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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N.P. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Flushing, NY
N.P. (ECAB 09-2263): Hearing-abandonment ruling reversed
N.P., a transportation security screener, missed a scheduled hearing on a traumatic-injury claim. She called OWCP three days later and said illness had prevented her from attending. The Board found that this notice fell within the allowed 10-day period and that OWCP had issued its abandonment…
K.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pismo Beach, CA
K.H. (ECAB 09-2143): One-percent left-arm award upheld
K.H., a postal employee, challenged the amount and basis of a left-arm schedule award after treatment for a thumb injury. Her doctor's measurements showed three-percent thumb impairment, equivalent under the guide to one-percent impairment of the hand or arm. The Board held that OWCP properly used…
K.M. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Chattanooga, TN
K.M. (ECAB 09-2058): Hearing loss did not qualify for a schedule award
K.M., a Tennessee Valley Authority safety manager, sought a schedule award for hearing loss attributed to workplace noise. OWCP accepted his bilateral noise-induced hearing loss but found that it was too slight to qualify for an award. Audiometric testing showed an average loss of 11.25 decibels in…
R.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dorchester, MA
R.C. (ECAB 09-2005): Elbow-condition claim lacked a medical explanation
R.C., a postal automation clerk, attributed right-elbow tendinitis to repetitive mail processing and lifting. His physician diagnosed an elbow condition and noted his work duties, but did not explain how those duties caused or aggravated the condition. A separate account connected the symptoms to…
P.P. and Department of Health & Human Services, Social Security Administration, San Bernardino, CA
P.P. (ECAB 09-1961): Late reconsideration request showed no clear error
P.P., a Social Security Administration legal assistant, sought reconsideration of a prior denial of her disability recurrence claim. The Board's last merit decision on that claim was issued March 14, 2007, giving her until March 14, 2008 to request reconsideration within the one-year period. She…
G.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Freehold, NJ
G.B. (ECAB 09-1768): Conflicting back-injury opinions require more review
G.B., a letter carrier with a preexisting back condition, said a fall during a dog attack at work aggravated his back and contributed to his later surgery. OWCP accepted an arm injury from the attack but denied the back claim. His physicians supported a connection between the fall and the back…
E.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cincinnati, OH
E.A. (ECAB 09-1708): Overpayment upheld, but fault split by deposit
E.A., a postal mail handler, continued receiving disability compensation by direct deposit after returning to full-time work with no wage loss. The Board upheld OWCP's finding of a $4,827.44 overpayment. It found her without fault for the first erroneous deposit because she did not know the amount…
M.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Hazelwood, MO
M.H. (ECAB 09-1620): New knee, hip, and back claim lacked a causal opinion
M.H., a postal employee with a prior accepted knee injury, claimed that duties in a new eight-hour modified job injured her knee, hip, and back. Her treating physician reported renewed symptoms after she returned to the longer schedule, but did not give a specific diagnosis or explain how the…
Eurotech Construction Corp.
Floor-hole cover citations vacated for lack of knowledge
A Eurotech masonry employee fell about 17 feet through a floor opening on the 45th floor of a high-rise construction project. OSHA alleged deficient inspections, an unsecured and unlabeled cover, and a failure to retrain employees. The judge credited evidence that Eurotech's foreman inspected…
Secretary of Labor v. Arch of Wyoming, LLC
Drill benches required berms but examination citation vacated
Arch of Wyoming operated drill, explosives, and stemming vehicles on two elevated benches at its Elk Mountain surface coal mine without berms along the outer edges. Judge Richard W. Manning held that the benches were elevated roadways because vehicles traveled along them during drilling and…
United States Department of the Navy, Commander, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic, Program Director, Fleet and Family Readiness, Norfolk, Virginia (Activity/Petitioner) and National Association of Independent Labor (Exclusive Representative/Petitioner) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 22, AFL-CIO (Exclusive Representative)
Navy Region Mid-Atlantic and NAIL (FLRA WA-RP-09-0071): transferred employees remain in AFGE unit
A Navy reorganization transferred 31 recreation program employees from an Army activity to Navy Region Mid-Atlantic. Their former union, NAIL, sought a separate bargaining unit, while the Navy asked to include them in an existing unit represented by AFGE Local 22. The regional director placed the…
Secretary of Labor v. Blue Diamond Coal Company
Missing stopping affirmed but heightened findings removed
Blue Diamond conceded that a required permanent stopping was missing after production moved to a new panel at Mine No. 77. Senior Judge Michael E. Zielinski found a violation because the stopping was required to separate a belt and neutral entry from the return. He rejected the…
J.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, West Roxbury, MA
J.S. (ECAB 09-2305): Shoulder claim lacked supporting medical evidence
J.S., a Veterans Health Administration radiologic technician, attributed a torn right rotator cuff to lifting patients, operating x-ray equipment, and repetitive shoulder movements. OWCP accepted that she performed the described duties but asked for medical evidence diagnosing a condition and…
K.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Canandaigua, NY
K.H. (ECAB 09-2292): New injury claim needed a physician's evidence
K.H., a Veterans Affairs medical center employee, said she was injured while running from a veteran who tried to hit her. OWCP accepted that the workplace incident occurred and treated her filing as a new traumatic injury claim, because it involved a new event rather than a spontaneous recurrence…
B.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Beckley, WV
B.M. (ECAB 09-2231): Leg findings require medical-adviser review
B.M., a Veterans Affairs medical technician, sought a schedule award after an accepted lower-back strain. Her physician rated whole-person impairment, which FECA does not cover with a schedule award, but also reported sensory changes in her left leg and great toe. An extremity impairment may…
J.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Birmingham, AL
J.M. (ECAB 09-2215): Coworker statements did not warrant reopening
J.M., a postal mail handler, sought to reopen a denied claim involving his right shoulder and arm. OWCP had accepted his description of repetitive work but found no medical explanation connecting it to the diagnosed conditions. His reconsideration request added personal and coworker statements…
J.B. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Morrisville, NC
J.B. (ECAB 09-2191): Knee rating needed a reasoned comparison
J.B., a transportation security screener, received a four-percent right-leg schedule award for accepted plantar fasciitis and preexisting knee chondromalacia. Her physician and OWCP's medical adviser chose different comparison diagnoses to rate chondromalacia under the impairment guide. Neither…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, North Reading, MA
D.C. (ECAB 09-1990): Late request did not show clear error
D.C., a postal rural carrier, sought reconsideration of a 2005 denial of her neck and shoulder claim. Her May 2009 request was outside the one-year period and had to show clear evidence of error in the earlier decision. The new reports diagnosed conditions, and one physician said work contributed…
G.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, North Chicago, IL
G.P. (ECAB 09-1951): No basis for a larger leg award or reopening
G.P., a Veterans Affairs housekeeping aide, sought more than the nine-percent right-leg schedule award already granted for a prior work injury. The Board found the treating physician's larger rating insufficiently explained and credited a second-opinion examination that found no ratable impairment…
B.G. and Smithsonian Institution, Office of Protection Services, Natural History Museum, Washington, DC
B.G. (ECAB 09-1671): Retroactive wage finding reversed
B.G., a former Smithsonian museum protection officer with an accepted foot condition, worked for a trucking company for about two months. OWCP treated that job's higher wages as proof that he no longer had a loss of wage-earning capacity and retroactively reduced his compensation to zero. The Board…
R.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Cleveland, OH
R.G. (ECAB 09-1629): Back benefits termination and hearing denial upheld
R.G., a postal clerk, had accepted back conditions from a 2004 workplace incident. A second-opinion surgeon found those conditions resolved, and the Board held that his detailed report supported OWCP's termination of wage-loss and medical benefits. Later treating reports did not adequately link any…
B.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Billings, MT
B.S. (ECAB 09-0741): Fraud conviction ended future benefits, not past payments
B.S., a postal employee receiving disability compensation, was convicted of federal offenses related to her benefits. The Board upheld OWCP's termination of future FECA benefits effective on the October 1, 2008 guilty verdict. OWCP also tried to forfeit benefits paid from November 2004 through…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company
Belt accumulations upheld and preshift order reduced
MSHA found extensive coal accumulations contacting rollers and moving belts at Consol's Enlow Fork Mine, along with several hazards omitted from a preshift examination of the E-14 longwall belt. Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck held that the preshift record should have identified hazardous stopping…
Bruce Christensen v. Stevedoring Services of America and Homeport Insurance Company
Christensen v. Stevedoring Services (BRB 03-0302R): attorney fee raised on reconsideration
Bruce Christensen's counsel asked the Benefits Review Board to reconsider the hourly rates used in a prior fee award. The Board agreed that Oregon workers' compensation rates should be removed from its market-rate calculation because those rates were capped or discounted and did not reflect an open…
H.C. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA
H.C. (ECAB 10-0354): Claimed recurrence lacked a link to accepted sprains
H.C., a Veterans Affairs employee, claimed a recurrence of disability in 2007 from accepted knee and back sprains sustained in 1996. She had returned to limited duty and reported several later injuries and medical conditions. Her physicians did not explain how the accepted sprains caused disability…
E.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Wichita, KS
E.S. (ECAB 09-2260): Fall was established, but medical causation was not
E.S., a Veterans Affairs patient services assistant, fell when her foot slipped into a hole on her employer's grounds. OWCP accepted that the incident happened but denied her injury claim. The physician report she submitted months later diagnosed migraines and trigger finger without mentioning the…
M.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Coppell, TX
M.Y. (ECAB 09-2214): Intermittent disability needed a medical explanation
M.Y., a postal mail handler, claimed intermittent total disability between August 2007 and March 2008 after an accepted right-ankle sprain. Her physician issued work restrictions and disability certificates, but did not explain how the sprain caused inability to work on the claimed dates. Her…
L.G. and Department of Health & Human Services, Social Security Administration, Albuquerque, NM
L.G. (ECAB 09-2025): Three late requests did not show clear error
L.G., a Social Security Administration employee, challenged the termination of benefits for accepted wrist and myofascial conditions. Her three reconsideration requests in 2008 and 2009 came years after the last merit decision in 1999. She disputed the impartial examiner's role and report and…
C.H. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Greensboro, NC
C.H. (ECAB 09-1832): Increased award claim required a merit decision
C.H., an Internal Revenue Service employee, had received left-arm schedule awards totaling 56-percent impairment. She submitted a new physician report seeking a higher rating, but OWCP treated it as an untimely request to reconsider an older decision. The Board held that a claim for an increased…
J.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
J.R. (ECAB 09-1680): Two schedule-award overpayments upheld
J.R., a postal mechanic, received payments beyond the period of his right-arm schedule award. The Board upheld a $1,990.29 overpayment caused by OWCP's incorrect end date and a further $56,586.93 paid after the stated expiration date. Although he was without fault for the first amount, his assets…
D.G. and Social Security Administration, Jersey City Teleservice, Jersey City, NJ
D.G. (ECAB 09-1606): Benefit termination and refusal to reopen upheld
D.G., a Social Security Administration contact representative, had accepted neck and back conditions after an elevator malfunction. A second-opinion surgeon reported a largely normal examination and found no remaining injury-related disability or need for treatment. The Board held that his reasoned…
A.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Maspeth, NY
A.S. (ECAB 09-1589): Accepted dog-bite conditions had resolved
A.S., a postal carrier, had accepted right-arm dog-bite and carpal tunnel conditions. OWCP terminated benefits after a second-opinion surgeon found those accepted conditions resolved and said she could resume regular work. The Board credited his examination and held that OWCP had met its…
S.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Bulk Mail Center, Memphis, TN
S.S. (ECAB 09-1194): Personnel investigation was not a proven compensable factor
S.S., a postal supervisor, sought compensation for an emotional condition she attributed to an investigation of time entries, her suspension, and a later reduction in grade. These were personnel actions rather than her assigned work duties. The Board explained that such actions could support a FECA…
T.G. and Department of the Navy, Naval Facilities Engineering Command, Norfolk, VA
T.G. (ECAB 09-2220): Written-record review request was late
T.G., a Navy crane operator, had an accepted work-related hearing loss but was denied a schedule award because the loss was not ratable. He requested review of the written record more than 30 days after that January 2009 decision. OWCP considered a discretionary review and denied it, explaining…
P.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Salisbury, NC
P.P. (ECAB 09-2166): Right-arm award upheld, left-arm rating remanded
P.P., a Veterans Affairs nursing assistant, received schedule awards for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. The Board upheld the five-percent right-arm rating because the impairment guide's postsurgery method fit her right wrist, which had undergone decompression. OWCP used that same method for the…
E.Q. and Department of the Air Force, Tyndall Air Force Base, FL
E.Q. (ECAB 09-2155): Additional arm award and written review denied
E.Q., a retired Air Force mechanic, had received a schedule award for 25 percent impairment of his right arm after an accepted neck and shoulder injury. He sought an additional award after a second neck surgery. The Board found that the later medical ratings did not show right arm impairment…
D.V. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Effingham, IL
D.V. (ECAB 09-2066): Occupational claim and reconsideration denial upheld
D.V., a retired postal rural carrier, attributed arm, hand and shoulder conditions to repetitive mail delivery work. OWCP accepted that her work involved repetitive activity, but denied this claim because her medical reports did not explain how those duties caused or worsened the diagnosed…
K.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Montgomery Village Branch, Gaithersburg, MD
K.M. (ECAB 09-2050): Refusal to reopen suitable work case upheld
K.M., a postal clerk with an accepted back injury, lost compensation after OWCP found that she refused suitable work. She later sought reconsideration, arguing that the offered job was not a permanent classified position, exceeded her physical limits and had been assessed by a biased hearing…
C.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Irvington, NJ
C.B. (ECAB 09-2027): Postal clerk’s occupational disease claim denied
C.B., a postal clerk, attributed pain in her shoulders, hands and legs to lifting and handling mail at work. OWCP denied her occupational disease claim, and the Board upheld that decision. The physician’s reports described symptoms and diagnoses, but did not explain how her duties caused or…
J.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Wilmington Processing & Distribution Center, New Castle, DE
J.F. (ECAB 09-1660): Recurrence claim after thoracic strain denied
J.F., a postal custodian, had an accepted thoracic spine strain after lifting a box at work in 1998, following earlier lung surgery. He later sought benefits for renewed chest and back pain and claimed a recurrence of the accepted injury. The Board found that his physicians did not adequately…
D.S. and Department of the Army, IMA Headquarters, Fort Dix, NJ
D.S. (ECAB 09-1290): Impairment dispute sent back for impartial review
D.S., an Army criminal investigator, sought a schedule award for permanent impairment after accepted back injuries. His treating physician rated impairment in both arms and legs, while other doctors found no ratable impairment. OWCP treated one examiner as an impartial specialist and denied the…
Secretary of Labor v. Orchard Coal Company, S & M Coal Company, Alfred Brown Coal Company, and B & B Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. Orchard Coal Company, et al. (FMSHRC PENN 2010-339-E): Mine-standard modification request belonged with Secretary
Four anthracite operators sought Commission review of how MSHA was enforcing Mine Act requirements. They argued that the enforcement approach denied them an opportunity to request modification of those requirements and included a section 101(c) modification petition in their filing. The Commission…
Sargent Enterprises, Inc.
In re Sargent Enterprises, Inc. (EAB CAA Appeal No. 10-02): default order and penalty affirmed
Sargent Enterprises, Inc. was assessed a $17,400 penalty for failing to keep regulated asbestos-containing material wet until disposal. The ALJ entered default after Sargent failed to provide its required prehearing exchange and failed to respond to an order to show cause. Sargent argued that…
R.E. and Department of Homeland Security, Federal Protective Service, Portland, OR
R.E. (ECAB 09-2247): Hearing rescheduled after short notice
R.E., a federal protective service inspector, sought a hearing after OWCP denied his back injury claim. OWCP scheduled a telephone hearing and later found that he had abandoned it by failing to call. The Board found that OWCP’s June 1 notice gave less than the required 30 days before the June 29…
C.H. and Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station, New Orleans, LA
C.H. (ECAB 09-2208): Two percent leg award set aside for new rating
C.H., a Navy air conditioning mechanic, received a schedule award for two percent right leg impairment after an accepted knee injury. His surgeon rated the impairment at 10 percent, while OWCP’s medical adviser recommended two percent. The Board found that the adviser had not adequately explained…
R.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Memphis, TN
R.H. (ECAB 09-2139): Late reconsideration request refused
R.H., a postal worker, claimed work related anxiety arising from a series of workplace interactions. OWCP denied the claim in March 2007 because it found no compensable work factor and later refused her December 2008 reconsideration request. The Board held that the written request came more than…
I.M. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, San Jose, CA
I.M. (ECAB 09-2087): Wage loss termination reversed
I.M., an IRS tax examiner, had accepted right arm conditions and received wage loss compensation after surgery. OWCP terminated that compensation after her employment ended for misconduct, relying on a human resources statement that modified work would hypothetically have accommodated her…
J.P. and Department of Labor, Mine Safety & Health Administration, Vincennes, IN
J.P. (ECAB 09-2083): Shoulder impairment claim returned for clarification
J.P., a federal mine inspector, injured his left shoulder and biceps while pulling himself from a mine vehicle. His surgeon rated six percent arm impairment but did not explain the calculation under the applicable impairment guide. A second opinion doctor found normal motion and strength, yet did…
L.N. and Department of the Navy, Hill Air Force Base, UT
L.N. (ECAB 09-2056): Hearing loss accepted but award denied
L.N., a plastic fabricator supervisor, developed hearing loss after years of workplace noise exposure. OWCP accepted bilateral hearing loss and authorized hearing aids, but denied a schedule award because the measured loss did not meet the impairment rating threshold. The Board checked the…
T.H. and Department of the Army, CPAC-Fort Meyer, Fort Meyer, VA
T.H. (ECAB 09-1995): Cardiac injury claim denied for lack of causation evidence
T.H., an Army fire protection inspector, experienced chest pain while lifting children onto a fire truck and responding to telephone calls at work. He was treated for a heart attack and sought workers’ compensation. OWCP accepted that the workplace activities occurred but denied the claim. The…
A.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
A.G. (ECAB 09-1599): Suitable work termination reversed
A.G., a postal letter carrier with accepted neck and cervical conditions, received compensation after he stopped working. OWCP terminated it after finding that he refused an offer of suitable work. The Board found that the impartial physician’s opinion had unexplained inconsistencies about A.G.’s…
M.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jersey City, NJ
M.C. (ECAB 09-1539): Right wrist compensation termination upheld
M.C., a postal mail clerk, received compensation for an accepted right wrist sprain or strain after pushing a parcel at work. OWCP terminated benefits after a second opinion physician found that this accepted condition had resolved. The Board found that the physician’s examination and reasoning…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 200 (Union) and United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, William J. Hughes Technical Center, Atlantic City International Airport, Atlantic City, New Jersey (Agency)
FAA Technical Center and AFGE Local 200 (FLRA 0-AR-4574): promotion grievance award upheld
The union challenged the FAA Technical Center's selection process after an employee was not chosen for a promotion. The arbitrator found irregularities and favoritism that violated the parties' agreement, agency policies, and merit principles, but declined the union's requested remedies. The union…
United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Portland, Maine (Agency) and National Air Traffic Controllers Association (Union)
FAA Portland and Air Traffic Controllers Association (FLRA 0-AR-4421): grievance procedure award upheld
The air traffic controllers' union grieved the FAA's failure to allow requested oral presentations and to respond on time to earlier grievances. The FAA argued that the union had cited an expired agreement rather than the newer one. An arbitrator found the grievance could proceed because both…
United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Plantation, Florida (Agency) and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 93 (Union)
IRS Plantation and NTEU Chapter 93 (FLRA 0-AR-4360): mileage award upheld, normal commute pay set aside
An IRS union chapter president traveled from home to a union office at a different IRS location. A longstanding oral agreement provided mileage reimbursement for those trips, but the IRS later limited reimbursement and paid travel time. An arbitrator found that the IRS repudiated the agreement and…
United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution, Beckley, West Virginia (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 44 (Union)
FCI Beckley and AFGE Local 44 (FLRA 0-AR-4337): overtime remedy set aside and remanded
FCI Beckley selected employees for a temporary assignment with guaranteed overtime by seniority instead of using the established overtime roster. An arbitrator found that this violated the labor agreement and ordered the prison to divide the overtime value among eligible employees on the roster…
G.L. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Fort Snelling, MN
G.L. (ECAB 09-2200): Three percent arm award sent back for explanation
G.L., a retired federal human resources assistant, had an accepted right carpal tunnel syndrome claim. OWCP awarded three percent permanent right arm impairment, using its medical adviser’s rating, while her surgeon had proposed five percent. The Board found that the adviser assigned a grade whose…
B.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cleveland, OH
B.J. (ECAB 09-2179): Back injury claim denied after conflicting accounts
B.J., a VA housekeeping aide, said he injured his back while lifting and cleaning rolling chairs at work. He first listed September 30, 2008 as the injury date, then changed it to September 29. The Board found that he had not worked on the first date, while emergency records from the second date…
F.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
F.C. (ECAB 09-2024): Reopening refused after compensation termination
F.C., a postal letter carrier, had an accepted neck and back injury, but OWCP later terminated compensation after an impartial physician found no continuing work related disability. F.C. requested reconsideration without submitting a new legal argument or relevant new evidence with his request. The…
L.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Indianapolis, IN
L.D. (ECAB 09-1808): Wage capacity finding stands after job ends
L.D., a postal mail handler with accepted injuries, worked for years in a modified position at wages equal to his prior job. OWCP had determined in 2002 that this work showed no loss of wage earning capacity. The Postal Service later sent him home because it had no productive work within his…
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.