Federal Agency Decisions
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Carmack v. National Railroad Passenger Corp.
Federal complaint treated as election to leave the administrative forum
Joseph Carmack alleged that Amtrak refused to rehire him in retaliation for safety concerns he had raised during earlier employment. While seeking an administrative hearing, he also filed a federal complaint that expressly included FRSA allegations and remedies. Carmack maintained that the FRSA…
Hall Trucking, Inc.
Rig-move struck-by violation affirmed
Hall Trucking moved oil and gas drilling-rig equipment with heavy trucks while ground workers, known as swampers, worked nearby. During a rig move near Epping, North Dakota, a newly hired swamper was fatally struck by a Hall flatbed truck backing through a congested area. The judge found that the…
Matter of Pascacio GONZALEZ JIMENEZ
Cancellation and voluntary departure denied
The Board reviewed the respondent's appeal from an Immigration Judge's denial of his applications for cancellation of removal and voluntary departure. The Board considered the respondent's family ties, long residence, employment, and the hardship that removal could cause his family, but found that…
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
In re Pacific Gas and Electric Company (EAB CAA Appeal No. 25-09C): accidental-release reporting settlement approved
Pacific Gas and Electric Company owns and operates a natural-gas distribution facility in San Jose, California. EPA alleged that a natural gas release on June 8, 2023, seriously injured one employee and was not reported directly to the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board within the…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Southeast Mining, LLC
Longwall roof-control citation affirmed
MSHA cited Peabody after an unplanned roof fall and deteriorating supports affected the tailgate of the Shoal Creek Mine's J-2 longwall. The inspector observed crushed pumpable supports, fractured roof, and a roof fall blocking the tailgate, while examinations, air readings, and installation of…
Secretary of Labor v. MDI Mining
Delayed assessment caused filing confusion
MDI Mining timely contested three enforcement actions in May 2024, but did not receive the related proposed penalty assessment until October. The assessment was dated July 9, which made it appear that the 30-day penalty-contest period had already expired and caused filing confusion. The Secretary…
Secretary of Labor v. North American Mining Company
Timely answer defeated default
A show-cause order was treated as a default after the Commission record appeared to contain no timely answer from North American Mining. The operator produced an electronic case-management confirmation showing that it had filed its answer four days after the show-cause order and well before the…
Atlantic Supply LLC
In re Atlantic Supply LLC (EAB CAA Appeal No. 25-08C): HFC-import settlement approved
Atlantic Supply LLC imported bulk hydrofluorocarbons through the Port of Charlotte Amalie in the U.S. Virgin Islands. EPA alleged that Atlantic Supply imported the regulated substances without expending the required allowances and failed to submit advance notification and quarterly reports for the…
DeVoe v. Premier Trucking LLC
Missed-deadline appeal reopened after reconsideration
Jon DeVoe sought review of the denial of his STAA complaint against Premier Trucking. The Board granted part of his requested extension but closed the matter when he missed the resulting June 9, 2025 deadline. DeVoe then submitted his petition and explained that he had not received the extension…
Matter of Gairat AKHMEDOV
Bond grant vacated and detention ordered
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's order releasing the respondent on a $15,000 bond. The Board held that discrepancies in the respondent's reported addresses, including his delayed change-of-address filing, supported a finding that he posed a flight risk. It also…
Secretary of Labor v. Rain-for-Rent
Truck fire-warning and extinguisher citations upheld
MSHA cited a Rain-for-Rent service truck at the Kemmerer Mine because it carried oil and flammable aerosol products without readily visible warnings against both smoking and open flames. MSHA also found that the truck's fire extinguisher had a torn inspection tag that did not show the date of its…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Southeast Mining, LLC
Slope-belt accumulation orders upheld and modified
MSHA found extensive combustible coal accumulations along Peabody Southeast Mining's slope belt and tail area, including material touching the moving belt and rollers. Damaged and locked rollers supplied potential ignition sources. The mine's examination records had noted accumulations for several…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Southeast Mining, LLC
Rib, examination, and coal-accumulation orders upheld
Three litigated orders at Peabody's Shoal Creek Mine concerned extensive loose ribs along a conveyor walkway, an inadequate preshift examination that failed to identify those conditions, and combustible coal accumulations around the Mother Belt. The Judge found five loose-rib sections extending…
Matter of Cesar Rolando MAYORGA IPINA
Bond order vacated for mandatory detention
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's order releasing the respondent from custody on bond. The Board held that the respondent's Virginia conviction for indecent exposure required an obscene display or exposure and therefore involved a lewd intent, making it a crime…
Matter of Israel Enrique ROQUE-IZADA
Termination vacated and proceedings remanded
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's termination of removal proceedings so the respondent could pursue adjustment of status under the Cuban Adjustment Act before USCIS. The Board held that the Immigration Judge had jurisdiction to adjudicate the adjustment application…
Lewis v. Deepwell Energy Services, LLC
Reconsideration of interlocutory-review denial rejected
Lorenzo Lewis alleged that Deepwell Energy Services fired him for complaints about transportation-safety compliance. After the administrative judge denied summary decision and related requests, Lewis filed three petitions seeking immediate Board review. The Board denied those petitions and then…
Wanda Palo v. United States Steel Corporation
Discrimination complaint dismissed before Commission reversal
Wanda Palo alleged that U.S. Steel discriminated against her by disciplining and firing her after she reported that a coworker had struck her and caused an injury. The Judge found that her reports of the incident and injury were protected activity. He nevertheless concluded that Palo had not shown…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. O'Bryan Composting, LLC
Administrator withdraws H-2A appeal
The Wage and Hour Administrator alleged that O'Bryan Composting violated requirements of the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program. An administrative judge dismissed some claims and later entered default judgment against the company on the remaining claims. The Administrator appealed the…
DeVoe v. Premier Trucking LLC
Historical closure after missed petition deadline
Jon DeVoe sought additional time to appeal the denial of his STAA complaint against Premier Trucking. He requested 60 days because he could work on the appeal only on weekends. The Board granted an extension through June 9, 2025, and warned that missing the deadline could result in administrative…
United States Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration and Professional Aviation Safety Specialists
Federal Aviation Administration and PASS (FLRA 0-AR-5912): Authority dismisses premature telework exceptions
An arbitrator found that the Federal Aviation Administration relied on reasons that were not objective or grounded in existing facts when it denied three employees' requests for full-time telework. He sent the requests back to the agency for reconsideration, retained jurisdiction, and stated that…
Matter of S-S-
CAT deferral vacated and removal ordered
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's decision granting the respondent deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture. The Board held that the record did not show that the respondent would more likely than not face long-term detention or detention conditions…
Matter of C-M-M-
Bond order vacated and detention ordered
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's March 19, 2025, custody decision that released the applicant from DHS custody on a $15,000 bond and alternatives to detention. The Board held that the Immigration Judge clearly erred in finding that DHS had not shown the applicant…
Signet Construction, LLC
Truss-bracing violation affirmed and other allegations vacated
Signet Construction was building a 60,000-square-foot dairy barn in South Dakota using 138-foot wooden trusses when most of the trusses over the parlor area collapsed, injuring nine employees. OSHA alleged four General Duty Clause theories involving bracing, truss repair, storage, and hoisting…
Masis Staffing Solutions, LLC
Unstable truss-bundle citation affirmed
Masis Staffing supplied temporary workers to a roof-truss manufacturer in Gainesville, Florida. A forklift operator left a 2,000-pound bundle of trusses standing vertically and unsupported for about ten minutes, and it fell onto a Masis worker who was securing another bundle to a trailer. The judge…
TCP Specialists, LLC
Pressurized-piping buffer-zone violation affirmed
TCP Specialists provided wireline services during work on a gas well in San Augustine County, Texas. When well pressure was released into unrestrained pump piping, the pipe ruptured and whipped violently, killing two workers and injuring three others. The judge found that TCP lacked control over…
Premier Bulk Stevedoring, LLC
Crane-visibility citation vacated
Premier Bulk Stevedoring used a shipboard crane to move rolls of paper from a dock into a vessel's cargo hold. OSHA alleged that the crane operator could not see the signalman guiding the draft's movement and cited the longshoring rule that prohibits hoisting a draft unless the operator can see the…
Kudigram v. Constellation Energy Generation, LLC
ERA appeal dismissed for failure to file briefs or respond
Harsha Kudigram appealed summary dismissal of an Energy Reorganization Act complaint against Constellation Energy Generation. The Board ordered an opening brief by May 8, 2025, but none was filed. It then directed Kudigram to submit the brief and explain the failure by May 30, warning that…
Secretary of Labor v. Wayne J. Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Unread show-cause order did not excuse default
Wayne J. Sand & Gravel failed to answer MSHA's penalty petition and then failed to respond to the Commission's show-cause order. Its new office secretary said she was unfamiliar with the process, busy, and did not scroll far enough to recognize the attached order. The Commission found that the…
Matter of A-A-F-V-
CAT protection vacated
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's decision granting the applicant deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture. The Board accepted that the applicant was likely to be detained in El Salvador as a bisexual criminal deportee with visible gang tattoos, but…
Matter of B-N-K-
Administrative closure denied and proceedings remanded
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's interlocutory appeal from the denial of its motion to recalendar removal proceedings that had been administratively closed. The Board held that administrative closure was not warranted to await the respondent's pending Temporary Protected…
Secretary of Labor v. NR Hamm Quarry Inc.
Accidental payments reopened
NR Hamm Quarry timely filed citation contests but its accounting office later paid the related proposed penalties without review by the safety department. Counsel discovered the payments only when the Commission announced plans to dismiss the pending contest cases, and the operator promptly sought…
Matter of E-Z-
Asylum and withholding denial affirmed, CAT protection vacated
The Board reviewed the respondent's cross appeal from an Immigration Judge's denial of asylum and withholding of removal and the Department of Homeland Security's appeal from the grant of protection under the Convention Against Torture. The Board affirmed that the respondent's detentions and…
Pettengill Family Restoration, LLC
Four construction citations vacated
Pettengill Family Restoration subcontracted crews to assemble panelized houses at residential construction sites. Four OSHA inspections produced serious and repeat-serious citations involving head and eye protection, fall protection, scaffolds, and ladders, with proposed penalties totaling $78,701…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Brek Pinkerton v. RMC Mining Development, LLC, et al.
Discrimination default and damages ordered
The Secretary brought a Mine Act discrimination case for miner Brek Pinkerton against RMC Mining Development, American Mining Properties, Russ Myers, and Matthew Head. The respondents repeatedly failed to answer, participate in discovery, attend depositions, respond to show-cause orders, or oppose…
Kossen v. Asia Pacific Airlines
Summary dismissal affirmed where timing alone did not show retaliation
Former pilot Darren Kossen alleged that Asia Pacific Airlines retaliated by sending inaccurate pilot records to a prospective employer more than four years after protected activity. He did not oppose the airline's summary-decision motion despite extensions, leaving no additional evidence linking…
Matter of Wendi Del Carmen LOPEZ-TICAS
Administrative closure vacated and proceedings remanded
The Board reviewed the Department of Homeland Security's interlocutory appeal after an Immigration Judge denied its motion to recalendar removal proceedings that had been administratively closed. The Board held that the respondent's pending Temporary Protected Status application did not justify…
Freezetone Products, LLC
In re Freezetone Products, LLC (EAB CAA Appeal No. 25-06C): HFC-import settlement approved
Freezetone Products, LLC imported bulk hydrofluorocarbons in two shipments that arrived in the United States on June 29, 2024, and August 17, 2024. EPA alleged that the company imported 31,346.1 kilograms of regulated substances without expending the required consumption or application-specific…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. Ten West Cattle, Inc.
J-1 intern wage claims excluded from H-2A corresponding employment
Ten West Cattle operated a Nebraska feedlot and hosted J-1 exchange-program interns while employing H-2A agricultural workers. The Wage and Hour Administrator sought H-2A wage protections for the interns as workers in corresponding employment. The Board majority held that the applicable definition…
Jones v. Exclusive Jets, LLC
Board awards $103,195 in AIR21 appellate attorney fees
Exclusive Jets terminated Michael Jones, and the Board had previously affirmed a finding that the company violated AIR21, modifying only the formula for interest on back pay. Jones requested $99,072.50 in attorney fees for the Board appeal and another $4,122.50 for preparing his reply on the fee…
Magic Valley Crushing & Excavation, LLC, dba The Rock Yard
Unstable shelving storage violation affirmed
Magic Valley Crushing operated The Rock Yard, an Idaho landscaping-supply store with an overstock storage area. After a manager relocated several metal shelving units, the units were not bolted back together and heavy boxes of hardware were stacked more heavily on the upper shelves. One unit leaned…
Florim USA, Inc.
In re Florim USA, Inc. (EAB CAA Appeal No. 25-07C): HFC-product import settlement approved
Florim USA, Inc. imported four self-contained heat-exchange products containing R-410A on or about February 13, 2025. EPA alleged that the products used a regulated substance with a global warming potential above the applicable limit for the product sector, violating the Technology Transition…
United States Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 149
Customs and Border Protection and NTEU Chapter 149 (FLRA 0-AR-5978): Authority dismisses premature work-unit exceptions
An arbitrator found that Customs and Border Protection violated its collective-bargaining agreement when it configured work units for an annual employee-bidding process. He ordered the agency to bring the units into compliance, directed make-whole relief for lost overtime, sent the remedy details…
Matter of C-I-R-H- & H-S-V-R-
Asylum grant vacated and CAT issue remanded
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's grant of asylum to a Honduran mother and her minor daughter. The Board held that the record did not show a connection between the family's killings and the proposed family-based social group beyond speculation, so the nexus…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Guillermo Ortiz v. Kilauea Crushers
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Guillermo Ortiz alleged that Kilauea Crushers fired him after he raised concerns about cleaning near allegedly unguarded equipment. The Judge found that Ortiz's requests to use a skid-steer or lock out the plants were protected safety activity and that the termination followed closely enough to…
Gourneau v. BNSF Railway Co.
Railroad retaliation ruling and full remedies affirmed
Dale Gourneau worked as a BNSF carman and regularly raised train-yard and railcar safety concerns. After reports involving wheel defects, illegible stencils, broken running boards, road conditions, and missing blue flags, BNSF imposed two serious track-crossing charges, suspended him, and then…
Lear v. GFL Environmental
Discovery dismissal affirmed after repeated violations
Michael Lear alleged that GFL Environmental fired him after he reported a broken truck step and other safety issues. During the administrative case, he repeatedly withheld responsive records, audio recordings, and required hearing disclosures despite discovery orders and express warnings. The judge…
Gonzales v. Global Crossing Airlines
AIR21 appeal dismissed after briefing orders ignored
Rebecca Gonzales sought Board review of the dismissal of her AIR21 whistleblower case against Global Crossing Airlines. The Board ordered an opening brief by April 10, 2025, but none was filed. It then issued a show-cause order requiring both an explanation and the brief, with an express warning…
Johnson v. Inpax Shipping Solutions
Late STAA complaint appeal dismissed after missed briefing
Eric Johnson alleged that Inpax Shipping Solutions terminated him in retaliation, but he filed his OSHA complaint more than 180 days after the December 2023 termination. An administrative judge dismissed the complaint as untimely and found no basis for equitable tolling. Johnson then missed the…
Matter of Q. Li
Bond redetermination appeal dismissed
The respondent, a citizen of the People's Republic of China, entered the United States without inspection and was arrested without a warrant near the southern border. DHS initially released her on immigration parole, later took her into custody after learning of a Spanish Red Notice, and placed her…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. JRW Service Group, LLC
DBA decision affirmed after appeal filed over 100 days late
JRW Service Group and Jason Winters sought review of an administrative judge's decision under the Davis-Bacon Act and the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act. The Wage and Hour Administrator requested four stated clarifications one day before the 40-day appeal deadline, and the judge…
Precision Refractory Services
Scaffold-alteration item vacated and falling-object item affirmed
Precision Refractory Services performed fireproof-brick work inside a furnace in Cantonment, Florida. The company assigned an employee to clean debris on the ground below workers handling bricks and tools on a scaffold 12 to 14 feet above him, and a scaffold component fell and fractured his wrist…
Lawn Groomers, Inc.
H-2B certification appeal dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
Lawn Groomers applied to hire temporary nonagricultural workers through the H-2B program. A certifying officer denied the application, and the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals affirmed that denial. Lawn Groomers then appealed to the Administrative Review Board, citing regulations that…
Cagle v. Broken Arrow Excavation
STAA appeal withdrawn and sanctions request denied
Slade Cagle appealed dismissal of his STAA complaint against Broken Arrow Excavation but requested to withdraw the appeal instead of filing his opening brief. Because his request did not state whether a settlement prompted the withdrawal, the Board ordered him to certify that there was no…
United States Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, Del Rio Sector and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2366, National Border Patrol Council
U.S. Border Patrol, Del Rio Sector and AFGE Local 2366 (FLRA 0-AR-5987): Authority sets aside overtime backpay
Customs and Border Protection temporarily revoked a Border Patrol agent's law-enforcement and firearm authority after an off-duty arrest and assigned him to administrative work that did not qualify for overtime. An arbitrator found that an unsupported dishonesty charge delayed restoration of full…
Secretary of Labor v. P&K Stone, LLC
Returned assessment reopened after address update
MSHA mailed P&K Stone's assessment to its Chico, Texas address of record, but the Postal Service returned it because forwarding had expired. P&K updated its address 24 days after the failed delivery, before receiving a delinquency notice, and moved to reopen within 30 days of that notice. The…
Matter of E-Y-F-G-
Bond order vacated for flight risk
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's order releasing the respondent from custody on a $10,000 bond. The Board held that the respondent's short residence in the United States, recent criminal activity, removal of a court-ordered GPS ankle monitor, and assistance to a…
Cytonix, LLC
In re Cytonix, LLC (EAB TSCA Appeal No. 25-03C): new-chemical settlement approved
Cytonix, LLC manufactured a chemical substance identified in the order as Chemical A, which the company treated as confidential business information. EPA alleged that Cytonix manufactured the new chemical on at least 77 occasions before submitting a required pre-manufacture notice or applicable…
595 Construction LLC
Late contests dismissed and penalties affirmed
OSHA inspected three 595 Construction worksites in Elburn, Illinois, under its fall-hazard emphasis program and issued three sets of citations. The company received the citations in early November 2024 but did not file notices of contest by the November 27 deadline, instead filing about two months…
Secretary of Labor v. Ben's Creek Operations WV, LLC
Commission review withdrawn
The Commission had granted the Secretary of Labor's petition for discretionary review of the judge's decision in April 2024. After further consideration, all three Commissioners concluded that review had been improvidently granted. The Commission vacated its direction for review. The short order…
Matter of A-A-R-
CAT deferral vacated
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's grant of deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture to a former MS-13 gang member from El Salvador who had a United States murder conviction. The Board agreed that the respondent would likely be detained after removal…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission and Board decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, 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.