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, Bulk Mail Center, Jersey City, NJ
W.G. (ECAB 15-0302): Claimed lifting injury denied for lack of medical explanation
W.G., a postal mail handler, reported neck and back conditions after lifting and pulling letter trays at work. OWCP accepted that he performed those tasks. The Board found that his physician did not explain how the particular activities caused the diagnosed conditions. It affirmed the claim denial…
K.H. and Department of the Treasury, Financial Management Service, Philadelphia, PA
K.H. (ECAB 15-0299): Back condition claim denied for lack of causal evidence
K.H., a Treasury employee, attributed her back condition to lifting, bending, and other work duties. The Board found that her physicians did not give a supported opinion connecting the condition to those duties. One doctor described a work link only as possible, which the Board considered…
E.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Lagrangeville, NY
E.G. (ECAB 15-0175): Back injury claim denied; treatment authorization issue returned
E.G., a postal clerk, reported back pain after pulling a jammed mail hamper. The Board found that the medical reports did not adequately explain how the incident caused a diagnosed back condition. It affirmed the injury claim denial. It separately directed OWCP to address whether a treatment…
T.C. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Houston, TX
T.C. (ECAB 14-2083): Carpal tunnel wage loss termination upheld
T.C., a transportation security officer, received compensation for accepted carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands. OWCP terminated wage loss benefits after her treating hand surgeon reported that she could return to unrestricted work. The Board found his opinion supported an end to disability from…
A.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Vehicle Maintenance Facility, Redding, CA
A.P. (ECAB 14-2029): Back and leg condition claim denied
A.P., a postal vehicle technician, attributed back and leg pain to driving a truck with a hard clutch and other work activities. The Board found that his physician used an incomplete account of the duties and did not explain how the work caused or aggravated the diagnosed conditions. It affirmed…
L.R. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Soddy Daisy, TN
L.R. (ECAB 14-1942): Benefits termination and refusal to reopen affirmed
L.R., a Tennessee Valley Authority employee, appealed the termination of benefits for an accepted older injury and a later refusal to reopen her claim. The Board found that OWCP had shown the accepted injury no longer caused disability when benefits ended. It also found that her later evidence did…
S.B. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Northport Veterans Hospital, Northport, NY
S.B. (ECAB 14-1287): Wage capacity ruling set aside for overlooked medical reports
S.B., a former VA respiratory therapist, sought modification of an earlier loss of wage earning capacity determination. The Board found that OWCP had not addressed two later reports from her treating surgeon before refusing modification. It set aside the ruling and directed OWCP to review the…
Secretary of Labor v. A Mining Group, LLC
Overdue extinguisher inspection brings $100 penalty
An MSHA inspector found one fire extinguisher at A Mining Group's limestone quarry was two months overdue for its annual inspection. Judge Priscilla M. Rae held that every extinguisher kept in service must be inspected annually, even if no regulation required the operator to place that extinguisher…
Matter of Armando CERDA REYES, Respondent
Matter of Armando CERDA REYES (BIA ID 3829): bond-redetermination filing rules concern venue, not jurisdiction
The Board reviewed a bond-redetermination dispute after an Immigration Judge declined to hear the request because the respondent had been transferred to a detention facility in another state. The Board held that the filing rules in 8 C.F.R. § 1003.19(c) are mandatory but concern venue, not the…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 2189 (Respondent) and Jonathan Jarman (Charging Party)
NFFE Local 2189 and Jonathan Jarman (FLRA DA-CO-12-0111): Initial union membership denial unlawful
NFFE Local 2189 refused an employee's first application for union membership after he had criticized the local's approach to a proposed work-schedule change on a private Facebook page. The employee had entered the bargaining unit and paid dues, but the local said his earlier post threatened the…
Glenn Roush v. Bath Iron Works
Roush v. Bath Iron Works (BRB 14-0221): Special Fund relief sent back for findings
Bath Iron Works sought to shift part of its permanent total disability obligation for welder Glenn Roush to the Longshore Act's Special Fund, citing his pre-existing diabetes. An administrative law judge granted that relief and later allowed credits for payments made under Maine workers'…
A.M. and Department of the Air Force, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, NM
A.M. (ECAB 15-0249): Thumb injury claim denied over conflicting incident evidence
A.M., an Air Force firefighter, claimed that he injured his thumb during fire training on April 26, 2011. The Board found that his later statements conflicted with the claim form and that the medical records did not identify a work injury on that date. It held that the alleged incident was not…
T.I. and Department of the Army, Madigan Army Medical Center, WA
T.I. (ECAB 15-0183): Patient care incident established; injury claim remanded
T.I., an Army medical center nurse, reported a back injury while collecting a sample from an uncooperative patient. OWCP rejected his account of the workplace incident. The Board found that the incident occurred as alleged and that the contrary evidence did not refute it. It sent the claim back for…
R.A. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Fort Worth, TX
R.A. (ECAB 15-0179): One percent leg impairment award upheld
R.A., a prison cook supervisor, sought a larger schedule award for his left leg. A physician estimated 12 percent impairment without showing how the rating followed the required guide. The Board credited OWCP’s medical adviser, who applied the guide and rated the leg at one percent. It affirmed the…
T.L. and Department of the Army, Fort Campbell, KY
T.L. (ECAB 15-0177): Refusal to reopen injury claim affirmed
T.L., an Army automotive worker, asked OWCP to reconsider a prior decision concerning his accepted thigh condition. He said he would supply further medical evidence, but OWCP received none that was new and relevant to the issue. The Board held that the request did not meet the requirements for…
A.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
A.R. (ECAB 15-0156): Knee condition claim remanded for impartial examination
A.R., a postal employee, claimed that his work caused or aggravated osteoarthritis in both knees. The Board found a conflict between medical opinions on whether his job duties contributed to the condition. It set aside OWCP’s denial and directed it to obtain an impartial specialist’s opinion before…
J.W. and Department of Defense, Fort Belvoir, VA
J.W. (ECAB 15-0066): Emotional condition claim and late hearing denial affirmed
J.W., a Defense Department employee, attributed an emotional condition to events at work. The Board found that he had not established a compensable employment factor for the claim. It also found that his hearing request was postmarked after the 30 day deadline and that OWCP acted within its…
United States Department of Defense, Pentagon Force Protection Agency and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO
Pentagon Force Protection Agency and AFGE (FLRA WA-RP-12-0005): Reconsideration and stay denied
A regional director found that certain Pentagon Force Protection Agency officers could be included in a bargaining unit and directed an election. After a lapse in the Authority's quorum, the regional director's decision became the Authority's action without further review. The agency asked the…
United States Department of the Air Force, Fairchild Air Force Base (Agency) and Fairchild Federal Employees' Union (Petitioner/Exclusive Representative) and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO (Interested Party/Labor Organization)
Fairchild Air Force Base unions (FLRA SF-RP-12-0042): Reconsideration denied
A regional director certified the consolidation of two employee bargaining units at Fairchild Air Force Base. The agency applied for Authority review while the Authority lacked a quorum. After the Authority regained a quorum, it did not act within the statutory review period and later notified the…
I.D. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correction Center, Coleman, FL
I.D. (ECAB 15-0300): Workplace fall accepted, injury claim still denied
I.D., a federal correction officer, reported falling from a chair whose back rest came loose at work. The Board accepted that the fall occurred but found that the medical reports did not adequately connect his shoulder and wrist conditions to it. It affirmed the injury claim denial while modifying…
J.S. and Department of the Interior, Fish & Wildlife Service, Valley Stream, NY
J.S. (ECAB 15-0282): Vehicle accident injury claim returned for medical development
J.S., a Fish and Wildlife Service investigator, claimed a shoulder injury after a work related motor vehicle accident. The Board found medical evidence sufficient to require further development of whether the accident caused a rotator cuff tear. It set aside OWCP’s denial and directed the agency to…
W.P. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Safford, AZ
W.P. (ECAB 15-0276): Slip claim denied; treatment authorization to be addressed
W.P., a prison employee, reported slipping on a wet floor at work. The Board accepted the incident but found insufficient medical evidence that it caused a diagnosed condition. It affirmed the claim denial. It separately directed OWCP to address whether a treatment authorization required payment…
L.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration
L.G. (ECAB 15-0274): Late request for OWCP review denied
L.G., a VA nurse, requested review of an earlier injury claim decision more than 30 days after it issued. The record described her request as a written record review, while OWCP treated it as a hearing request. The Board found no evidence of an earlier timely request and held that OWCP reasonably…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Midwest, WY
D.M. (ECAB 15-0223): Knee injury claim denied for lack of medical explanation
D.M., a postal worker, said repeated crawling under desks to reach power strips injured his right knee. The Board found that his physician had not explained with medical reasoning how that activity aggravated his diagnosed osteoarthritis. It affirmed OWCP’s denial because causation remained…
J.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Parklawn Station, Milwaukee, WI
J.T. (ECAB 15-0196): Hip condition claim denied for lack of causal rationale
J.T., a postal carrier, claimed that carrying a heavy mailbag aggravated right hip osteoarthritis. The Board found that his physicians did not provide sound medical reasoning for that link. It affirmed OWCP’s denial because the causal relationship was not established.
S.F. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, New York City, NY
S.F. (ECAB 15-0043): Nine percent arm impairment award upheld
S.F., an IRS revenue officer, sought more than a nine percent schedule award for impairment of his right arm from accepted cubital tunnel syndrome. The Board found that OWCP’s medical adviser followed the required rating guide and that the higher estimate from another physician did not. It affirmed…
R.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Milwaukee, WI
R.J. (ECAB 14-1950): Additional limb impairment awards denied
R.J., a VA laundry worker, sought larger schedule awards for impairment of his arms and legs after accepted work injuries. The Board found that the medical evidence did not establish percentages greater than the existing awards: four percent left arm, three percent right leg, twelve percent left…
Jacobs Field Services of North America, Inc.
Two process-equipment integrity items affirmed after chemical release
A Jacobs maintenance technician was burned when removing bolts from an actuator assembly released a hazardous chemical from a settling tank at an AkzoNobel plant. The judge held that Jacobs could be responsible as the exposing contractor even though AkzoNobel owned and operated the process. Jacobs…
Secretary of Labor v. Hanson Aggregates Midwest, LLC
Loose highwall boulder violation brings $100
An MSHA inspector found a large loose boulder about 40 feet above a travel route at Hanson Aggregates' limestone quarry. Judge Kenneth R. Andrews held that the operator violated 30 C.F.R. § 56.3200 because the boulder created a crushing hazard, work-related travel occurred below it, and the area…
V.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
V.V. (ECAB 15-0352): Refusal to reopen occupational disease claim affirmed
V.V., a postal clerk, asked OWCP to reconsider a denied claim for back, leg, and shoulder conditions. The Board found that her new submission repeated earlier medical reports or did not address the disputed link to work. It held that the request did not warrant another merit review and affirmed…
J.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Conway, AR
J.W. (ECAB 15-0277): Five percent arm impairment award upheld
J.W., a letter carrier, sought a larger award for left arm impairment from accepted elbow epicondylitis. His treating physician rated the arm at 20 percent, but a second opinion physician rated it at five percent using the required guide. The Board found the five percent rating consistent with the…
E.S. and Department of the Navy, Naval Sea Systems Command, Keyport, WA
E.S. (ECAB 15-0236): Hearing loss claim returned for a new medical opinion
E.S., a retired Navy planner and estimator, claimed hearing loss from workplace noise. The Board found that the second opinion medical report obtained by OWCP did not adequately address whether the noise caused or aggravated his hearing loss. It set aside the denial and directed OWCP to obtain a…
T.U. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
T.U. (ECAB 15-0114): Right foot occupational disease claim denied
T.U., a postal custodian, attributed a right foot condition to his duties over time and referred to an earlier work accident. The Board found that his medical evidence did not establish a causal link between his earlier duties and a diagnosed foot condition. The earlier accepted claim did not…
H.P. and Department of the Navy, Commander Navy Installations Command, San Diego, CA
H.P. (ECAB 15-0111): Firefighter illness claim denied for lack of medical link
H.P., a Navy firefighter, experienced dizziness and other symptoms while responding to a workplace call. OWCP accepted that the episode occurred during his duties. The Board found that the medical evidence did not explain how the work event caused a diagnosed injury or panic attack. It affirmed the…
K.V. and Department of the Air Force, Oklahoma Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, OK
K.V. (ECAB 15-0074): Late reconsideration denial affirmed
K.V., an Air Force employee, requested reconsideration of an earlier occupational disease denial after the filing period. The Board found the request untimely and found that his submission did not clearly show error in the earlier decision. It affirmed OWCP’s refusal without reopening the…
K.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Petersburg, FL
K.P. (ECAB 15-0039): Fall claim and late review request denied
K.P., a postal carrier, claimed injuries after slipping while delivering mail. The Board found that he had not proved a work related medical injury from the fall. It also upheld OWCP’s refusal to grant a late request for review of the written record. It affirmed both the claim denial and the review…
P.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
P.L. (ECAB 14-1875): Refusal to reopen wage loss claim affirmed
P.L., a postal carrier, sought another merit review of a denied wage loss claim after an earlier work injury. The Board found that the new material did not address whether that injury caused disability during the claimed period, while other material repeated evidence OWCP had reviewed. It affirmed…
American Made Tires, Inc.
Default affirms repeat, serious, and failure-to-abate penalties
American Made Tires contested repeat and serious citations from a follow-up OSHA inspection, along with a notification that earlier violations remained unabated. The company then missed settlement and prehearing conferences, refused discovery, failed to answer the complaints or show-cause order…
Matter of L-A-C-, Applicant
Matter of L-A-C- (BIA ID 3828): corroboration rules do not require advance notice or an automatic continuance
The Board reviewed a Guatemalan applicant's appeal from the denial of withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture. The Immigration Judge found the applicant not credible and also found that he had not provided enough corroborating evidence. The Board held that an…
R.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Anaheim, CA
R.D. (ECAB 15-0163): Wage loss claim for 2013 denied
R.D., a postal carrier, sought wage loss compensation for April 10 through November 1, 2013 after an accepted work injury. The Board found that he had stopped work before the claimed injury date and that the medical evidence did not establish disability from the accepted injury during the requested…
B.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Oak Harbor, WA
B.H. (ECAB 15-0106): Emotional condition claim denied
B.H., a postal carrier, attributed an emotional condition to alleged workplace mistreatment and supervisory actions. The Board found that she had not substantiated harassment or another covered employment factor with reliable evidence. It affirmed OWCP’s denial without reaching the medical evidence.
V.T. and U.S. Postal Service, North Metro Processing & Distribution Center, Duluth, GA
V.T. (ECAB 14-2040): Wage capacity reduction upheld; modification requests remanded
V.T., a postal employee, challenged a reduction in wage loss benefits based on her capacity to work as a receptionist. The Board upheld the reduction. It found, however, that OWCP had treated later requests for restored compensation under the wrong review framework. It set aside those later…
B.P., widow of R.P., and Department of the Air Force, Tyndall Air Force Base, FL
B.P., widow of R.P., (ECAB 14-2017): Survivor benefit overpayment and recovery upheld
B.P. received survivor benefits after her husband’s death. The Board upheld OWCP’s finding of a $9,636.53 overpayment for February 17, 2009 through August 24, 2013. It found her without fault but upheld denial of waiver and recovery through $500 deductions every 28 days. It also upheld OWCP’s…
E.L. and U.S. Postal Service, San Francisco Bulk Mail Center, Richmond, CA
E.L. (ECAB 14-1868): Additional leg impairment award denied
E.L., a postal mail handler, sought a larger award for permanent impairment of his left leg. The Board found no persuasive medical rating that established more than the three percent impairment already awarded for the accepted condition. It affirmed OWCP’s decision.
L.W. and Department of Health & Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Baltimore, MD
L.W. (ECAB 14-1242): Late reconsideration refusal affirmed
L.W., a federal health insurance specialist, sought reconsideration of a denied claim about a stress related condition. The Board found his request untimely and found that the submitted material did not clearly show error in the earlier denial. It affirmed OWCP’s refusal to reopen the claim.
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1858 (Union) and United States Department of the Army, U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center (Agency)
AFGE Local 1858 and Army Aviation Center (FLRA 0-AR-5103): Unsupported exception denied
The union challenged an arbitration award involving the Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center. It claimed that the award conflicted with law, rules, and regulations, but did not support the claim. The Authority denied the exception under its rule requiring support…
United States Department of the Army, Womack Army Medical Center, Fort Bragg, North Carolina (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees (Union)
Womack Army Medical Center and AFGE (FLRA 0-AR-5065): Temporary promotion backpay award upheld
An Army medical center hired an employee as a GS-9 video-teleconference specialist. An arbitrator found that the employee performed duties of a GS-11 systems administrator for more than 60 consecutive days without the temporary promotion required by the parties' agreement, and awarded backpay at…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Dayton, Ohio (Agency) and National Nurses United (Union)
Dayton VA Medical Center and National Nurses United (FLRA 0-AR-4975): Nurse's suspension set aside
A Dayton VA medical center suspended a nurse for seven days, alleging neglect of duty and excessive personal use of a work computer. An arbitrator set aside the suspension after finding that the agency had identified no neglected duty, had overstated the nurse's time online, and had not clearly…
Knight Hawk Coal, LLC v. Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal, LLC
Knight Hawk Coal, LLC v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC LAKE 2014-575, et al.): Red zone violation and $70,000 penalty affirmed
A continuous mining machine operator at Knight Hawk's Prairie Eagle South Mine was fatally injured after entering the machine's red zone while it was being repositioned. Knight Hawk stipulated that this violated its approved roof control plan and was significant and substantial, but contested high…
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC
Ventilation citation affirmed, three bolter citations vacated
MSHA cited Mach Mining for failing to keep a ventilation curtain within 40 feet of the face during a crosscut and for three alleged defects in roof-bolter dust collection systems. Judge Alan G. Paez affirmed the ventilation-plan violation as S&S with moderate negligence because the missing curtain…
Willbanks v. Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc.
Willbanks v. Atlas Air (DOL ARB 14-050): Flight attendant's arbitration order vacated
Sabra Willbanks, a flight attendant, alleged that Flight Services International and Atlas Air terminated her after she reported concerns about service cart safety. A judge stayed her Labor Department case and ordered arbitration under a pre-employment agreement. On interim appeal, the Board held…
W.H. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA
W.H. (ECAB 15-0170): Hearing loss schedule award denied despite accepted condition
W.H., a naval shipyard employee, had accepted work related hearing loss and tinnitus. He sought a schedule award, but the Board found that the compliant audiogram did not show a ratable percentage of hearing loss under the required guide. Tinnitus could not add to an impairment rating without…
J.L. and Department of the Navy, Naval Facilities Engineering Command Stations, Philadelphia, PA
J.L. (ECAB 14-2015): Leg impairment schedule award denied
J.L. sought a schedule award for left leg impairment related to accepted lower back injuries. After an earlier remand, OWCP obtained a second opinion that found no leg nerve impairment from those conditions. The Board found the examination and medical review well supported. It affirmed the denial…
B.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Magna, UT
B.M. (ECAB 14-1986): Mail handling incident accepted, injury denial affirmed
B.M., a postal clerk, reported elbow pain after lifting bundles of mail at work. The Board accepted that the April 30, 2014 work incident occurred, contrary to part of OWCP’s reasoning. It found that the physician did not adequately explain how that activity caused her diagnosed elbow condition. It…
E.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Air Mail Center, New Orleans, LA
E.L. (ECAB 14-1434): Wage capacity modification request returned to OWCP
E.L., a postal employee, argued that an earlier wage earning capacity determination used the wrong pay rate. The Board found that OWCP had treated her request as a late reconsideration application rather than examining whether the wage capacity ruling should be modified. It set aside the refusal…
A.M. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Westbury, NY
A.M. (ECAB 14-0711): Air traffic controller emotional condition claim denied
A.M., an air traffic controller, attributed an emotional condition to an aircraft crash after he had transferred responsibility for the aircraft. The Board found that he was on break, had no remaining duty concerning the plane, and learned of the crash afterward. It held that the event did not…
R.W. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation
R.W. (ECAB 14-0579): Refusal to reopen exposure claim affirmed
R.W., an FBI archive technician, sought another review of a claim that old case files caused a respiratory condition. The Board found that several medical reports had already been considered and that coworker statements did not establish exposure to a specific chemical. It held that the submission…
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Crowd-control judge decision vacated after contest withdrawal
OSHA issued a general-duty-clause citation after a Wal-Mart employee was killed in a crowd surge during a 2008 holiday sales event. The chief judge affirmed the serious item and a $7,000 penalty, and the case was directed for Commission review. Wal-Mart then withdrew both its notice of contest and…
J.R. and Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Three Rivers, CA
J.R. (ECAB 15-0346): Firefighter scalp condition claim denied
J.R., a National Park Service firefighter, reported a scalp rash and later infection after fighting a fire. The Board found that his physicians had not adequately explained how the work incident caused the claimed conditions. It affirmed OWCP’s denial because the medical link was not established.
A.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Greensboro, NC
A.N. (ECAB 15-0263): Finger injury claim and late hearing denial affirmed
A.N., a postal technician, claimed a finger injury after losing his balance while checking equipment at work. The Board found that he had not established a compensable traumatic injury on the submitted record. It also found that his hearing request was late and that OWCP reasonably declined to…
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.