
Yelinek v. All City Bail Bond Co. (DOL ARB 2018-0032): bail-bond business excluded from CFPA coverage
Bail-bond agent Amiee Yelinek alleged that All City Bail Bonds fired her after she raised concerns about credit-card surcharges. The Consumer Financial Protection Act protects employees of covered persons or service providers offering consumer financial products or services, but excludes the…
Secretary of Labor obo Tyler Herrera v. Field Lining Systems, Inc.
Immediate temporary reinstatement ordered
Tyler Herrera alleged that he reported an unstable, damaged light plant to coworkers and MSHA, then was fired four days later. Field Lining Systems argued that he was terminated for violating its attendance policy, but did not request a temporary-reinstatement hearing. Judge Priscilla M. Rae held…
Secretary of Labor v. Sims Crane
Fall-protection citation vacated for lack of proof
A Sims Crane employee exited a crane cab on a lowboy trailer by taking two or three steps across a three-foot-wide, skid-resistant deck about seven feet above the ground, then using a front ladder. The inspector cited the company for lacking fall protection, but had not closely examined the crane…
Bergelectric Corp.
Fall-protection items vacated, recordkeeping item affirmed
Bergelectric employees installed electrical conduit above a casino ceiling 24 feet above the floor. One employee disconnected from fall protection, fell through the ceiling, and suffered broken ribs and spinal fractures; OSHA also found two improper lanyard-connection practices. The judge found…
In re J.D. Eckman, Inc., Panthera Painting, Inc., 446 Painting, and related respondents
In re J.D. Eckman, Inc. and related respondents (DOL ARB 2017-0023): related-act debarment standard corrected on remand
The case concerned prevailing-wage violations on a federally aided highway contract involving J.D. Eckman, Panthera Painting, 446 Painting, and related individuals. The ALJ debarred Justin Hauth and 446 Painting for three years under the ordinary Davis-Bacon standard, which asks whether a…
FAMA Construction, LLC.
Roofing safety violations affirmed at two residential sites
FAMA Construction arranged roofing work at two residential construction sites in Lawrenceville, Georgia. OSHA cited ladder, eye protection, and fall protection violations involving two roofing crews. The judge found that FAMA was the workers' employer and, alternatively, a controlling employer that…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC
Three escapeway citations vacated
After Peabody Midwest stopped production on the old 2B panel, it moved the production equipment outby the former loading point, changed the ventilation, and began mining elsewhere. MSHA cited the company because the old panel no longer had tracking and communication, a lifeline, or working…
Edwin Taylor Corporation
Willful fall protection violation affirmed
Edwin Taylor Corporation supervised residential construction of three-story townhomes in St. Petersburg, Florida. Workers and company supervisors were repeatedly present above six feet without guardrails or other fall protection, and a laborer died after falling through an unprotected opening. The…
Ellerbee v. Annett Holdings, Inc. d/b/a TMC Transportation
STAA review petition filed late
Jamel Ellerbee sought Board review of an ALJ decision in his Surface Transportation Assistance Act case. The petition was due May 10, 2019, 14 days after the ALJ decision, but Ellerbee filed it on May 20. He explained delays reviewing his mail, online-filing problems, full-time employment, and the…
Gryga v. Henkels & McCoy, Inc.
SOX appeal dismissed after district-court filing
Nick Gryga alleged that Henkels & McCoy retaliated against him in violation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. OSHA and an ALJ dismissed the complaint, and Gryga petitioned the Board for review. Before the Board ruled, he filed a de novo action in the Northern District of Illinois but did not provide the…
Sanderson Farms, Inc. – Processing Division
Ammonia process-safety items partly affirmed
Sanderson Farms operated a chicken processing plant that used anhydrous ammonia for refrigeration. OSHA cited several process safety management deficiencies involving engineering-practice documentation, diagrams, ventilation information, written mechanical-integrity procedures, and equipment…
Navarro v. RCL Wiring, LP d/b/a Idaho & Sedalia Transportation Company
Navarro v. RCL Wiring, LP (DOL ARB 2019-0040 and 2019-0043): railroad retaliation settlement approved
An ALJ awarded Steve Navarro damages, attorney fees, and costs on his claim that RCL Wiring retaliated against and discharged him in violation of the Federal Railroad Safety Act. After the company sought Board review, the parties submitted a confidential settlement. The Board limited its review to…
Matter of Jun Yun ZHANG
A false citizenship claim does not require intent for removability
The Board reviewed an appeal from a finding that a Chinese lawful permanent resident was removable for falsely representing himself as a United States citizen. The respondent had obtained a Certificate of Naturalization through an unlawful process but argued that removability required a knowing or…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Walkway violation affirmed without S&S finding
MSHA cited Consol Pennsylvania Coal for a hose, replacement roller, coal, and a plastic bag on an elevated walkway at the Harvey Mine. The company admitted the travelway standard was violated but disputed the S&S designation, injury likelihood, negligence, and penalty. Judge William B. Moran found…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC
Coal-dust order modified and examination order vacated
MSHA issued two withdrawal orders after finding accumulated material along the energized 3-B beltline at Peabody Midwest's Francisco Underground Pit. Judge David P. Simonton found enough combustible coal dust to affirm the section 75.400 violation as S&S because nearby belt conditions could supply…
Taft v. Paramount Coffee Company and Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
Taft v. Paramount Coffee Company (DOL ARB 2019-0031): district-court jurisdiction issue made petition moot
An ALJ dismissed Demarco Taft's administrative complaint because he had filed a federal civil action involving the same matters. Taft petitioned the Board after a magistrate judge recommended dismissing the civil case as unripe, raising concern that neither forum would retain jurisdiction. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Hopedale Mining LLC
Four ventilation citations vacated after settlement dispute
MSHA issued four S&S citations for failures to follow Hopedale Mining's ventilation plan, involving airflow, a tail curtain, water sprays, and roof-bolter vacuum. The parties proposed reducing total penalties from $18,093 to $3,339 by lowering negligence on all four citations and gravity on two…
Valley Performance Distributors, LLC
In re Valley Performance Distributors, LLC (EAB CAA Appeal No. 19-01C): consent agreement ratified
The Environmental Appeals Board issued a Final Order for Valley Performance Distributors, LLC on June 24, 2019. The order states that the attached Consent Agreement resolved the matter and was ratified under EPA's Consolidated Rules of Practice. The Board ordered the respondent to comply with all…
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, United States Department of Labor v. Analogic Corporation
OFCCP v. Analogic Corporation (DOL ARB 2019-0044): case closed after exceptions declined
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs brought an Executive Order 11246 case against Analogic Corporation. An ALJ issued a recommended decision and order on March 22, 2019. After receiving an extension to file exceptions, OFCCP told the Board that it did not intend to submit any and…
PWCA and National Association of Prevailing Wage Contractors v. Secretary of Labor
PWCA and NAPWC v. Secretary of Labor (DOL ARB 2016-0019 and 2016-0021): supplemental-benefit rulings remanded
PWCA and the National Association of Prevailing Wage Contractors sponsored supplemental unemployment-benefit plans for employers subject to Davis-Bacon prevailing-wage requirements. They challenged 2015 Wage and Hour Division rulings requiring participating employers to annualize plan…
Secretary of Labor v. Stone Zone
Twelve final penalty assessments left closed
Stone Zone asked the Commission to reopen 12 penalty assessments that became final when the company did not contest them within 30 days. Ten requests were filed more than one year after finality and were untimely under the rule governing relief from final orders. The Commission also denied the two…
Gatto v. General Utilities
Truck refusal not objectively reasonable
Fuel-delivery driver Thomas Gatto refused to use a spare truck because he recalled earlier problems opening its doors and windows. He did not inspect or enter the truck before refusing, its maintenance records showed repairs and a passed state safety inspection, and a mechanic and other drivers…
Brown v. Synovus Financial Corporation
Renewed fraud-on-the-court motion denied
An ALJ granted summary decision against Michael Brown in his Sarbanes-Oxley case against Synovus Financial. Brown missed the 14-day Board appeal deadline, and both the Board and the Eleventh Circuit rejected his later challenges. He then returned to the ALJ with another fraud-on-the-court motion…
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.