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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Ronnie L. Sizemore v. Pine Branch Mining, LLC
Sizemore v. Pine Branch Mining (BRB 23-0473): disability finding sent back for review of breathing tests
Ronnie Sizemore sought black lung benefits after thirty-three years of coal mine employment. A judge denied his claim after finding that he had not proved a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board held that the judge had not addressed reports describing good effort and acceptable…
James P. Estep v. Abby Contractors, Incorporated
Estep v. Abby Contractors (BRB 23-0421): denial of black lung benefits sent back for review of medical evidence
James Estep sought black lung benefits after working in coal mines. The Board upheld the judge's finding that he had fewer than fifteen years of qualifying coal mine employment, leaving him unable to use the fifteen year presumption. It also upheld the finding that x-ray and other evidence did not…
Lloyd C. Lucas v. S T & T Leasing, Incorporated
Lucas v. S T & T Leasing (BRB 23-0389): black lung benefits award affirmed
Lloyd Lucas sought black lung benefits after more than forty-one years of qualifying coal mine work. A judge found him totally disabled and awarded benefits under the fifteen year presumption. The employer argued that a qualifying blood gas study should be disregarded because Lucas had asthma…
Dallas S. Denniston v. Mountain Coals Corporation
Denniston v. Mountain Coals (BRB 23-0162): attorney fee award upheld while benefits claim remains pending
Dallas Denniston's lawyer requested $10,485 for work on his black lung benefits claim, and the district director awarded that amount. The employer appealed, saying it had been denied a chance to object before the fee award. The Board rejected that argument because the employer had time to file…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies shoulder occupational disease claim (ECAB 24-0832)
A postal employee attributed a right shoulder condition to accepted work factors. The only submitted medical evidence was an MRI scan. The Board found that the scan alone did not establish a physician's diagnosis and explanation connecting the condition to work. It affirmed OWCP's denial.
E.J. and U.S. Postal Service
Board orders new impartial review of hip claim (ECAB 24-0777)
A postal letter carrier attributed a left hip condition to years of delivery work. An impartial medical examiner acknowledged that the work might have accelerated or worsened preexisting hip dysplasia but gave speculative conclusions without explaining whether it did. The Board found that the…
V.S. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Board denies remaining intermittent disability dates (ECAB 24-0759)
A Homeland Security employee sought intermittent disability compensation between December 18, 2023 and January 5, 2024 after an accepted injury. Medical notes addressed an injection canceled because of high blood pressure and a later appointment, but did not explain how the accepted injury…
T.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs
Board recognizes work incident in shoulder claim (ECAB 24-0687)
A VA environmental health technician reported left shoulder pain after lifting a trash bag into a dumpster at work. The Board found that his account, employer acknowledgment, and medical history established the June 2023 work incident. It reversed OWCP's finding that no incident was shown and…
S.A. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies three disability days (ECAB 24-0669)
A postal mail processor sought disability compensation for April 6 and 28 and May 16, 2022 after an accepted injury. Her doctor attributed the absences to the injury but did not explain how it prevented work on those dates. Other reports did not address disability during the claimed days. The Board…
M.L. and U.S. Postal Service
Board orders combined arm-injury file review (ECAB 24-0809)
A postal tractor trailer operator reported a left arm and shoulder injury while unloading containers. OWCP denied the new claim while separate accepted claims involved his right arm. The Board found that the related files needed to be combined for a full review of his upper-extremity history. It…
V.W. and Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service
Board upholds refusal to reopen recurrence claim (ECAB 24-0750)
A Forest Service employee sought reconsideration after OWCP denied a claimed recurrence of disability. The Board found that his request did not raise a new relevant legal argument or provide qualifying new evidence. It affirmed OWCP's refusal to reopen the claim and did not decide recurrence…
M.W. and U.S. Postal Service
Board dismisses appeal filed four days late (ECAB 24-0670)
A postal employee appealed a December 6, 2023 OWCP merit decision on June 7, 2024. The Board found that the 180-day filing period ended on June 3. With no documented compelling circumstances for the delay, it dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction without reviewing the underlying claim.
A.C. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service
Board denies added knee conditions (ECAB 24-0661)
A U.S. Marshals Service investigator sought to add right knee conditions to an accepted injury claim. A treating surgeon described later cartilage changes and attributed them to the incident, but did not adequately explain how that injury caused the changes rather than preexisting problems. The…
T.F. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds arm award and abandoned hearing (ECAB 24-0602)
A postal employee sought a schedule award above the 10 percent left arm impairment previously granted and challenged a finding that she abandoned an oral hearing. The Board found the medical evidence did not establish greater impairment. It also found that notice of the hearing was properly mailed…
United States Department of the Army, Fort Huachuca, Arizona and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1662
Fort Huachuca and AFGE Local 1662 (FLRA 0-AR-5916): Authority upholds make-up time for firefighter training
Fort Huachuca firefighters attended mandatory weekend training that exceeded eight hours on two days, displaced an in-lieu-of holiday, and prevented their contractually scheduled lunch periods. An arbitrator found three contract violations and directed make-up compensation during later scheduled…
Deseret Generation and Transmission Co-operative, Bonanza Power Plant
In re Deseret Generation and Transmission Co-operative, Bonanza Power Plant (EAB CAA Appeal No. 24-01): Title V permit review denied
The Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation challenged EPA Region 8's renewal of the Clean Air Act Title V operating permit for the Bonanza Power Plant, a coal-fired plant on the reservation. The Tribe raised concerns about environmental and health impacts, environmental justice…
L.D. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies continuation of pay for late notice (ECAB 24-0812)
A postal rural carrier associate reported a knee injury from slipping as she exited a work vehicle. She filed the required traumatic injury form on June 13, 2024, more than 30 days after the April 10 incident. The Board held that she did not meet the filing deadline for continuation of pay and…
E.B. and Social Security Administration
Board denies occupational back and neck claim (ECAB 24-0762)
A Social Security Administration contact representative attributed back and neck conditions to accepted work factors. The Board found that some treatment reports did not address causation and that other reports asserted a work link without enough medical explanation. It affirmed OWCP's denial.
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies hip and knee claim expansion (ECAB 24-0685)
A postal employee sought to add right hip arthritis, hip replacement, and right knee arthritis to an accepted ankle injury claim. OWCP's second-opinion physician explained why the later degenerative conditions were not caused by the earlier ankle injury and identified other possible causes. The…
A.M. and U.S. Postal Service
Board orders merits review of disability evidence (ECAB 24-0489)
A postal employee sought reconsideration of a denial of continuing disability and residuals. OWCP said a physician's report had already been considered, but the Board found that the report postdated the earlier decision and was relevant new evidence. It reversed the refusal to reopen and directed…
V.H., widow of S.H. claiming on behalf of five minor children, and Department of the Air Force
Board upholds survivor-benefit overpayment recovery (ECAB 21-0589)
A widow received FECA survivor benefits and Social Security survivor benefits for five children without the required offset. The Board's analysis upheld OWCP's $20,652.53 overpayment calculation, denied waiver despite finding her without fault, and approved deductions of $163.38 every 28 days. Its…
Secretary of Labor v. Georgetown Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Reopening explanation deemed incomplete
A proposed assessment reached Georgetown's post office box on a Saturday, and the company retrieved it the following Monday. Georgetown filed its contest 30 days after retrieval, but MSHA treated the assessment as final based on the Saturday delivery date. The Commission majority held that the…
Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Stone, LLC
Uncorrected mail system barred reopening
Cooper Stone said it did not receive a proposed assessment because its mine office was in a high-crime area with mail problems. The company had identified those problems and proposed changing its address in 2021, but had not corrected the address when the assessment was delivered in 2023. Postal…
L.B. and U.S. Postal Service
Board orders clarification of patella rating (ECAB 24-0744)
A postal carrier sought a schedule award above the six percent left leg impairment already granted for a patella fracture. OWCP's medical adviser calculated the rating using a nondisplaced fracture, although the accepted injury was a displaced fracture, and did not explain that choice. The Board…
T.F. and Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor
Board denies health club dues reimbursement (ECAB 24-0721)
A Labor Department employee sought reimbursement for a year of health club dues as treatment for an accepted condition. OWCP requested supporting medical evidence, but the employee supplied a brochure and receipt rather than a current physician opinion. The Board found no contemporaneous evidence…
L.M. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies left arm schedule award (ECAB 24-0620)
A postal employee sought a left arm schedule award for an accepted 2007 shoulder sprain. An impartial examiner found that later impairment was attributable to a separate 2019 shoulder injury, with no ratable impairment from the 2007 claim. The Board gave that opinion special weight and affirmed…
K.D. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds 26-percent thumb impairment (ECAB 24-0591)
A postal window clerk sought an award above the 26 percent right thumb impairment already granted. The medical adviser compared diagnosis-based and range-of-motion methods and supported the higher, 26 percent result. The Board found no reasoned rating supporting greater impairment and affirmed…
S.O. and Department of the Air Force
Board denies stress claim and upholds hearing abandonment (ECAB 24-0551)
An Air Force employee attributed an emotional condition to disciplinary and supervisory actions. The Board found no established employer error, abuse, or compensable harassment. It also found that the employee missed a properly noticed oral hearing without timely explaining his absence. The Board…
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc.
Consequential damages denied on remand
On remand, the judge considered whether miner Alvaro Saldivar could recover consequential damages tied to delayed temporary-reinstatement payments. He held that such damages are available only after a proven section 105(c) discrimination violation, while the unappealed merits decision had found no…
Secretary of Labor v. ASGCO Manufacturing, Inc.
Paid penalty triggered show-cause order
ASGCO asked the Commission to reopen a final assessment involving one citation. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but reported that MSHA had received full payment of the penalty after the motion was filed. Because payment appeared to eliminate the dispute, the Commission did not decide the…
Matter of R-T-P-
Written notice-to-appear amendment accepted as a possible remedy
The Board reviewed the case of a Cuban respondent whose notice to appear did not include the date and time of the initial hearing. Before the Immigration Judge terminated the proceedings, the Department of Homeland Security proposed three ways to cure the defect, including a written amendment that…
Secretary of Labor v. FCI Sand Operations, LLC
Wrong-operator citations reassigned
FCI Sand moved to reopen after citations were issued to it for a time when another operator controlled the mine. It later asked to withdraw the motion because the citations had been transferred to the other operator. The Secretary confirmed that the citations were removed from FCI Sand's records…
Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Stone, LLC
Ongoing negotiations did not excuse missed answer
Cooper Stone defaulted after failing to answer the Secretary's penalty petition and the ALJ's show-cause order. The company said it believed no answer was required while settlement negotiations with MSHA were continuing. The Commission noted that both filings explained the required procedure and…
M.J. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies rib-injury disability period (ECAB 24-0738)
A postal vehicle operator sought disability compensation from June 7 through August 22, 2023 after an accepted rib contusion. His doctor kept him off work but did not explain how the accepted condition prevented him from working throughout that period. The Board found the medical evidence…
M.C. and U.S. Postal Service
Board orders clearer disability opinion for two days (ECAB 24-0731)
A postal employee sought disability compensation for May 26 and 27, 2023 after an accepted injury. OWCP obtained a supplemental second-opinion report, but the Board found it did not adequately resolve disability on those specific dates. It set aside the decision and directed OWCP to complete the…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies medical travel and meal expenses (ECAB 24-0706)
A postal rural carrier sought reimbursement for long-distance travel to COVID-19 treatment and a later meal expense. The Board found she had not obtained prior authorization or supplied enough evidence that the travel, including a 298-mile trip each way, and meal expense were reasonable and…
C.G. and Department of Justice, U.S. Marshals Service
Board orders impartial review of lumbar conditions (ECAB 24-0557)
A U.S. Marshals Service employee sought acceptance of additional lumbar spine conditions after work injuries. His treating doctor and OWCP's medical examiner disagreed over whether the injuries caused or aggravated an L4-5 disc condition. The Board found a medical conflict requiring impartial…
M.O. and Department of the Interior, National Park Service
Board orders impartial leg impairment rating (ECAB 24-0087)
A National Park Service employee sought a schedule award for leg impairment associated with an accepted lumbar condition. Her treating physician and OWCP's medical adviser disagreed over whether testing and examination showed ratable nerve impairment. The Board found their opinions of comparable…
D.O. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons
Board denies correctional officer disability period (ECAB 23-0658)
A federal correctional officer sought disability compensation from January 18, 2021 through April 8, 2022 after accepted elbow and ankle sprains. His physicians said he could not work but did not adequately explain why the accepted conditions prevented his job duties throughout the claimed period…
Secretary of Labor v. Ram Enterprises, Inc.
Timely contest made assessment nonfinal
Ram Enterprise sought to reopen three citations after receiving a delinquency notice for an assessment it believed was already in contest. The company contacted MSHA about the pending hearing and later moved to reopen. The Secretary confirmed that Ram Enterprise had timely contested the proposed…
Jerry Lee Ball v. Southern Appalachian Coal Company
Ball v. Southern Appalachian Coal (BRB 24-0097): black lung benefits award affirmed
Jerry Lee Ball sought black lung benefits after sixteen years of underground coal mine work. A judge found him totally disabled and awarded benefits under the fifteen year presumption. The employer argued that smoking, rather than coal dust, caused his lung disease. The Board upheld the judge's…
Meyson Montes Canteno v. Constellis Group/Triple Canopy, Incorporated
Montes Canteno v. Constellis Group (BRB 24-0016): Defense Base Act benefits denial affirmed
Meyson Montes Canteno worked as a security guard in Iraq and later sought benefits for a psychological condition he attributed to that work. A judge found that the claim initially qualified for the presumption that an injury is work related, but the employer rebutted it with a medical opinion…
Richard E. Pollard, Sr. v. Consolidation Coal Company
Pollard v. Consolidation Coal (BRB 23-0426): benefits denial sent back again for disability review
Richard Pollard sought black lung benefits after eighteen years of underground coal mine employment. A judge again denied his claim on remand, finding that medical opinions did not prove a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board held that the judge had not fully addressed a doctor's…
Stanley R. Salva v. Quarto Mining Company
Salva v. Quarto Mining (BRB 23-0325): modified benefits award sent back to assess a treatment opinion
Stanley Salva sought modification of an earlier denial of his black lung benefits claim. A judge found that coal dust contributed to his disabling lung disease and awarded benefits. The Board upheld the judge's assessment of several doctors' opinions, including his decision to credit doctors who…
Anna C. Ferrell (on behalf of and widow of Harry F. Ferrell) v. Apogee Coal Company and Arch Resources
Ferrell v. Apogee Coal (BRB 23-0221 and 23-0223 BLA): benefits awards remanded for medical review
Anna C. Ferrell pursued her late husband's black lung claim and her own survivor claim against Apogee Coal Company and Arch Resources. The administrative law judge credited Harry Ferrell with 22.18 years of qualifying surface coal mine employment, found a totally disabling respiratory impairment…
Anna C. Ferrell, on behalf of and widow of Harry F. Ferrell v. Apogee Coal Company
Ferrell v. Apogee Coal (BRB 23-0221 and 23-0223): miner and survivor awards sent back for causation review
Anna Ferrell pursued her late husband Harry's black lung claim and her own survivor's claim. A judge awarded both after finding that his surface mine work involved regular coal dust exposure and that the employer had not rebutted the fifteen year presumption. The Board upheld the finding that Arch…
Donald R. Brown v. Centre Crown Mining, LLC
Brown v. Centre Crown Mining (BRB 23-0212): benefits denial sent back for review of doctors' opinions
Donald Brown sought black lung benefits after at least thirty years of coal mine employment. After an earlier remand, a judge again denied the claim because she found he had not proved a totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board upheld her finding that the pulmonary function studies did…
Elite Builders, Inc.
Willful residential fall violation affirmed
Elite Builders' owner and four workers were framing the owner's two-story house in Gretna, Nebraska. OSHA found workers without eye protection, on an unsecured forklift-supported platform without fall protection, using an unguarded stairway, and framing on a roof without fall protection. The judge…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. Davis-Paige Management Systems, LLC
Late-extension matter closed
An administrative judge found that Davis-Paige Management Systems and Michael Davis failed to pay Service Contract Act wage rates and fringe benefits. Under 29 C.F.R. § 6.20, they had forty days to seek Board review or request more time, making March 9, 2024 the deadline. They did not request an…
E.M. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration
Board dismisses appeal of proposed reduction (ECAB 24-0743)
A federal air marshal appealed an OWCP notice proposing to reduce compensation. The Board found that the notice was a proposal, with no final adverse OWCP decision in the appeal period. It dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction without deciding whether compensation should be reduced.
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies medical travel and reopening requests (ECAB 24-0704)
A postal rural carrier sought reimbursement for travel to treatment on several dates in 2020 and 2021. The Board found the requests did not meet the applicable reimbursement requirements and upheld OWCP's denials. It also held that a later reconsideration submission did not supply relevant new…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Park Hills Post Office
Board upholds denial of late medical travel reimbursement requests (ECAB 24-0646)
A rural postal carrier with an accepted right shoulder condition sought reimbursement for medical travel in 2020 and early 2021. She submitted the requests in 2024. The Board held that bills had to be submitted by the end of the following calendar year, or the year after claim acceptance if later…
A.N. and U.S. Postal Service
Board reverses back-injury benefit termination (ECAB 24-0531)
A postal employee received benefits for an accepted lumbar injury. Her treating physicians described continuing radiculopathy and disability, while OWCP's second-opinion physician said the work condition had resolved. The Board found an unresolved medical conflict and held that OWCP had not…
M.A. and Department of the Army, National Guard Bureau
Board denies clearance-related emotional claim (ECAB 24-0507)
A National Guard Bureau employee attributed an emotional condition largely to indefinite suspension after losing a required security clearance. The Board treated the suspension as a personnel matter and found no evidence of employer error or abuse that would make it a compensable work factor. It…
D.P. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds denial of overpayment waiver (ECAB 24-0482)
A prior Board decision had upheld a $5,406.89 overpayment after a postal employee continued receiving wage-loss benefits upon returning to work and found her without fault. In this appeal, the Board considered waiver. Her documented monthly income exceeded necessary expenses by more than $50, so…
S.B. and U.S. Postal Service
Board upholds denial of late COVID reconsideration (ECAB 23-1185)
A postal employee sought reconsideration of a denial of a COVID-19 claim more than one year after the last merit decision. The Board found that the medical reports and arguments did not show clear evidence of error in the earlier ruling. It affirmed OWCP's refusal to reopen the claim without…
United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution, Ashland, Kentucky and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1286, Council of Prison Locals 33
Federal Correctional Institution Ashland and AFGE Local 1286 (FLRA 0-AR-5943): Authority removes asbestos medical-payment remedy
A Federal Correctional Institution Ashland employee and supervised inmates encountered asbestos-containing material while repairing an on-site residence. After the employee reported the exposure, the agency reassigned him and restricted overtime during an investigation that ended without charges…
Powertech (USA) Inc.
In re Powertech (USA) Inc. (EAB UIC Appeal No. 20-01): Permit remanded for administrative-record review
The Oglala Sioux Tribe challenged two Underground Injection Control area permits for Powertech's uranium-recovery project in South Dakota. The Environmental Appeals Board denied review of the National Historic Preservation Act section 110 claims and the National Environmental Policy Act claims. The…
R.G. and U.S. Postal Service
Board denies continuing disability after prior termination (ECAB 24-0735)
A postal employee sought to establish continuing disability and medical residuals after benefits had been terminated in 2021. The Board had already upheld that termination in an earlier appeal. It found that the new medical evidence did not establish disability or residuals after September 13, 2021…
V.P. and U.S. Postal Service
Board orders clearer long-period disability opinion (ECAB 24-0734)
A postal employee sought disability compensation for March 2018 through November 2020 after an accepted injury. OWCP obtained a referral physician's opinion on the period, but the Board found that the physician did not adequately explain why the accepted condition did or did not cause the claimed…
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.