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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S.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Phoenix, AZ
S.W. (ECAB 09-1455): Reconsideration denied without review of the claim
S.W., a postal worker with an accepted shoulder injury, sought to reopen a claim that she had renewed disability after her work assignment changed. OWCP declined to reconsider the claim on its merits. The Board found that her excerpts and other submissions were irrelevant to whether the prior…
L.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Tacoma, WA
L.H. (ECAB 09-1310): Back injury claim returned for medical development
L.H., a nursing assistant, claimed that patient care and lifting caused or aggravated a lower back condition. OWCP denied the claim, and the Board had previously upheld an earlier denial. After L.H. submitted more medical evidence, the Board found that a physician's report supported a possible…
C.J. and Department of the Navy, Military Sealift Command, Virginia Beach, VA
C.J. (ECAB 09-1199): Post-termination benefits and hearing request denied
C.J. sought wage-loss compensation and medical benefits after OWCP had ended benefits for his accepted right knee condition. The Board had previously affirmed that termination. In this appeal, the Board found that his later medical reports did not adequately connect his condition after November 29…
V.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, New York, NY
V.C. (ECAB 09-1180): Wage-loss compensation termination affirmed
V.C., a postal city carrier, injured her left forearm in a fall while delivering mail and later worked reduced hours. Her treating physician and an OWCP examiner disagreed about whether the injury still prevented full duty, so OWCP obtained an impartial examination. That examiner found residual…
W.V. and Department of the Army, Fort Carson, CO
W.V. (ECAB 09-1165): Right leg impairment award remains at 10 percent
W.V., an Army police officer, injured his right knee during a traffic stop and sought a schedule award greater than 10 percent. One physician proposed higher ratings, but the Board found that his assessment did not adequately follow the required impairment guide. A second examiner initially…
R.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Francisco, CA
R.H. (ECAB 09-1113): Health premium overpayment and waiver denial affirmed
R.H., a retired postal mail handler receiving workers' compensation, continued health insurance coverage after retirement, but OWCP did not deduct his share of the premiums. The Board agreed that the missing deductions created a $7,981.71 overpayment. OWCP found him without fault, yet the Board…
A.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Trenton, NJ
A.M. (ECAB 09-1073): Compensation termination reversed over impartial examiner selection
A.M., a postal mail processor, received compensation for accepted sprains in both elbows and forearms. Her treating physician and OWCP's second opinion physician disagreed about whether she still had work-related disability, so OWCP sent her to an impartial examiner and then ended her benefits. The…
M.M. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Philadelphia, PA
M.M. (ECAB 09-340): Impartial examiner found no lasting left leg impairment
M.M. sustained accepted left leg and thumb fractures in a work-related vehicle accident. His physician and an OWCP medical adviser proposed left leg impairment ratings, but an impartial examiner found normal strength and no ratable limitation of knee motion. The Board found the impartial report…
Oak Grove Resources, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Flooded bleeder order and abatement refusal upheld
Water accumulations and roof falls made major portions of Oak Grove's bleeder system impassable, preventing weekly examination of 11 measurement points while the mine continued longwall production. Judge Michael E. Zielinski found that the unexamined system, rising fan pressure, and substantial…
M.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Palatine, IL
M.H. (ECAB 09-1576): Bilateral hip claim denied for lack of medical explanation
M.H., a retired postal clerk, claimed that lifting and carrying heavy mail tubs caused or aggravated a condition in both hips. A physician noted mild degenerative changes and said her conditions were likely aggravated by repetitive work. The Board found that he did not describe the specific work…
E.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Kissimmee, FL
E.A. (ECAB 09-1541): Vertigo claim lacked a medical explanation linking it to therapy
E.A., a postal employee, became dizzy during physical therapy prescribed for an earlier accepted work injury and claimed that the session caused vertigo. OWCP accepted that the session occurred but denied the claim for lack of medical evidence connecting it to his condition. The Board found that…
D.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Collingwood Post Office, Cleveland, OH
D.C. (ECAB 09-1467): Increased arm impairment awards denied without new medical evidence
D.C., a postal clerk, received schedule awards for permanent impairment from accepted carpal tunnel syndrome in both arms. She later sought larger awards. OWCP asked for medical evidence showing greater impairment, and a hearing representative held the record open for additional evidence. The Board…
D.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Shared Service Center, Pittsburgh, PA
D.B. (ECAB 09-1464): Left leg award sent back to resolve medical disagreement
D.B., a postal mail handler, injured his left knee and received a schedule award based on 10 percent leg impairment. His attending physician reported greater impairment, mainly from muscle weakness, while OWCP's medical adviser rejected a weakness rating. The Board found a substantial conflict…
R.L. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, South Nevada Healthcare System, North Las Vegas, NV
R.L. (ECAB 09-1459): Timely reconsideration request sent back for review
R.L. sought compensation for a right knee injury and later asked OWCP to reconsider its denial. OWCP treated a February 2009 request as late. The Board found that his representative's April 2008 letter had already sought reconsideration within the one-year filing period and that OWCP was aware of…
J.H. and Tennessee Valley Authority, Paradise Steam Plant, Chattanooga, TN
J.H. (ECAB 09-1031): Overpayment upheld but recovery rate sent back
J.H. received workers' compensation at the higher rate for a claimant with a dependent after he stopped claiming dependents. The Board upheld OWCP's $5,921.86 overpayment calculation and found that the forms he signed gave him notice that the higher rate was incorrect. Because he was at fault…
J.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Delivery Center, San Francisco, CA
J.D. (ECAB 09-486): Back condition remanded; carpal tunnel residuals denied
J.D., a postal machine operator, sought compensation for continuing back problems and residuals of previously accepted bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. Her treating physician and OWCP's second opinion physician disagreed about whether a 1998 back injury caused a lasting aggravation of degenerative…
C.S. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Dallas, TX
C.S. (ECAB 09-1597): Suspension for missed functional evaluation affirmed
OWCP scheduled a functional capacity evaluation to assess C.S.'s current ability to work, but she did not attend two appointments. Her treating physician advised against the evaluation, citing limited usefulness and general risks. The Board found that OWCP gave the required notice and opportunity…
N.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
N.A. (ECAB 09-1540): Right arm award affirmed; no ratable left arm impairment
N.A., a postal clerk, sought schedule awards for arm impairment related to an accepted neck condition. Medical opinions conflicted, so OWCP obtained an impartial evaluation. The Board found that the examiner explained a 9 percent right arm rating using sensory and motor findings under the…
T.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bothell, WA
T.F. (ECAB 09-1401): Reconsideration denied without review of wrist claim
T.F., a postal letter carrier, claimed a right wrist injury while casing mail, but the reports in the record gave inconsistent dates and descriptions of the event. OWCP denied the claim and later refused to reopen it on reconsideration. The Board found that the new physical therapy notes did not…
M.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dayton, OH
M.L. (ECAB 09-1372): No ratable arm impairment shown after carpal tunnel surgery
M.L., a postal worker, sought a schedule award for permanent arm impairment after surgery for accepted carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands. Following an earlier Board remand, OWCP's examiner explained that his tests showed no ratable sensory or motor deficit under the impairment guide. M.L.'s…
W.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Greensboro Bulk Mail Center, Greensboro, NC
W.W. (ECAB 09-1359): Existing 37 percent left leg award affirmed
W.W., a postal tractor-trailer operator, had an accepted left hip condition and underwent a hip replacement. He previously received a schedule award for 37 percent left leg impairment and later sought a larger award. The Board found that his treating surgeon's follow-up reports continued to…
T.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Longview Post Office, Longview, WA
T.P. (ECAB 09-1283): Carpal tunnel claim and reconsideration denial affirmed
T.P., a postal clerk, claimed that repetitive hand work caused carpal tunnel syndrome in both wrists. Her physician described possible carpal tunnel syndrome but did not give a reasoned opinion linking it to her work. A nerve test showed median nerve abnormalities but did not address their cause…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Glendale, CA
D.M. (ECAB 09-1276): Light duty withdrawal claim returned for fact finding
D.M., a postal carrier with an accepted back strain, said she lost a light duty assignment and was returned to regular carrier duties in September 2008. OWCP denied her claim for renewed disability and ended authorization for medical treatment. The Board found the record did not show whether the…
Professional Airways Systems Specialists (Union) and United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (Agency)
PASS and FAA (FLRA 0-NG-2907): Bargaining required over dependent school eligibility proposal
The FAA stopped certifying some employees' dependent children for enrollment in Department of Defense schools in Puerto Rico. The union proposed that eligible dependents could use the schools even if they had not attended one before. The Authority read the proposal as applying only when the child…
J.O. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Richmond, VA
J.O. (ECAB 09-1432): Parking lot injury covered during lunch break
J.O., an IRS remittance research technician, fell in an employer controlled parking lot while clearing snow from her car during her lunch break. OWCP denied her injury claim because clearing her car was not an assigned work duty. The Board found that the activity was a reasonable personal…
R.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Houston Performance Cluster, Houston, TX
R.K. (ECAB 09-1397): Foot injury claim lacked medical causation opinion
R.K., a postal mail handler, claimed that working on a concrete floor contributed to a right foot condition. OWCP denied the claim, and the Board affirmed. Her podiatrist diagnosed several foot and ankle conditions but did not explain how her work caused or contributed to them. The MRI report…
J.S. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Linthicum, MD
J.S. (ECAB 09-1323): Shoulder impairment award returned for medical review
J.S., a TSA security screener, received a schedule award for 14 percent impairment of his left arm after a work injury and shoulder surgery. OWCP denied his request for a higher award despite later measurements showing greater loss of shoulder motion. The Board found that OWCP's medical adviser had…
R.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Tampa, FL
R.P. (ECAB 09-1250): Zero wage loss after return to modified nursing job
R.P., a VA nurse with an accepted wrist injury, returned to a full time modified nursing job on a day shift. OWCP reduced her wage loss compensation to zero because her actual pay exceeded the current pay for her former position. She argued that she should still receive compensation for the night…
M.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Kansas City, MO
M.B. (ECAB 09-1164): Carpal tunnel award returned for proper impairment rating
M.B., a postal human resources specialist with accepted carpal tunnel syndrome, sought an additional schedule award beyond earlier awards for both arms. After a prior Board remand, OWCP obtained a second opinion but denied the request again. The Board found that the examining surgeon had not…
K.P. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Honolulu, HI
K.P. (ECAB 09-0977): Total disability recurrence claim denied
K.P., a TSA security screener with an accepted shoulder injury, said he could not perform an offered light duty position and later claimed a recurrence of total disability. OWCP denied the claim, and the Board affirmed. His treating surgeon had found that he could work within the restrictions of a…
Congressional Research Employees Association, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 75 (Union) and Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (Agency)
Congressional Research Employees Association and Library of Congress (FLRA 0-AR-4282): Detailed official-time reports required
The Library of Congress challenged union officials' reports of time spent on representational work because entries such as "discussion" did not show whether the time qualified under the parties' agreement. An arbitrator required the union to reconstruct reports dating back to September 2006 with…
Secretary of Labor v. Coal River Mining, LLC
Fireproofing unwarrantability remanded, three penalties affirmed
Batteries overheated while charging on the ground at Coal River Mining's underground station, which had not been coated with the required fire-retardant material. The judge affirmed that violation as S&S but found no unwarrantable failure because the coating had frozen and the company intended to…
M.Y. and Department of Homeland Security, Transportation Security Administration, Newark, NJ
M.Y. (ECAB 09-1278): Knee injury claim lacked a reasoned causal opinion
M.Y., a TSA security officer, claimed a left knee injury after bending during a passenger search. OWCP denied the claim, and the Board affirmed. His doctors identified knee symptoms and a meniscus tear but did not adequately explain how the specific July 2007 movement caused the condition. One…
C.N. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Deport, TX
C.N. (ECAB 09-1574): Vehicle incident claim lacked reasoned medical link
C.N., a postal rural carrier associate, said she was injured when a tire of her vehicle slid into a ditch while she worked. OWCP denied her traumatic injury claim and later declined to modify that denial on reconsideration. The Board affirmed OWCP’s May 4, 2009 decision. MRI reports showed spinal…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Grand Rapids, MI
D.M. (ECAB 09-1528): Foot condition claim lacked a reasoned medical link
D.M., a postal distribution clerk, claimed that walking on concrete floors at work aggravated recurring growths in both feet. OWCP accepted that her work involved the reported walking but denied the injury claim. The Board found that her doctors had diagnosed the condition without adequately…
G.T. and Department of the Navy, Navy Aviation Depot, Cherry Point, NC
G.T. (ECAB 09-1493): Late reconsideration request did not show clear error
G.T., a former Navy depot worker whose compensation for work related dermatitis had been terminated, asked OWCP in 2009 to reconsider its 2002 merits decision. OWCP refused because the request came after the one year limit and did not show clear evidence of error. The Board affirmed that refusal. A…
J.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Philadelphia, PA
J.L. (ECAB 09-1420): Impairment award returned for independent medical rating
J.L., a postal letter carrier injured while delivering mail, disputed OWCP's rating of impairment in both legs and his right arm. A prior Board ruling had required an impartial examination to resolve conflicting medical opinions. The Board found that the selected specialist had not reported…
A.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Dalton, GA
A.H. (ECAB 09-1375): Mail lifting injury and reconsideration denials affirmed
A.H., a postal clerk, reported abdominal pain after lifting a tray of mail and twisting at work in May 2008. OWCP denied her traumatic injury claim and later refused to reopen it. The Board found that her doctors did not identify a specific injury caused by that lifting incident or explain the…
B.O. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, San Diego, CA
B.O. (ECAB 09-1325): Claimed partial disability hours lacked medical support
B.O., a postal employee with accepted right arm and shoulder conditions, claimed wage loss for 35.44 hours between June 30 and July 26, 2008. OWCP denied the claim, and the Board affirmed. An earlier medical report limited her to six hours a day but did not explain why that restriction applied…
B.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Monmouth Processing and Distribution Center, Eatontown, NJ
B.S. (ECAB 09-1067): Compensation termination reversed over commute restriction
B.S., a postal employee with an accepted neck condition, had her compensation terminated after she did not accept a modified mail processing position. An impartial doctor found that she could do light duty but restricted her driving to and from work to four hours a day. The offered position was at…
N.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Priority Mail Center, Romulus, MI
N.D. (ECAB 09-1369): Schedule award denial affirmed after carpal tunnel surgery
N.D., a postal clerk, sought a schedule award after surgery for accepted carpal tunnel syndrome in both wrists. His doctor rated each upper extremity at five percent impairment, citing the A.M.A. Guides. OWCP denied the award, and the Board affirmed. A nerve conduction study after the surgeries…
J.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, St. Paul, MN
J.S. (ECAB 09-1366): One day of wage loss denied for lack of medical evidence
J.S., a postal distribution clerk with an accepted cervical condition, claimed intermittent wage loss, including January 24, 2008. OWCP paid some of the claimed hours but denied compensation for that day. A doctor saw her the next day and said she could return to work on January 28, but did not…
B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Berkeley, CA
B.B. (ECAB 09-1354): Stress claim denied for lack of a compensable work factor
B.B., a postal mail carrier, claimed stress and physical symptoms after a supervisor spoke to her about how much mail to prepare. Coworkers said the supervisor raised her voice, but their statements did not establish the abusive conduct B.B. alleged. The Board held that a raised voice alone did not…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Pontiac, MI
E.R. (ECAB 09-1303): Knee injury claim denied for lack of medical explanation
E.R., a postal letter carrier, said she hurt her left knee when she slipped on ice while delivering mail. The Board accepted that a fall occurred on February 5, 2008. Her doctor initially described knee symptoms arising from walking at work and recorded no traumatic episode; he later said the fall…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Islip, NY
C.C. (ECAB 09-1267): Overpayment after part time return to work affirmed
C.C., a postal letter carrier with an accepted back condition, resumed work for six hours a day on November 8, 2008. OWCP continued paying her as though she were totally disabled through November 22. The Board found that the difference between the total disability payments and the partial…
M.C. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA
M.C. (ECAB 09-1252): Overpayment and denial of waiver affirmed
M.C., a Veterans Affairs nurse, returned to a full time nursing position on November 10, 2008 after receiving wage loss compensation for accepted work injuries. OWCP continued paying her through November 22, creating a $2,631.13 overpayment. The Board agreed with the amount because she was entitled…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, East Ventura, CA
J.B. (ECAB 09-1197): Termination of back injury benefits affirmed
J.B., a postal letter carrier, had accepted lumbar strains from work injuries in 1995 and 2003. OWCP ended compensation for those injuries after its examining surgeon concluded the strains had resolved and her remaining symptoms stemmed from degenerative spinal changes. The Board found the…
W.M. and Social Security Administration, Richmond, CA
W.M. (ECAB 09-1075): Wage loss reduction based on a suitable office job affirmed
W.M., a Social Security Administration claims authorizer, received compensation after a workplace fall caused back and leg injuries. OWCP reduced his wage loss benefits based on what he could earn in a constructed manager of credit and collections job. The Board found that the sedentary job fit the…
M.M. and Department of the Army, Fort Sam, Houston, TX
M.M. (ECAB 09-0778): Late reconsideration denial affirmed
M.M., an Army facility maintenance clerk, sought compensation for reduced work hours after a 2000 job reassignment that she said worsened the effects of an accepted 1997 injury. OWCP denied the recurrence claim and later refused to reopen it when she requested reconsideration in 2007. The Board…
Secretary of Labor v. Claysville Quarry
Hearing canceled and penalty facts required
Claysville Quarry admitted that nine contract stone stackers had not received required new-miner training and did not dispute the S&S designation. With no factual dispute remaining, Judge Jerold Feldman canceled the scheduled hearing and focused the case on the proper penalty. He ordered the…
Matter of T-M-H- & S-W-C-
Changed circumstances do not create an automatic one-year filing extension
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's appeal from an Immigration Judge's grant of asylum to a Chinese couple who filed their applications after the birth of their second child. The Board held that the changed-circumstances exception to the one-year asylum filing deadline does not…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System, Biloxi, Mississippi (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO (Incumbent Labor Organization/Petitioner)
VA Gulf Coast Health Care System and AFGE (FLRA AT-RP-09-0015): Eglin clinic unit question remanded
AFGE sought to update its VA Gulf Coast bargaining-unit descriptions and include employees of a new clinic at Eglin Air Force Base without an election. The regional director updated the employer's name but declined to include Eglin employees in the existing units. The Authority upheld the refusal…
Professional Airways Systems Specialists (Union) and United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration (Agency)
PASS and FAA (FLRA 0-NG-2857): Two school proposals negotiable, mandatory transfer proposal rejected
The FAA stopped certifying some Puerto Rico employees' children for Department of Defense schools, leading the union to propose three terms. The Authority found the proposals concerning current and future employees' school certification negotiable because it read them as respecting the Defense…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 919, Council of Prison Locals 33 (Union) and United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth, Kansas (Agency)
Leavenworth Penitentiary and AFGE Local 919 (FLRA 0-AR-4583): Arbitration exception denied
AFGE Local 919 challenged an arbitration award involving the federal penitentiary at Leavenworth. The union argued that the award rested on a factual error. The Authority denied the exception because the union had not shown the kind of clearly erroneous central fact that would change the result…
Social Security Administration, Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 25 (Union)
Social Security Administration and AFGE Council 25 (FLRA 0-AR-4459): Union representative's travel award set aside
During an arbitration over disclosure of confidential information, a union representative who was also a grievant and witness requested travel costs and per diem from the Social Security Administration. The arbitrator granted the request under the parties' agreement. The Authority set aside that…
National Treasury Employees Union (Union) and United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (Agency)
NTEU and IRS (FLRA 0-AR-4307): Manual revisions did not trigger bargaining duty
The IRS revised manual provisions for revenue officers, including office-duty rotation, reviews of field-work records, documentation before taxpayer contact, and follow-up with taxpayers. NTEU grieved the revisions because the agency gave no notice or opportunity to bargain. An arbitrator found…
Overseas Private Investment Corporation (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1534 (Union)
Overseas Private Investment Corporation and AFGE Local 1534 (FLRA 0-AR-4303): Debt-waiver review awaits unit-status ruling
An employee of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation was told that she had been paid too much, and the agency waived only part of the resulting debt. An arbitrator ordered a full waiver but made his award conditional on a determination that she belonged to the bargaining unit. The Authority…
United States Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (Agency) and American Federation of Government Employees (Union)
Customs and Border Protection and AFGE (FLRA 0-AR-4187): Attorney-fee award returned for findings
A Customs and Border Protection employee received a fourteen-day suspension after making unauthorized criminal-background queries. An arbitrator reduced it to five days, and that ruling became final. He then awarded attorney fees, reasoning that the agency should have known the original penalty was…
National Treasury Employees Union (Union) and United States Department of Homeland Security, United States Customs and Border Protection, Washington, D.C. (Agency)
NTEU and Customs and Border Protection (FLRA 0-AR-4062): Emergency phone provision ordered into agreement
Customs and Border Protection barred inspection personnel from carrying personal wireless devices in inspection areas. An impasse panel ordered a dedicated, answered telephone at affected ports for employees' incoming emergency calls, but the agency did not implement the order. On review of an…
MGP Ingredients of Illinois, Inc.
In re MGP Ingredients of Illinois, Inc. (EAB PSD Appeal No. 09-03): permit remanded for BACT reconsideration
Sierra Club petitioned for review of a Clean Air Act Prevention of Significant Deterioration permit issued to MGP Ingredients of Illinois for construction at its existing plant in Pekin, Illinois. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency asked to reconsider the Best Available Control Technology…
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.