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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National Association of Government Employees, Local 5-188 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina
NAGE Local 5-188 and Seymour Johnson Air Force Base (FLRA 0-AR-2994): union exceptions denied
NAGE Local 5-188 challenged an arbitration award involving Seymour Johnson Air Force Base. The published decision does not describe the grievance, the award, or the union's specific objections. The Authority reviewed the record under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a) and found no basis to set the award aside. It…
Stone-Circle Underground, Inc.
Trackhoe bucket violation affirmed, spoil-pile and cave-in items vacated
Stone-Circle Underground builds underground drainage fields in the Fort Lauderdale area. During an August 1997 inspection of a French drain job in a bank parking lot, OSHA issued three excavation citations: employees working under a trackhoe bucket, a spoil pile stacked at the trench edge, and a…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1151 and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
AFGE Local 1151 and VA (FLRA 0-AR-2984): reduced suspension award upheld
A VA employee attempted to access a former coworker's benefits record outside his office's jurisdiction. Another employee ultimately accessed the record and processed the claim. The VA suspended the first employee for 14 days, and an arbitrator reduced that suspension to seven days. The union…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R14-142 and U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, Yuma, Arizona
NAGE Local R14-142 and Defense Commissary Agency (FLRA 0-AR-2955): detail and cost award upheld
The Defense Commissary Agency assigned a Yuma store worker to direct night shift employees for 14 months. The union sought higher grade pay, but an arbitrator found that the employee had not performed supervisory duties. The arbitrator nevertheless split arbitration costs because the agency had…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Sherry Ude and Brett Ude v. Illini Energy Resources, LLC
Discrimination settlement approved
The Secretary alleged that Illini Energy Resources denied Sherry Ude and Brett Ude work opportunities and terminated them because Sherry engaged in protected activity. The parties asked the judge to approve a settlement. Under the agreement, Illini Energy must pay Sherry $17,000 in back wages…
Inland Steel Mining Company
Copper-fume citation vacated
Inland Steel was cited after a welder's measured copper-fume exposure exceeded a short-term limit identified in MSHA materials. The judge held that the Pennsylvania short-term limits were not adopted by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists in the 1973 publication…
U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Navajo Area Office and National Federation of Federal Employees, BIA Council
Bureau of Indian Affairs, Navajo Area Office and NFFE BIA Council (FLRA 0-AR-2827): reconsideration denied
The Bureau of Indian Affairs designated Kinlichee Boarding School as the competitive area for an employee's reduction in force. In an earlier decision, the Authority found that the designation complied with the applicable regulation and set aside an arbitrator's award in the union's favor. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Coal Company
Abatement order upheld and penalty settlement approved
Peabody Coal was cited after an underground scoop retained oil-saturated combustible material that had not been fully cleaned by the abatement deadline. Judge Avram Weisberger found that the inspector reasonably refused to extend the deadline because the combustible material remained and no mine…
Martha D. Mowl v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Mowl v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 97-0960s): full hearing loss covered, penalty reversed
Martha Mowl developed hearing loss while working for Ingalls Shipbuilding. An audiogram showed an impairment in 1988, and continued workplace noise increased the loss measured in 1994. The Board held that the timely 1994 claim covered the full 40.16 percent impairment because later exposure…
Lone Mountain Processing, Inc.
Dust-related ventilation citations upheld, one citation dismissed
Lone Mountain Processing operated the Darby Fork No. 1 underground coal mine. The Judge dismissed Citation No. 4074103 after the Secretary withdrew it, but found that dust in two roadway areas showed the mine's ventilation plan was not followed under 30 C.F.R. § 75.370(a). The Judge credited the…
Associated Electric Cooperatives, Inc.
Inspection contests dismissed after federal injunction
Associated Electric Cooperatives refused an MSHA inspector entry to its Thomas Hill power plant because it disputed whether its coal-handling operations were subject to Mine Act jurisdiction. The Judge held that the federal district court's permanent injunction requiring MSHA access resolved the…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Underseas Warfare Center Division, Keyport, Washington and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Local 282
Navy Keyport and Machinists Local 282 (FLRA 0-AR-2969): second hazard pay differential vacated
Employees at the Navy's Keyport paint shop worked around hazardous materials and sought environmental differential pay. An arbitrator awarded a 4 percent differential for exposure to toxic chemicals and another 4 percent for dirty work during the same period. The Authority vacated the second…
Nevada Goldfields, Inc.
Discrimination claim rejected after miner's discharge
Kenneth L. Driessen, a mechanic at Nevada Goldfields' Nixon Fork gold mine, raised safety concerns about a ball mill and was later discharged after management concluded that he failed to complete assigned work and instead altered the mill flange. The ALJ found that Driessen engaged in protected…
John E. Porter v. Kwajalein Services, Incorporated
Porter v. Kwajalein Services (BRB 97-0212r): approved settlement remains binding
John Porter settled his Defense Base Act injury claims with Kwajalein Services for $100,000, and a judge approved the agreement. Porter later asked that judge to rescind it and reopen the hearing. The Board held that an approved settlement could not be unilaterally rescinded or modified and that…
McKie Ford
Willful conveyor hazard affirmed with a $20,000 penalty
McKie Ford operated an automobile dealership where employees routinely rode a vertical reciprocating conveyor designed only for freight. An employee was killed when his head was caught between the second-floor landing and the ceiling of the unguarded conveyor. The judge found the hazard recognized…
Blue Circle, Inc.
Crane brake defect citation affirmed
Blue Circle operated a limestone quarry and cement plant with two overhead cranes sharing rails at its Tulsa facility. MSHA cited the company after it removed the manufacturer-installed hydraulic service brake from one crane and relied on plugging and an emergency brake to stop it. Judge Jacqueline…
Reading Anthracite Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
William Kaczmarczyk alleged that Reading Anthracite Company discriminated against him under section 105(c) of the Mine Act by denying him temporary truck-driving assignments. The Judge found that Kaczmarczyk engaged in protected activity and that a Reading manager showed animus toward those…
Brandenburg Industrial Services Company
Four demolition safety violations affirmed
Brandenburg Industrial Services Company performed demolition work at the Bethlehem Steel plant in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. OSHA cited an inadequately protected eight-foot excavation, an uncovered floor opening, a worn shackle, and excessively worn chain links on magnet excavators. The judge found…
In re O-Z- & I-Z-, Respondents
In re O-Z- & I-Z- (BIA ID 3346): cumulative anti-Semitic abuse established persecution
The Board reviewed the government's appeal of an Immigration Judge's asylum grant to a Ukrainian father and son of Jewish nationality. The family experienced repeated physical attacks, anti-Semitic threats, property destruction, and intimidation, including an assault that injured the son's knee and…
Consolidation Coal Company
Accident-evidence citation dismissed
A methane explosion at Consolidation Coal Company's Blacksville No. 1 Mine killed four miners. During MSHA's investigation, company officials entered a damaged company vehicle to retrieve personal effects and training records, and temporarily removed a methane detector before returning it. MSHA…
Federal Aviation Administration, Honolulu, Hawaii and National Air Traffic Controllers Association, Honolulu CERAP Local
FAA Honolulu and NATCA Honolulu CERAP Local (FLRA SF-CA-60475): union newsletter removal violated employee rights
Air traffic controllers at the FAA's Honolulu facility received copies of a union newsletter in nonwork areas. A manager ordered the union to remove the April 1996 issue because he considered one article offensive. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that the removal interfered with…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1345, Fort Carson, Colorado (in Trusteeship), AFGE AFL-CIO, and Edward Vasquez
AFGE Local 1345 and Edward Vasquez (FLRA DE-CO-40667): dues warning unlawful, arbitration claim dismissed
AFGE Local 1345 pursued arbitration for a former Fort Carson employee, then withdrew the grievance shortly before the hearing. The union treasurer had sent the employee a letter saying he owed dues to prevent possible termination of the arbitration. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that…
Georges Colliers Inc.
Flooding orders affirmed, one citation modified, settlements approved
Georges Colliers operated underground coal mines in Oklahoma. After heavy rain left water near mine portals and a pump failed, an MSHA inspector issued an imminent-danger order, citations, and withdrawal orders based on the risk of flooding and blocked emergency protections. The Judge affirmed the…
American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO and AFGE Local 1164 and Karen Harrington Emery
AFGE Local 1164 and Karen Harrington Emery (FLRA BN-CO-50066): coercive statements upheld, transfer claim dismissed
A Social Security Administration employee sought a hardship reassignment after moving farther from her office. An AFGE local official asked whether she was a union member and later said her request would have been handled differently if she had been one. The Authority adopted the judge's finding…
Department of Housing and Urban Development, Pennsylvania State Office, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2032
HUD Pennsylvania State Office and AFGE Local 2032 (FLRA BN-CA-50446): union president's office removal unlawful
A HUD attorney who became president of AFGE Local 2032 planned to spend all of her work time on union duties temporarily. Her supervisors ordered her to empty her private office because of that planned activity. The judge found that the office assignment was a condition of employment and that HUD's…
Headquarters Forces Command, Fort McPherson, Georgia and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1759
Headquarters Forces Command and AFGE Local 1759 (FLRA AT-CA-70042): job-loss warning unlawful, retaliation claims dismissed
An Army headquarters employee filed a grievance about her job grade. During a meeting, a management analyst suggested that pursuing the grievance could put her job at risk. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that this warning unlawfully interfered with the employee's protected rights. It…
Air Force Logistics Command, Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 987
Warner Robins Air Logistics Center and AFGE Local 987 (FLRA AT-CA-50246): telephone move required bargaining
At an Air Force maintenance shop, a supervisor locked her office for security and moved a telephone used by evening-shift employees to a nearby table. The union received no notice or chance to bargain over the telephone's location. The Authority rejected the judge's recommendation to dismiss the…
International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 4 and U.S. Department of the Navy, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and IFPTE Local 4 (FLRA 0-NG-2378): instructor staffing bargaining is elective
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard planned to assign radiological control instructors to routine technician work, and the union sought bargaining over that policy. The Authority found that the proposal concerned the type of employees assigned to a different organizational subdivision. That made bargaining…
Bremerton Metal Trades Council and U.S. Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton Metal Trades Council and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (FLRA 0-AR-3036): arbitration exceptions denied
The Bremerton Metal Trades Council challenged an arbitrator's award involving the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. The Authority reviewed the record and found no reason to set the award aside under the statutory grounds for arbitration review. It denied the union's exceptions. The decision does not…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Northampton, Massachusetts and National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-107
Northampton VA Medical Center and NAGE Local R1-107 (FLRA 0-AR-3016): ordered appraisal upgrade set aside
A Northampton VA Medical Center employee challenged a performance appraisal that rated him fully successful overall. An arbitrator found his work exceeded the standards in two categories and ordered the agency to raise those ratings and his overall rating to outstanding. The Authority granted the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2408 and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Juan, Puerto Rico
AFGE Local 2408 and San Juan VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-AR-2977): reprimand upheld after award clarification
A San Juan VA Medical Center employee was reprimanded after leaving a shift early and reporting late for his next shift. The arbitrator upheld the reprimand, and the Authority previously asked him to clarify whether it rested on an absence without leave or on the employee's failure to follow…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 11 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington
Fairchild Air Force Base and NFFE Local 11 (FLRA 0-AR-2974): revised arbitration fee bill set aside
An arbitrator denied a Fairchild Air Force Base employee's grievance over a three-day suspension and initially billed the agency and union equally for arbitration fees. After that award became final without exceptions, the arbitrator sent the union a revised bill for the entire fee, saying he had…
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine and National Association of Agriculture Employees
USDA Plant Protection and Quarantine and NAAE (FLRA 0-AR-2907): hearing expenses returned for explanation
After employees won retroactive temporary promotions with backpay, an arbitrator awarded their union attorney fees and expenses. The agency challenged the higher hourly rate due after a successful outcome, a travel expense, and the hearing expenses. The Authority upheld the fee rate because the…
Federal Trade Commission, Headquarters, Washington, D.C. and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2211
FTC Headquarters and AFGE Local 2211 (FLRA 0-AR-2900): suspension award remanded for clarification
The Federal Trade Commission suspended an employee for 14 days after statements it considered threats of workplace violence. An arbitrator vacated the suspension and ordered back pay, reasoning that the agency should have pursued a psychological examination before disciplining him. The Authority…
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Division of Information Resource Management, Atlanta, Georgia and National Treasury Employees Union
FDIC Information Resource Management and NTEU (FLRA 0-AR-2883): supervised paralegal fees upheld
An arbitrator reversed an FDIC employee's suspension, awarded backpay, and later awarded attorney fees and expenses to her union. The agency challenged fees for work done by a union field representative who was a trained paralegal rather than an attorney. The Authority found that the union's…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Philadelphia Service Center and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 53
Philadelphia IRS Service Center and NTEU Chapter 53 (FLRA 0-AR-2862): attorney-fee award returned for explanation
An arbitrator found that the Philadelphia IRS Service Center wrongly denied administrative leave to 35 employees who won full or partial relief on their grievances. He then awarded the union $9,127.40 in attorney fees. The Authority agreed that the contract violation supported the finding of an…
Social Security Administration, Baltimore, Maryland and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 1923 (FLRA 0-AR-2860): union steward's suspension vacatur upheld
The Social Security Administration suspended a union steward for 14 days over missed training and two incidents involving a supervisor and a bulletin board. An arbitrator found the missed training insubordinate but concluded that the agency had tied its disciplinary decision to the employee's…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1437 and U.S. Department of the Army, Army Research, Development and Engineering Center
NFFE Local 1437 and Army Research Center (FLRA 0-AR-2809): promotion grievance returned for factual findings
An Army contract specialist challenged his nonselection for two GS-13 positions, alleging race discrimination and an unlawful preference for an unqualified selectee. The arbitrator denied the grievance but did not analyze whether promoting the other applicant violated the statutory ban on…
Consolidation Coal Company, Robert G. Wyatt, and Danny E. Crutchfield
Split vote leaves bleeder-system finding in place
Consolidation Coal Company was cited over its bleeder system and its evaluation of that system at an underground mine. The Commission denied the Secretary of Labor's request to remand the judge's decision concerning the evaluation requirement in 30 C.F.R. § 75.364(a)(2). On the section 75.334(b)(1)…
Department of the Air Force, Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field
In re Department of the Air Force, Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field (EAB RCRA Appeal Nos. 97-1 and 97-2): petition dismissed after settlement
The Department of the Air Force, Eglin Air Force Base and Hurlburt Field, and EPA Region 4 jointly moved to withdraw a petition for review after settling the issues raised by the petition. The Environmental Appeals Board granted the motion and dismissed the petition. The short public release does…
REB Enterprises, Inc. and Harold Miller and Richard Berry
Seat-belt and guarding rulings split on review
The Commission reviewed civil penalty proceedings involving REB Enterprises, a limestone quarry, and alleged seat-belt, equipment, and guarding violations. It vacated the judge’s no-unwarrantable-failure finding on the haul-truck seat-belt citation and remanded that issue. It reversed other…
Domingo Alexander v. Triple A Machine Shop
Alexander v. Triple A Machine Shop (BRB 97-1143): earlier impairment date and settlement credit require recalculation
Domingo Alexander worked as a shipfitter and boilermaker for Triple A Machine Shop and other employers and developed asbestosis. After an earlier remand, the judge again set the start of his permanent partial disability benefits in 1989 and denied Triple A a credit for settlements paid by three…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1808 and U.S. Department of the Army, Sierra Army Depot, Herlong, California
AFGE Local 1808 and Sierra Army Depot (FLRA 0-AR-3038): arbitration exceptions denied
AFGE Local 1808 challenged an arbitrator's award involving the Sierra Army Depot. The Authority reviewed the record and concluded that the award was not deficient under any ground raised in the union's exceptions. It denied the exceptions, leaving the award in place. The public decision does not…
U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, Fort Lee, Virginia and National Association of Government Employees, Local R4-45
Defense Commissary Agency and NAGE Local R4-45 (FLRA 0-AR-3023): full-time vacancy required competitive notice
A commissary filled a vacant full-time produce worker position with a part-time employee without posting the opening or notifying the union. An arbitrator held that the negotiated merit promotion plan required competitive procedures because the full-time job offered advancement, even without a…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R5-168 and U.S. Department of the Army, Fort Polk, Louisiana
NAGE Local R5-168 and Fort Polk (FLRA 0-NG-2386): mechanics' grade proposal outside bargaining duty
After position audits at Fort Polk, the union proposed placing all mechanics in three sections at grade WG-5803-10. The Authority found that the proposal specified both the occupational series and grade of those positions. Federal labor law excludes position classification from the conditions of…
Central Wayne Energy Recovery Limited Partnership
In re Central Wayne Energy Recovery Limited Partnership (EAB PSD Appeal No. 98-1): reconsideration denied as untimely
Sandra Yerman sought reconsideration of the EAB's earlier dismissal of her challenge to a PSD permit for Central Wayne Energy Recovery Limited Partnership in Dearborn Heights, Michigan. The earlier dismissal treated the petition as late because the Board used a December 29, 1997 filing deadline…
Kenamerican Resources, Inc.
Penalty assessment reopened
Kenamerican Resources asked the Commission to reopen a proposed civil penalty assessment that had become final after the company missed the 30-day deadline to contest it. The company attributed the missed filing to its safety director's illness and an internal processing error. The Commission found…
In re Alex OSEIWUS, Respondent
In re Alex OSEIWUSU (BIA ID 3344): advance-parole entrant could not seek bond review
The Board reviewed an Immigration Judge's bond-redetermination decision for a respondent who had returned to the United States under advance parole while seeking adjustment of status. It held that a person paroled into the United States after returning under advance parole remains an “arriving…
In re Duwlav Edilzar LOPEZ, Respondent
In re Duwlav Edilzar LOPEZ (BIA ID 3343): late appeal reconsideration remained reviewable
The Board considered a motion to reconsider its dismissal of a respondent's appeal as untimely. It held that the Board retains jurisdiction to review a motion challenging the finding that an appeal was late or explaining the lateness, even when the original appeal was dismissed without a merits…
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Louisiana State Office, New Orleans, Louisiana and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3475
HUD Louisiana State Office and AFGE Local 3475 (FLRA 0-AR-2884): temporary promotion remedy returned for qualification finding
A GS-5 legal clerk at HUD's Louisiana office performed backup duties for a higher-graded technology position for three years without extra pay. An arbitrator awarded her GS-12 pay for 50 percent of her work time during that period, treating the assignment as a detail requiring a temporary promotion…
Estate of Johnnie Henry v. Coordinated Caribbean Transport and American Motorists Insurance Company
Henry v. Coordinated Caribbean Transport (BRB 97-1063): unsigned settlement cannot be enforced
Johnnie Henry received a permanent total disability award after a severe hand injury while working for Coordinated Caribbean Transport. During an appeal, the parties exchanged messages agreeing on a settlement amount, but Henry died before they signed or submitted a settlement application for…
Gwendolyn L. Jordan v. Virginia International Terminals
Jordan v. Virginia International Terminals (BRB 97-0901): widow's death benefits depend on state marriage law
Alvin Jordan died from causes related to a back injury sustained while working for Virginia International Terminals. Gwendolyn Jordan, whom he had divorced years earlier, received death benefits after they had resumed living together. The judge found that she qualified as his widow under an older…
Medical Construction Group
General contractor held responsible for subcontractor's fall hazard
Medical Construction Group (MCG) was the general contractor building an addition at a medical center in Twin Falls, Idaho. During an April 1997 inspection, an OSHA compliance officer saw ironworkers from a subcontractor, R&L Construction, connecting steel about 29 to 30 feet up without any fall…
Milo Construction Corporation
Twelve violations affirmed with reduced classifications
Milo Construction Corporation was the prime contractor on a residential construction project in Guam. After Milo failed to comply with discovery orders, the judge deemed admitted the cited conditions, employee exposure, and Milo's ability to control or correct the hazards. The violations covered…
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Local 2333 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, 88th Air Base Wing, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
IAM Local 2333 and Wright-Patterson Air Base Wing (FLRA 0-AR-2937): steward's night-shift assignment upheld
A union steward at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base challenged an assignment to night-shift hours. The arbitrator found that he already belonged to a permanent rotating night shift when appointed steward, so the assignment did not change his shift in violation of the labor agreement. The union…
U.S. Department of the Army, U.S. Army Law Enforcement Command Pacific, Fort Shafter, Hawaii and Hawaii Teamsters and Allied Workers, Local 996
Army Law Enforcement Command Pacific and Teamsters Local 996 (FLRA SF-RP-70001): police supervisors excluded from unit
The Army sought to clarify whether desk sergeants and patrol supervisors belonged in a bargaining unit at Fort Shafter. The Regional Director found that they were supervisors and excluded them. The union sought Authority review, alleging factual, legal, and procedural errors and pointing to an…
In re Carlos Istalin MAGALLANES-Garcia, Respondent
In re Carlos Istalin MAGALLANES-Garcia (BIA ID 3341): aggravated DUI was a crime of violence
The Board reviewed an appeal from an order finding a lawful permanent resident deportable after an aggravated driving-under-the-influence conviction in Arizona. The respondent received a 21/2-year prison sentence after violating probation. The Board held that the offense involved a substantial risk…
Bill N. Holbrook v. Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
Holbrook v. Director, OWCP (BRB 97-0928): Black lung denial returned for disability causation review
Bill Holbrook sought to modify a denied black lung claim. A judge found that he had not proved pneumoconiosis and denied benefits. On appeal, the Director conceded that a newer x-ray established pneumoconiosis related to coal mine work and that pulmonary function testing established total…
L. C. Branham v. BethEnergy Mines, Incorporated
Branham v. BethEnergy Mines (BRB 97-0334): Benefit denial after employer modification affirmed
L. C. Branham had received black lung benefits, but BethEnergy Mines later requested modification of that award. A judge reviewed new and prior medical evidence, found a mistake in the earlier disability finding, and denied benefits. The Board majority held that modification could rest on new…
Clark Elkhorn Coal Company
Mine-opening citations dismissed
Clark Elkhorn Coal Company contested citations concerning the sealing of mine openings at the Sunset Mine No. 1 and Ratliff Mine No. 110. The Secretary had already vacated the citation in Docket No. KENT 97-77-R, and the company withdrew that contest. Judge David Barbour concluded that the…
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.