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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Jerry W. Hill v. Louis Dreyfus Corporation
Hill v. Louis Dreyfus Corporation (BRB 23-0208): attorney fee order affirmed
Jerry Hill's attorney appealed the hourly rate allowed for his work on a successful Longshore Act benefits claim. The attorney had requested $675 per hour, and the administrative law judge awarded $617 per hour based on an Oregon bar survey adjusted for inflation. A Board majority found that the…
H.J. and Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Board upholds termination of back-injury benefits (ECAB 24-0879)
A Treasury custodian received compensation after a 1978 work injury that OWCP accepted as a lumbar sprain. OWCP ended his wage-loss and medical benefits in August 2024 after a second-opinion physician found that the accepted sprain had resolved. The Board found that the physician reviewed the…
M.H. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies upper-extremity impairment award (ECAB 24-0872)
A postal mail handler sought a schedule award after treatment for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and cubital tunnel syndrome. The Board found that the medical reports did not establish that she had reached maximum medical improvement or give a permanent impairment rating under the applicable…
M.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board upholds denial of wage-loss compensation (ECAB 24-0846)
A Veterans Affairs food service worker injured her left knee in an April 2024 fall at work and sought wage-loss compensation beginning May 19. The Board found that her medical evidence did not adequately explain how the accepted injury caused disability during the claimed period. It affirmed OWCP's…
K.E. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board dismisses appeal of nonfinal OWCP remand (ECAB 24-0843)
A Veterans Affairs employee appealed a March 2024 OWCP decision. That decision set aside an earlier ruling and sent the claim back for further development and a new decision. The Board held that the remand was not a final adverse OWCP decision it could review, so it dismissed the appeal. The…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds suspension for missing earnings form (ECAB 24-0825)
A postal employee receiving wage-loss benefits did not return a requested Form EN1032 reporting employment and earnings within 30 days. The Board found that OWCP sent the form and a warning to her address of record. It affirmed the suspension of wage-loss compensation effective July 15, 2024. OWCP…
T.B. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service
Board remands emotional-condition claim for medical review (ECAB 22-0072)
An IRS revenue officer alleged an emotional condition linked in part to delays in receiving an ergonomic chair at work. The Board found that the delay was established and could qualify as a compensable employment factor. OWCP had denied the claim without reviewing the medical evidence on whether…
National Guard Bureau, Pease Air National Guard Base, International Association of Fire Fighters, Local F-317, and Association of Civilian Technicians, Granite State Chapter 19
Pease Air National Guard Base, IAFF Local F-317, and ACT Granite State Chapter 19 (FLRA WA-RP-22-0055): Authority denies firefighter severance
Firefighters at Pease Air National Guard Base moved from state to federal employment and automatically entered an existing unit represented by the Association of Civilian Technicians. IAFF Local F-317 sought to sever them into a separate unit, arguing that the incumbent had not adequately…
Roy D. Cly v. Peabody Western Coal Company
Cly v. Peabody Western Coal Company (BRB 23-0104 and 23-0359): benefits and fee awards affirmed
Roy Cly received a black lung benefits award based on his surface coal mine work and a disabling respiratory impairment. Peabody Western Coal challenged the award, the refusal to offset it by separate uranium mining benefits, and the attorney fee order. The Board found that the judge reasonably…
Roy D. Cly v. Peabody Western Coal Company
Cly v. Peabody Western Coal Company (BRB 23-0104 and 23-0359): benefits and fee awards affirmed
Roy Cly received a black lung benefits award based on his surface coal mine work and a disabling respiratory impairment. Peabody Western Coal challenged the award, the refusal to offset it by separate uranium mining benefits, and the attorney fee order. The Board found that the judge reasonably…
K.C. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board dismisses appeal of favorable claim decisions (ECAB 24-0953)
A Veterans Affairs employee appealed two OWCP decisions. The first accepted the claim, and the second added another accepted condition. The Board found neither decision adverse to the employee. Because it had no final adverse OWCP decision to review, it dismissed the appeal without deciding benefit…
J.P. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds denial of proposed lumbar surgery (ECAB 24-0929)
A postal employee sought authorization for lumbar surgery after a work vehicle collision. His treating doctor and OWCP's second-opinion doctor disagreed about medical necessity. The Board found that an impartial medical examiner gave a reasoned opinion that the proposed procedure was not needed for…
P.N. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Board orders specialist review of hearing-loss claim (ECAB 24-0918)
A Homeland Security employee claimed hearing loss after federal work that included firearms qualification. The Board found that the record needed further medical development before OWCP could decide whether the accepted noise exposure caused hearing loss. It set aside OWCP's denial and directed…
R.F. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies claimed period of shoulder disability (ECAB 24-0816)
A rural postal carrier sought compensation for work disability from April 14, 2020 through April 8, 2022 after an accepted shoulder injury. The Board found that second-opinion physicians said he could return to his usual job without restrictions. Other reports did not address whether the accepted…
R.D. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds retirement-benefit overpayment recovery (ECAB 24-0795)
A postal employee received FECA wage-loss benefits and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP's finding of a $27,687.77 overpayment from September 2022 through April 2024. Although the employee was without fault, the…
G.R. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons
Board orders new impairment evaluation for injured hand (ECAB 24-0791)
A federal prison officer sought a larger schedule award for his right hand and arm after an injury while restraining an inmate. The Board found that OWCP had incorrectly treated two doctors' impairment opinions as a conflict requiring an impartial examination. It set aside the award decision and…
Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials Northeast, LLC
Missing mine-map airflows violated ventilation rule
Heidelberg's annual ventilation map showed airflow for two mine openings but omitted the direction and quantity for two other openings carrying large ambient airflows. The judge rejected Heidelberg's argument that only mechanically generated flows in primary or secondary entries were principal air…
Jenny Ruth Hall, survivor of James E. Hall v. Elkhorn Jellico Coal Company
Hall v. Elkhorn Jellico Coal Company (BRB 23-0338): survivor benefits award affirmed
Jenny Ruth Hall sought survivor benefits after the death of her husband, James Hall, who worked in coal mines. On modification, an administrative law judge found that his qualifying mine work and disabling respiratory impairment invoked the presumption that pneumoconiosis contributed to his death…
S.M. and Department of the Navy
Board denies right knee injury claim (ECAB 24-0939)
A Navy shipyard worker reported a right knee injury after getting stuck while leaving a confined space. The Board accepted that the work incident occurred but found that the medical evidence did not explain how it caused the diagnosed meniscus condition. It affirmed OWCP's denial of the injury…
B.M. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency
Board denies left arm injury claim (ECAB 24-0922)
A Defense Logistics Agency worker sought benefits for a left upper extremity condition after a September 2019 work incident. The Board found that the medical reports either placed the onset of symptoms before the incident or did not adequately explain how the incident caused the diagnosed…
J.A. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies disputed ankle injury claim (ECAB 24-0919)
A postal employee reported a left ankle injury at work in May 2024. Her accounts varied between rolling the ankle while stepping on grass and falling while coming down steps, and the record did not resolve the differing descriptions. The Board found that she had not established how the claimed…
V.C. and U.S. Postal Service
Board recognizes recurrence after modified duty withdrawn (ECAB 24-0841)
A postal carrier had worked in a modified-duty position after an accepted wrist injury. The Postal Service removed him from employment in December 2023 and withdrew that position. The Board found that he established a recurrence of disability when the modified work was no longer available. It…
E.F. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies emotional-condition claim (ECAB 24-0727)
A postal carrier claimed an emotional condition based on alleged harassment, discrimination, and mishandled requests for workplace accommodation. The Board found that the record did not establish a compensable employment factor for those allegations. It affirmed OWCP's denial without reaching…
E.A. and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Board accepts one injury condition and rejects others (ECAB 24-0937)
An Army Corps deckhand reported an injury after a fall while attaching equipment to a barge. The Board found that the accepted incident caused swelling of the right testicle, but the medical evidence did not establish the additional claimed conditions. It reversed OWCP's denial in part, affirmed it…
T.K. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation
Board upholds reduced wage-loss compensation (ECAB 24-0827)
An FBI special agent receiving compensation challenged OWCP's reduction of wage-loss benefits effective March 4, 2024. The Board found that a contract-clerk position was vocationally suitable, reasonably available in his area, and within his medical restrictions. It held that OWCP properly…
H.K. and U.S. Postal Service
Board recognizes foot contusion but rejects other conditions (ECAB 24-0020)
A postal mail handler reported that a parcel fell onto her left foot at work. The Board found that the record established a left foot contusion from the accepted incident. It found the medical evidence insufficient to link additional claimed conditions to the incident. It reversed OWCP's denial as…
K.B. and U.S. Postal Service
Board awards left arm impairment and denies larger other awards (ECAB 23-0824)
A postal employee sought additional schedule awards for several extremities. The Board found 13 percent permanent impairment of the left upper extremity, warranting an award there. It found no basis for ratings above the prior awards of 80 percent for the right lower extremity, 54 percent for the…
M.S. and U.S. Postal Service
Board accepts proof of COVID-19 diagnosis (ECAB 22-0417)
A postal occupational health nurse claimed possible exposure to COVID-19 at work in March 2020. OWCP had found the medical evidence inadequate to establish a COVID-19 diagnosis. The Board found that a positive antibody test, together with a physician's contemporaneous notes about symptoms, met…
Secretary of Labor v. Tintic Consolidated Metals, LLC
Misdirected timely contest excused
MSHA proposed $67,007 in penalties against Tintic, and the assessment became final after MSHA did not receive a timely contest. Tintic had filed a contest within 30 days, but mistakenly sent it to the Commission instead of MSHA's Civil Penalty Compliance Office. The Commission majority treated that…
J.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board denies continuation of pay and left foot claim (ECAB 24-0933)
A Veterans Affairs custodian reported a January 2024 incident while moving equipment. He filed his injury claim more than 30 days later, so the Board found he had not met the filing requirement for continuation of pay. It also found the medical evidence insufficient to connect a left foot condition…
D.S. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies schedule award for lower-extremity impairment (ECAB 24-0870)
A postal city carrier sought a schedule award for permanent impairment after an accepted injury. The Board found that the medical evaluation did not establish ratable sensory or motor deficits of the lower extremities under the applicable impairment guidance. It affirmed OWCP's denial of an award…
M.C. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds Social Security overpayment recovery (ECAB 24-0829)
A postal worker received FECA wage-loss benefits and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP's $8,560.34 overpayment finding for August 2023 through April 2024. Although the worker was without fault, it affirmed denial…
International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 4 and United States Department of the Navy, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard
IFPTE Local 4 and Portsmouth Naval Shipyard (FLRA 0-NG-3677): Authority rejects New Hampshire duty-station proposal
IFPTE Local 4 proposed that a new architect position at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard list Portsmouth, New Hampshire, rather than Kittery, Maine, as its official duty station. The union said the proposal would change only personnel forms, not the employee's physical work location, and would avoid Maine…
Schweyer v. Bank of America Corp.
Matter closed without a review petition
An administrative judge dismissed Kristina Schweyer's complaint against Bank of America, Aflac, and Meta Platforms under several federal whistleblower laws. Schweyer sent the Board the dismissal order and other materials, but none constituted a petition for review. The Board gave her until October…
M.G. and Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration
Board denies claim lacking a medical diagnosis (ECAB 24-0949)
A federal transportation specialist was a passenger in a work vehicle that slid into a fence on a snowy hill. The Board accepted that the January 2024 incident happened but found that he submitted no medical evidence establishing a diagnosed condition. It affirmed OWCP's denial of the claim.
M.C. and Department of the Army
Board upholds termination of wage-loss compensation (ECAB 24-0901)
An Army logistics specialist continued to have residual back and leg problems after an accepted work injury. OWCP ended wage-loss compensation based on a second-opinion physician's finding that he could perform his sedentary date-of-injury job despite those residuals. The Board found the physician…
R.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board denies claim without a firm diagnosis (ECAB 24-0892)
A Veterans Affairs vehicle operator reported back and shoulder symptoms after a bumpy work drive. The Board accepted the June 2024 incident but found that the submitted medical forms did not provide a firm diagnosis of a resulting condition. It affirmed OWCP's denial of the claim.
A.P. and U.S. Postal Service
Board requests new review of knee impairment (ECAB 24-0818)
A postal mail handler sought a schedule award above the seven percent right leg impairment previously awarded. The Board found that OWCP needed a district medical adviser to review the record further, including whether the worker had reached maximum medical improvement in light of a possible…
A.D. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies recurrence and expanded condition claim (ECAB 24-0770)
A postal carrier sought compensation for renewed disability beginning June 2020 after an accepted 2019 injury. She also sought to add complex regional pain syndrome to the accepted conditions. The Board gave weight to a second-opinion physician who found the accepted injuries had healed and…
Secretary of Labor v. Lo Down Energy, Inc.
Repeated mail failures did not justify reopening
Lo Down Energy sought to reopen a final penalty assessment after a mailed copy intended for its representative was not received before the contest deadline. The operator did not confirm delivery and then failed to respond to its representative for a week after the problem was discovered. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Coyote Gravel Products, Inc.
Conclusory internal-error claim rejected
Coyote Gravel sought to reopen a final penalty assessment, saying its general manager neglected to submit completed contest paperwork because of an internal error. The Commission held that a reopening request must give a detailed explanation of the failure, including relevant dates, people, causes…
D.D. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies larger leg awards and merits reconsideration (ECAB 24-0890)
A postal worker sought schedule awards above the 22 percent right leg and 11 percent left leg impairment already awarded. The Board found that OWCP's referral physician properly rated the lower extremities and that the record did not establish higher impairment. It also upheld OWCP's denial of a…
A.G. and Department of Homeland Security
Board upholds denial of late reconsideration request (ECAB 24-0868)
A Border Patrol agent sought reconsideration of a denied eye-injury claim. The Board found that his June 2024 request came more than one year after the last merits decision in February 2023. It also found that his submissions did not show clear evidence of error, the standard for a late request. It…
D.E. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies condition claim after fuel incident (ECAB 24-0862)
A postal carrier reported stress, headaches, and other symptoms after an incident while refilling a vehicle fuel tank at work. The Board accepted the December 2023 incident but found that the medical reports did not adequately explain how it caused a diagnosed medical or emotional condition. It…
M.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board denies claim after workplace slip (ECAB 24-0828)
A Veterans Affairs food service worker reported a groin injury after slipping on a wet floor at work. The Board accepted that the December 2023 incident occurred. It found the submitted evidence did not establish a diagnosed condition connected with the incident, so it affirmed OWCP's denial.
S.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board orders more medical review of mold exposure claim (ECAB 23-1026)
A Veterans Affairs medical technologist claimed conditions from an accepted workplace mold exposure. The Board found that a treating physician's report was sufficiently relevant that OWCP needed more medical development before deciding causation. It set aside the denial and directed OWCP to obtain…
Maximo Polo v. Sun Terminals, Incorporated
Polo v. Sun Terminals (BRB 23-0226): disability and medical awards affirmed
Maximo Polo injured his back while operating a loader at Sun Terminals. An administrative law judge awarded temporary total disability benefits through June 19, 2019, temporary partial benefits thereafter, and medical care including treatment with his chosen neurosurgeon. Sun Terminals challenged…
M.Y. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies occupational condition claim (ECAB 24-0865)
A postal carrier attributed shoulder, back, and foot conditions to prolonged delivery work and other job duties. The Board found that the medical reports described his symptoms and work history but did not adequately explain how the accepted job factors caused a diagnosed condition. It affirmed…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service
Board corrects reconsideration deadline error (ECAB 24-0831)
A postal carrier asked OWCP to reconsider an occupational foot claim. OWCP treated her request as late and applied the stricter clear-evidence-of-error standard. The Board found that the request was made within one year of the last merits decision, so it was timely. It reversed OWCP's ruling and…
F.M. and Department of Labor
Board upholds reduced benefits and hearing denial (ECAB 24-0673)
A former Job Corps student receiving injury compensation challenged a reduction based on his capacity to earn wages as a service clerk. The Board found that OWCP had established the position as suitable and properly reduced wage-loss compensation effective March 4, 2024. It also upheld OWCP's…
S.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board seeks evidence of alleged mold exposure (ECAB 23-0922)
A Veterans Affairs medical technologist claimed symptoms after an alleged January 2023 exposure to mold at work. The Board found that OWCP needed to obtain relevant information from the employer before deciding whether the exposure happened as alleged. It set aside the denial and ordered a new…
S.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board remands duplicate mold claim files (ECAB 22-1188)
A Veterans Affairs medical technologist filed occupational disease and traumatic injury claims about the same workplace mold exposure. The Board found that the later traumatic injury filing added no new work factor and was a duplicate claim. It set aside OWCP's decision and directed OWCP to combine…
Secretary of Labor v. Western Refractory Construction, Inc.
First spam-filter failure excused
Western Refractory defaulted after its safety manager did not see the Secretary's penalty petition or the ALJ's show-cause order because the emails went to a spam folder. The Commission found no prior similar failure, no history of reopening motions, and no allegation of bad faith. It also noted…
Damir Vujadinovikj v. KBR Government Operations/Service Employees International, Incorporated
Vujadinovikj v. KBR (BRB 23-0177): medical benefits issue remanded
Damir Vujadinovikj sought Defense Base Act benefits for a psychological condition he attributed to work at military bases overseas. The administrative law judge denied the claim after finding his evidence insufficient to invoke the presumption that an injury was work-related. The Board held that…
S.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board dismisses appeal from void OWCP decision (ECAB 23-0923)
A Veterans Affairs worker appealed an OWCP decision denying reconsideration of a mold-exposure claim. The Board found that the same underlying issue was already pending in another Board appeal when OWCP issued that decision. OWCP lacked concurrent jurisdiction, making its decision null and void…
S.W. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board orders merits review of emotional-condition claim (ECAB 22-0565)
A Veterans Affairs medical technologist sought reconsideration of an emotional-condition claim. He submitted a union grievance arbitration decision concerning workplace accommodations and mold allergy. The Board found that this was relevant new evidence meeting the standard for merits…
SPORT Air Traffic Controllers Organization and United States Department of the Air Force, 412 Test Wing, Edwards Air Force Base, California
SPORT Air Traffic Controllers Organization and Edwards Air Force Base (FLRA 0-AR-5929): Authority denies reconsideration and clarification
The SPORT Air Traffic Controllers Organization asked the Authority to reconsider an earlier decision upholding an arbitrator's finding that a union grievance about which collective-bargaining terms were in effect was not arbitrable. The union argued that a continuance clause kept a 1994 agreement…
Secretary of Labor v. Roger J. Rohloff, employed by Daanen & Janssen, Inc.
Unserved individual assessment held nonfinal
MSHA assessed an individual penalty against Roger Rohloff under section 110(c) after a rock-fall investigation. The certified mailing was returned unclaimed, even though an MSHA representative had agreed to send all correspondence for Rohloff to his counsel. Rohloff and his counsel learned of the…
Secretary of Labor v. Mike Morgan Industrial, LLC
Unmonitored spam and unexplained delay barred reopening
Mike Morgan Industrial did not answer the Secretary's penalty petition because it contacted MSHA and waited for a response, even though the petition directed it to answer the Commission within 30 days. The company then missed the ALJ's show-cause order because the email went to a spam folder. It…
K.P. and Department of Defense
Board denies larger arm award and late hearing request (ECAB 24-0921)
A Defense Department dispatcher sought a schedule award above the 12 percent right arm impairment already awarded after a shoulder injury. The Board found that the medical evidence did not establish a higher rating. It also found that OWCP properly rejected his request for an oral hearing as…
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.