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.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dallas, TX
W.H. (ECAB 15-1167): New impairment evidence required a schedule award decision
W.H., a postal letter carrier with an accepted injury, had previously been denied a schedule award for limb impairment. He later submitted additional medical testing and a physician’s impairment rating. OWCP treated the submission as a late request to reconsider its earlier denial and declined to…
K.C. and Department of the Interior, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Gatlinburg, TN
K.C. (ECAB 15-0552): Hip bursitis claim lacked a reasoned medical explanation
K.C., a forestry technician at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, injured his right foot when a heavy gate fell on it. OWCP accepted conditions affecting his right great toe. He later claimed that his altered gait caused right hip bursitis. His physician attributed the bursitis to the gait change…
Secretary of Labor obo Jeremy Jones v. Kingston Mining, Inc.
Excluded layoff evidence required a new reinstatement hearing
Jeremy Jones, an electrician at Kingston Mining's No. 2 Mine, repeatedly raised safety concerns before he was included in a 23-miner layoff. An ALJ denied temporary reinstatement after finding Jones's discrimination complaint untimely and frivolous, while excluding evidence about how the layoff was…
Secretary of Labor v. Empresas Mundo Real, Inc.
MSHA covered crane work during batch-plant construction
Empresas Mundo Real assigned a quarry mechanic to operate a rented crane while building a concrete batch plant at its Puerto Rico mine, but did not first provide the required task training. The company argued that OSHA, rather than MSHA, controlled the construction site because completed concrete…
M.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Ann Arbor, MI
M.S. (ECAB 15-1708): New scans did not address where the fall happened
M.S., a cook at a veterans medical center, reported injuries from a fall in a parking lot before her shift. OWCP denied her claim because she had not established that the fall occurred on the employer’s premises at a reasonable time before work. She requested reconsideration and submitted spine…
D.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Baltimore, MD
D.S. (ECAB 15-1642): No additional accepted condition or payable limb impairment
D.S., a postal employee, had accepted neck and back sprains from moving a mail container and throwing telephone books. She sought recognition of additional shoulder, hip, and leg conditions and a schedule award for permanent impairment. The Board found that her medical reports did not link any…
D.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Dublin, GA
D.B. (ECAB 15-1625): Physician’s reference to prior reports did not reopen claim
D.B., a practical nurse, alleged that a patient struck her at work. In an earlier decision, the Board accepted that the incident occurred but found no sufficient medical evidence linking a diagnosed condition to it. She asked OWCP to reconsider and submitted a physician’s new note saying his…
A.R. and Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration, Laredo, TX
A.R. (ECAB 15-1607): Accepted hearing loss fell below schedule award threshold
A.R., a Drug Enforcement Administration agent, had work-related hearing loss from noise exposure during firearms training. OWCP accepted the condition and authorized medical benefits, but denied a schedule award. An audiogram showed average losses of 23.75 decibels in each ear at the frequencies…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Trenton, NJ
C.C. (ECAB 15-1582): No proof that light-duty work was withdrawn
C.C., a postal worker with accepted nerve conditions affecting her neck and back, claimed she became disabled while working light duty. She said the Postal Service had no work within her physician’s restrictions. The Board found no records or witness statements showing that her light-duty…
A.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bridgeport, CT
A.D. (ECAB 15-1326): Shoulder strain lacked a medical explanation of causation
A.D., a postal carrier, reported right shoulder pain after transferring mail between her arms while sitting in her vehicle. OWCP accepted that the work incident happened, but denied her injury claim. Her physician diagnosed a right shoulder strain and repeated her account of the incident. The Board…
A.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Central Western Massachusetts Health Care System, Leeds, MA
A.B. (ECAB 14-0522): Witness accounts cast doubt on reported workplace fall
A.B., an education specialist at a veterans health care facility, reported a back injury from a fall at work. OWCP denied his claim because it found that the incident had not happened in the manner he described. A coworker said he saw A.B. throw water and lie down on the floor, while other…
Deltech Corporation
In re Deltech Corporation (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 15-00C): $5,400 penalty paid and matter resolved
EPA alleged that Deltech Corporation failed to comply with Toxic Substances Control Act section 12(b) reporting requirements and related regulations. The complaint proposed a $5,400 civil penalty. Deltech paid the full amount. Under 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(a)(3), the Board issued a Final Order after…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Alexandria, VA
K.M. (ECAB 15-1600): Alleged manager conduct was not substantiated
K.M., a postal supervisor, claimed that yelling and pressure from his office manager worsened his migraines and caused work-related stress. His physician described the migraines and attributed their worsening to stress at work. The Board found that K.M. had given only general allegations, with no…
J.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
J.H. (ECAB 15-1554): Oral hearing request missed the 30 day deadline
J.H., a postal mail handler, received a schedule award for five percent impairment of her left leg. She requested an oral hearing 32 days after OWCP issued the award decision. The Board held that the request missed the 30 day deadline for a hearing as of right. It found that OWCP also reasonably…
N.B. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Anthony, NM
N.B. (ECAB 15-1390): Back injury showed no ratable leg impairment
N.B., a prison medical records technician, had an accepted lumbar sprain after a workplace fall. She sought a schedule award for permanent impairment. A chiropractor rated impairment of her whole person, but the Board found his report was not competent medical evidence for this purpose under FECA…
F.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, DeSoto, MO
F.B. (ECAB 15-1188): Medical reports did not justify changing wage capacity
F.B., a part-time rural postal carrier, had accepted injuries from a 1995 vehicle accident. OWCP later based her wage-earning capacity on a cashier position and reduced compensation accordingly. She sought to change that determination, citing worsening pelvic problems and an inability to work a…
C.B. and Department of Defense, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Fort Belvoir, VA
C.B. (ECAB 15-1044): Disc condition lacked a reasoned link to range training
C.B., an international relations specialist, spent six hours repeatedly assuming a crouched firing position during required weapons training. She felt lower back pain after driving home and later claimed that the training caused lumbar disc syndrome with radiculopathy. OWCP accepted that the…
I.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Louisville, KY
I.M. (ECAB 15-0523): Late reconsideration request showed no clear error
I.M., a postal mail processing clerk, had claimed an emotional condition arising from job bidding, relocation, and alleged harassment. OWCP denied the original claim because he had not established a compensable employment factor. He sought reconsideration more than a year later, submitting…
K.M. and Department of the Air Force, Westover Air Force Base, Chicopee, MA
K.M. (ECAB 14-2001): Life insurance election needed before overpayment finding
K.M., a retired Air Force mechanic receiving FECA compensation, was told that OWCP had overpaid him $5,420.74 by failing to deduct life insurance premiums. He disputed having elected the optional postretirement coverage. The Board found that the record contained only a statement from the Office of…
Secretary of Labor v. CML Metals Corporation
Reopening denied for unreliable penalty processing
CML Metals failed to contest an MSHA penalty assessment within 30 days, so the assessment became a final Commission order. The company sought reopening about nine months later, explaining that it had no designated safety employee and different people handled MSHA matters at different times. The…
R.E. Carroll, Inc.
In re R.E. Carroll, Inc. (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 15-04C): Consent Agreement ratified
R.E. Carroll, Inc. resolved an EPA matter through a Consent Agreement. The Environmental Appeals Board incorporated the agreement by reference into its Final Order and ratified it under 40 C.F.R. § 22.18(b)-(c). The Board ordered R.E. Carroll, Inc. to comply with all terms of the Consent Agreement…
O.M. and Defense Agencies, DLA-Distribution Region East Injury Compensation Center, Fort Belvoir, VA
O.M. (ECAB 15-1723): Work activities behind hand and shoulder claim were too vague
O.M., a materials examiner and forklift operator, claimed that her work caused conditions in both hands and shoulders. OWCP asked her to describe the specific tasks, their frequency, and how long she performed them, but she did not respond. Her physician mentioned lifting a heavy gate and overhead…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Indianapolis, IN
J.C. (ECAB 15-1596): Continuing noise exposure made hearing claim timely
J.C., a postal clerk, claimed gradual hearing loss from machinery at a processing center. She said she first connected the condition to work in 2009 but filed her claim in 2014. OWCP denied it as beyond the three-year deadline. The Board found that she continued working amid the alleged noise…
T.M. and Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Logistic Base, Albany, GA
T.M. (ECAB 15-1571): Late reconsideration showed no clear error in medical benefit termination
T.M., a former Marine Corps base mechanic, had an accepted lumbar strain. OWCP later ended authorization for medical treatment, and the Board upheld that decision in an earlier appeal. T.M. sought reconsideration more than a year later, citing medical reports and asking for a decision on a claimed…
G.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA
G.J. (ECAB 15-1563): Impartial specialist found cervical condition unrelated to work
G.J., a veterans medical center travel clerk, claimed that years of repetitive duties caused cervical and right arm conditions. After earlier remands over the selection and explanation of impartial medical opinions, OWCP obtained a supplemental report from a properly selected orthopedic specialist…
T.G. and Department of the Army, Installation Management Command, Fort Belvoir, VA
T.G. (ECAB 15-1550): Fall was established but medical injury was not
T.G., an Army maintenance mechanic leader, tripped while carrying plexiglass and fell at work. OWCP accepted that the fall happened, but denied his injury claim. His emergency physician documented pain and diagnostic tests, and a neurosurgeon discussed symptoms and possible surgery. The Board found…
L.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, MO
L.B. (ECAB 15-1408): Claim expansion and schedule award denied
L.B., a veterans medical center vehicle operator, had accepted left shoulder and elbow injuries after a volunteer pushed him into a glass frame. He sought to add another shoulder condition and obtain a schedule award. An MRI showed a tear, but it gave no opinion about its cause, and a physician…
B.F. and Department of the Air Force, Wright Patterson Air Force Base, OH
B.F. (ECAB 15-0826): Conflicting knee impairment ratings required further review
B.F., an Air Force employee, sustained accepted injuries to both knees when a van pinned her between vehicles. OWCP granted schedule awards for eight percent impairment of the left leg and four percent of the right. Her physician had rated both legs higher, using a different left knee arthritis…
H.B. and U.S. Government Publishing Office, Washington, DC
H.B. (ECAB 15-1699): Repeated spine rating did not reopen schedule award claim
H.B., a printing plant worker, received schedule awards for impairment of both arms after a workplace injury. He later sought an increase, but OWCP denied it because the physician referred to an earlier spine rating without providing a current impairment rating. His reconsideration request supplied…
F.M. and Department of the Navy, Fleet Forces Command, Norfolk, VA
F.M. (ECAB 15-1639): Hearing test validity needed clarification before award denial
F.M., a retired Navy materials handler inspector, had accepted hearing loss from workplace noise. OWCP denied a schedule award after treating three audiometric evaluations as invalid. The Board found that the latest specialist had called his results somewhat inconsistent but also said the pure tone…
B.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
B.V. (ECAB 15-1496): Five percent right leg award upheld over higher motion rating
B.V., a postal carrier, injured his right ankle and foot when he stepped into a hole. OWCP awarded compensation for five percent permanent impairment of the right leg. His physician proposed a 19 percent rating based on ankle range of motion, but the Board found errors in that calculation…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Monroeville, PA
P.S. (ECAB 15-1416): Medical reports did not explain injury from mail cart work
P.S., a postal customer service supervisor, reported neck, shoulder, and back problems after handling a bulk mail container at work. The Board accepted that the June 6, 2012 incident occurred. Her physicians attributed symptoms or an arthritis flare to physical work, but did not explain medically…
A.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Forest Park, IL
A.G. (ECAB 15-1359): Shoulder diagnoses lacked an explanation tying them to mail tray incident
A.G., a casual postal mail handler, said she hurt her left shoulder when a heavy mail tray slipped as she turned to place it in a container. OWCP accepted that the incident happened. Her physicians diagnosed shoulder conditions, including rotator cuff tendinitis and a tear, but did not explain…
S.W. and Social Security Administration, Region III, Philadelphia, PA
S.W. (ECAB 15-1260): Claimed supervisor harassment was not established
S.W., a Social Security service representative, claimed depression and anxiety from alleged supervisor harassment and unfair handling of leave and work assignments. Management disputed the allegations. The Board found no sufficiently detailed, corroborated incidents of harassment or management…
I.A. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Brooklyn, NY
I.A. (ECAB 15-1168): Incomplete earnings affidavit justified benefit suspension
I.A., a Bureau of Prisons correctional treatment specialist with an accepted cervical strain, received continuing wage-loss benefits. OWCP asked her to complete an earnings and activity affidavit. She returned a form with two questions unanswered, and OWCP sent another form with a warning that…
G.E.R.I.N. Home Improvements LLC
Contest dismissed after missing stated deadline
OSHA issued G.E.R.I.N. Home Improvements four serious citation items and one willful item with proposed penalties totaling $21,600. The company received the citations and an OSHA assistant director expressly told its owner that the contest deadline was March 11, 2015. Its notice was postmarked…
S.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Long Beach, CA
S.F. (ECAB 15-0480): Treatment time and recurrence claims lacked required links
S.F., a postal mail handler, had accepted cervical conditions and later sought wage-loss compensation for time spent at medical appointments. The Board found that many appointments treated an unaccepted lower back condition, while she had not shown that other appointments for cervical care occurred…
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, National Council of HUD Locals 222 (Union)
HUD and AFGE Council 222 (FLRA 0-AR-4586): Reconsideration and stay denied
HUD asked the Authority to reconsider an earlier decision that dismissed as untimely its exceptions concerning implementation of a promotion and backpay remedy. The Authority found that HUD's claimed factual errors merely repeated arguments already considered and rejected, so they did not establish…
Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor v. Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC
Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC WEVA 2014-395-R, et al.): Affinity Mine pattern notice upheld
MSHA issued a pattern-of-violations notice to Pocahontas Coal's Affinity Mine after a nationwide screening and further review of the mine's enforcement history, injuries, and claimed mitigating circumstances. The final notice relied on 34 significant-and-substantial violations, including recurring…
Sandra G. McDonald v. TMK Enterprises Security
Complaint amendment allowed after Commission remand
Sandra McDonald filed a Mine Act discrimination complaint against TMK Enterprises Security over her former mine-site security job. The record showed that West Virginia had terminated TMK's corporate status before McDonald worked there and that George King and Mark Toler continued the security…
G.T. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Reno, NV
G.T. (ECAB 15-1661): Knee surgery leave was not linked to accepted injury
G.T., a veterans medical center carpenter, had accepted left knee conditions from snow removal work in 2010. He stopped work for part of May 2014 and underwent surgery for a meniscus tear. The Board found that his physician diagnosed the tear but did not explain whether it arose from or worsened…
M.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Louisville, KY
M.H. (ECAB 15-1611): Wage-loss benefits ended after work capacity opinion
M.H., a rural postal carrier, had accepted cervical injuries and received wage-loss benefits. An OWCP referral surgeon examined her, reviewed her history and regular job duties, and concluded that she could work full time without restrictions from the accepted conditions. The Board found his…
S.T. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC
S.T. (ECAB 15-1559): Repeated medication argument did not reopen terminated benefits
S.T., a former air traffic controller, had accepted aggravation of a lumbar strain. OWCP ended his wage-loss and medical benefits in 2010 after an impartial specialist found no remaining work-related condition. More than four years later, S.T. sought reconsideration, arguing that his prescribed…
L.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Louis, MO
L.C. (ECAB 15-1544): Shoulder claim and reconsideration request both denied
L.C., a postal carrier, claimed that years of casing and delivering mail caused tendinitis and arthritis in both shoulders. His surgeon described the duties and attributed the shoulder problems to them, but the Board found his wording partly speculative and lacking a medical explanation of how the…
S.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Palatine Processing & Distribution Center, Palatine, IL
S.J. (ECAB 15-1500): No additional arm impairment award
S.J., a postal distribution clerk, sought a schedule award for more than five percent permanent impairment of each arm. Her accepted work conditions included bilateral epicondylitis, myofascial pain syndrome, and carpal tunnel syndrome. After earlier remands, impartial examiner Dr. Hythem Shadid…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Chattanooga, TN
A.H. (ECAB 15-1475): Left arm award upheld; right arm award sent back
A.H., a postal mail handler, sought larger schedule awards for arm impairment from accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and ulnar nerve lesion. After an earlier remand, her physician and OWCP’s medical adviser agreed that she had five percent permanent impairment of each arm. The Board found…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Milwaukee, WI
D.C. (ECAB 15-1400): Shoulder injury claim and reconsideration request denied
D.C., a postal custodian, said he hurt his right shoulder while lifting a bucket of water at work in November 2006. OWCP accepted that the lifting incident occurred, but denied his claim because the medical reports did not explain how it caused the claimed injury. The Board agreed that the…
E.S. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Pacific, Fort Shafter, HI
E.S. (ECAB 15-0259): Additional conditions denied; foot therapy sent back
E.S., an Army tools and parts attendant, had accepted work-related foot conditions and sought recognition of further foot and emotional conditions. The Board affirmed OWCP’s denial because the medical reports did not explain how the additional diagnoses were caused by his work. E.S. also sought…
Secretary of Labor v. Kopper Glo Mining, LLC
Rib-control violation upheld but unwarrantable finding removed
MSHA cited Kopper Glo Mining after an inspector found rib sloughage and unsupported brows in five working headings at the Double Mountain Mine. Judge Margaret A. Miller held that the mine's roof-control plan clearly treated sloughing as a sign of instability and required fencing, steel supports…
Matter of J-S-S-
Competency must be reevaluated when relief claims are remanded
The Board reviewed a Haitian lawful permanent resident's removal case after controlled-substance convictions and a finding that he was competent to proceed. The Board held that neither party bears a formal burden of proof on competency, but when signs of incompetency are present, the Immigration…
M.M. and Department of Homeland Security, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, Phoenix, AZ
M.M. (ECAB 15-1719): Left ear hearing loss award upheld
M.M., a retired federal investigator, had an accepted claim for hearing loss from workplace noise, including firearms exposure. OWCP awarded compensation for eight percent permanent hearing loss in his left ear, equivalent to 4.16 weeks. The Board found that the medical evidence supported that…
R.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
R.H. (ECAB 15-1702): Foot fracture claim denied for lack of medical explanation
R.H., a postal city carrier, felt left foot pain while delivering mail on July 12, 2014. Medical imaging showed a stress fracture at the base of his second metatarsal, and OWCP accepted that the work incident occurred. His physician attributed the fracture to the stress of walking and later to his…
R.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Grand Island, NE
R.R. (ECAB 15-1514): Work duties established, but back injury claim denied
R.R., a Veterans Affairs biomedical equipment support specialist, claimed that repeated lifting and bending at work caused a lower back condition. OWCP denied his claim because it found that he had not established those work duties. The Board disagreed on that point: his job description and…
S.Y. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Pittsburgh, PA
S.Y. (ECAB 15-1313): Compensation suspension reversed for lack of notice
S.Y., a Veterans Affairs housekeeping aid with an accepted hernia injury, missed two medical examinations arranged by OWCP. OWCP suspended his compensation after the second missed appointment. The Board found that OWCP had given him 14 days to explain the first absence but had not offered a new…
L.A. and Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Fresco, CA
L.A. (ECAB 15-1293): Late reconsideration request denied
L.A., an Internal Revenue Service customer service representative, sought benefits for a left wrist injury she attributed to a workplace fall. OWCP had denied the claim because the medical evidence did not establish a causal connection to the work incident. Her later request for reconsideration…
J.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
J.G. (ECAB 15-1223): Arm impairment rating returned for thumb evaluation
J.G., a postal distribution clerk with accepted aggravation of bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome, sought a larger schedule award for arm impairment. An impartial specialist evaluated the accepted wrist condition but was asked to address neither whether J.G.’s trigger thumb conditions and right thumb…
R.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Edison, NJ
R.P. (ECAB 15-0977): Later back symptoms did not establish injury residuals
R.P., a postal letter carrier, had accepted lumbar conditions from a July 2000 work injury. OWCP ended his wage loss and medical benefits effective August 25, 2012, and the Board had upheld that termination in an earlier appeal. R.P. then submitted a physician’s report describing continuing back…
D.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dagsboro, DE
D.W. (ECAB 15-0707): No increase to left leg impairment award
D.W., a postal rural carrier, sought a larger schedule award for left leg impairment from an accepted back injury. The Board reviewed an impartial specialist’s examination and clarification of the impairment calculation. It found one percent impairment from an S1 sensory deficit and seven percent…
H.J. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Atwater, CA
H.J. (ECAB 15-0705): Back and emotional condition claims denied
H.J., a prison factory manager, claimed that physical duties aggravated his back condition and that job stress caused emotional and other conditions. The Board accepted that his work involved standing, lifting, crouching, bending, and stooping, but found that his physician had not adequately…
Matsu Alabama, Inc., d/b/a A Division of Matcor Automotive, Inc.
Press-safety and repeat machine-guarding citations largely affirmed
Matsu Alabama assigned a temporary worker hired as a janitor to operate and load a mechanical press without adequate press training or supervision. A bent crowder-bar safeguard failed to keep him within the light curtain, and the press caused severe amputation injuries to both hands and one…
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.