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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American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2608 and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, New York Region 2, San Juan Teleservice Center
San Juan Teleservice Center and AFGE Local 2608 (FLRA 0-AR-2589): Evaluation addenda remedy upheld
Social Security teleservice employees grieved how the agency marked new postal address formats in their evaluations, measured interview handling time, and denied credit hours. An arbitrator found that critical comments about address formats lacked context required by the labor agreements and…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1164 and United States Department of the Army, United States Army Corps of Engineers, New England Division
Army Corps New England and NFFE Local 1164 (FLRA 0-AR-2547): Repromotion claim denied
An Army Corps engineer accepted a temporary GS-12 assignment overseas and expected special consideration for a GS-12 position when he returned. While he was abroad, the Corps expanded its engineer career ladder so employees could advance to GS-12 without competition. After he returned, no GS-12…
United States Customs Service, Office of Regulations and Rulings and National Treasury Employees Union
Customs Service and NTEU (FLRA 0-AR-2537): Priority consideration remedy upheld
A Customs Service attorney grieved her nonselection for a GS-14 position. An arbitrator found flaws in the agency's rating process but did not find that the selection process unlawfully discriminated against her based on sex or marital status. He awarded priority consideration for the next suitable…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3673 and United States Department of the Navy, Naval Air Warfare Center, Trenton, New Jersey
Naval Air Warfare Center and AFGE Local 3673 (FLRA 0-NG-2193): Bargaining required over delayed moves; later reversed
The Navy delayed moving 32 engineering positions from Trenton while testing work and facilities remained there. AFGE Local 3673 proposed broader criteria for identifying which employees could remain. The Navy argued that federal transfer of function rules prevented bargaining over the proposals…
United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Region, Idaho Panhandle National Forests and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1818
Idaho Panhandle National Forests and NFFE Local 1818 (FLRA 0-AR-2561): Furlough exceptions dismissed
The Forest Service placed an Idaho Panhandle employee in unpaid layoff status for 28 days. An arbitrator found the employee was seasonal and denied a grievance challenging the agency's authority to do so. NFFE Local 1818 filed exceptions, arguing that the layoff should have followed statutory…
Wilhilmina Wood, administratrix of John D. White's estate, v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Wood v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 92-2532): hearing loss payment allocation corrected
John White developed work related hearing loss at Ingalls Shipbuilding and died before his claim was decided. The Board's earlier decision directed payment of accrued disability benefits to his estate but misstated how the employer and Special Fund would divide the payment. On reconsideration, it…
McNally Construction and Tunneling Co.
Tunnel standard preempts general electrical rule
McNally was constructing part of a Cleveland sewer tunnel in shale where methane could be encountered. OSHA alleged that the tunnel's lighting equipment and wiring were not intrinsically safe under the general construction electrical standard for hazardous locations. The Commission found that the…
K M & M, a Joint Venture
General electrical citation preempted by tunnel standard
K M & M was constructing a sewer tunnel in Cleveland shale, a formation known to contain combustible methane. OSHA alleged that lighting and other electrical equipment in the tunnel was not approved as intrinsically safe under the general construction electrical standard for hazardous locations…
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Portsmouth Federal Employees Metal Trades Council
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and Metal Trades Council (FLRA 1-CA-10493): Bargaining ordered over permit change
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard stopped issuing permits that let motor vehicle operators drive vehicles for which they lacked matching state commercial driver's licenses. The Authority found that the prior permit practice conflicted with applicable requirements, so the shipyard did not have to bargain…
United States Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service and National Weather Service Employees Organization, Branch 2-03
National Weather Service and NWSEO Branch 2-03 (FLRA 0-AR-2581): Short-notice shift change upheld
A National Weather Service employee's shift was changed with less than seven days' notice. After a remand, an arbitrator found that the Brownsville weather office's operations would have been seriously handicapped without the change and denied the grievance. The union argued that the statutory…
Police Association of the District of Columbia and United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service, United States Park Police
United States Park Police and Police Association (FLRA 0-AR-2578): January 1993 pay start upheld
The Park Police implemented a special pay adjustment for officers beginning January 8, 1993, when an Office of Personnel Management interim rule took effect. Their union argued that a 1992 statutory amendment required pay dating back to October 1992 or earlier. An arbitrator rejected the grievance…
General Motors Corporation, Inland Fisher Guide Division
In re General Motors Corporation, Inland Fisher Guide Division (EAB RCRA Appeal No. 93-5): permit remanded in part
General Motors Corporation's Inland Fisher Guide Division manufactured automobile components at a 234-acre facility in Anderson, Indiana. EPA Region V's HSWA permit required investigation and information submissions for designated solid waste management units. The Environmental Appeals Board upheld…
Patterson Drilling Company, Inc.
Bloodborne-pathogen citations vacated for an oil-field drilling crew
Patterson Drilling Company ran a horizontal drilling rig at a site south of Gonzales, Texas. OSHA inspected after a February 1993 accident in which falling equipment caused a fatal crushing injury to a worker. The agency issued a serious citation with eight items and an "other" citation with two…
Interstate Erectors, Inc.
Two willful fall-protection citations affirmed against a steel erector
Interstate Erectors was a small steel erection company putting up skeleton steel for a building in Idaho Falls, Idaho. During a February 1993 inspection, an OSHA compliance officer photographed and videotaped ironworkers moving across beams 42 feet up without being tied off, both on exterior beams…
Dream Set Fashion, Inc.
$5,500 penalty affirmed for six serious violations
Dream Set Fashion manufactured women's apparel in New York City and contested only the $5,500 penalty for six serious violations. The conditions involved a covered exit sign, unguarded fan blades, an unguarded rotating shaft, an unguarded sewing-machine pulley, missing grounding pins, and an open…
International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 777 and United States Department of the Army, Corps of Engineers, Chicago, Illinois
Army Corps Chicago and IFPTE Local 777 (FLRA 0-NG-2198): Negotiability petition dismissed as premature
IFPTE Local 777 sought an Authority order requiring the Army Corps of Engineers in Chicago to bargain over subjects covered by an executive order. Its petition identified broad areas such as staffing levels and methods of work, but supplied no specific proposal that it had submitted to the agency…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 171 and United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Federal Correctional Institution, El Reno, Oklahoma
El Reno correctional institution and AFGE Local 171 (FLRA 0-AR-2617): Removal exceptions dismissed
AFGE Local 171 sought Authority review of an arbitration award arising from an employee's removal at the El Reno federal correctional institution. The union described the dispute as reprisal for union activity and argued that it therefore did not concern the removal itself. The Authority found that…
Great Lakes Chemical Corp. Main Plant
In re Great Lakes Chemical Corp. Main Plant (EAB RCRA Appeal Nos. 92-34, 92-36, and 92-37): permit review denied
Great Lakes Chemical Corporation operated a chemical facility in El Dorado, Arkansas, under a permit issued jointly by EPA Region VI and the State of Arkansas. Great Lakes challenged conditions involving land-disposal restrictions and corrective action, nearby residents challenged other permit…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Amarillo, Texas and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1138
Amarillo VA Medical Center and NFFE Local 1138 (FLRA 0-AR-2559): Peer review award set aside
A probationary nurse at the Amarillo VA Medical Center requested union representation during a professional standards board review. An arbitrator found her grievance arbitrable and ordered the VA to permit representation and reimburse the union for official time. The VA had determined that the…
City of Yankton, South Dakota
In re City of Yankton, South Dakota (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 93-2a): pretreatment program requirement deleted
The City of Yankton operated a publicly owned treatment works that discharged under an NPDES permit into the Missouri River. EPA Region VIII had included a pretreatment program in the permit for the small plant, but the Administrative Law Judge ordered that condition deleted because EPA had not…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1592 and United States Department of the Air Force, Ogden Air Logistics Center, Hill Air Force Base, Utah
Hill Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1592 (FLRA 0-AR-2584): Performance rating award upheld
A sheet metal worker at Hill Air Force Base grieved his performance appraisal. An arbitrator found that the union had not shown a violation of the labor agreement or applicable law and denied the grievance. AFGE Local 1592 argued that the award lacked enough findings and reasoning to permit a…
United States Department of the Air Force, 375th Combat Support Group, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois and National Association of Government Employees, Local R7-23
Scott Air Force Base and NAGE Local R7-23 (FLRA 75-CA-10724): Reassignment bargaining complaint dismissed
Scott Air Force Base reassigned two commissary warehouse employees to produce jobs as warehouse work declined. NAGE Local R7-23 sought bargaining over which employees would move and how the changes would affect them. An administrative law judge found a refusal to bargain on two sets of proposals…
United States Department of Defense, Defense Communications Agency, Defense Commercial Communications Office, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois and National Association of Government Employees, Local R7-23
Defense Commercial Communications Office and NAGE Local R7-23 (FLRA 0-AR-2574): Agency grievance may proceed
The Defense Commercial Communications Office filed a grievance alleging that NAGE Local R7-23 refused to negotiate. The union argued that the wrong official signed the grievance and that an unfair labor practice charge barred an amended version. An arbitrator found that the signing official…
United States Department of the Air Force, Hill Air Force Base, Utah and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1592
Hill Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1592 (FLRA 0-AR-2573): Performance rating award upheld
A sheet metal mechanic at Hill Air Force Base challenged a performance rating of "fully successful," seeking a "superior" rating. An arbitrator found that the union had not shown that the appraisal violated law or the labor agreement, and denied the grievance. AFGE Local 1592 argued that the…
United States Department of the Treasury, Headquarters, Internal Revenue Service, Washington, D.C. and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 65
IRS Headquarters and NTEU Chapter 65 (FLRA 0-AR-2553): Priority consideration remedy upheld
An IRS tax law specialist had priority consideration for a promotion after an earlier grievance, but the agency passed him over for a GS-14 vacancy. An arbitrator found that the IRS compared him with other candidates instead of giving him genuine priority consideration and ordered promotion to the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3529 and United States Department of Defense, Defense Contract Audit Agency, Central Region
Defense Contract Audit Agency and AFGE Local 3529 (FLRA 0-AR-2544): Severance pay exceptions dismissed
The Defense Contract Audit Agency removed an auditor after she declined a reassignment from Missouri to Texas. An arbitrator denied her grievance seeking severance pay, finding that her position description allowed reassignment outside her commuting area. AFGE Local 3529 challenged that ruling…
United States Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Cleveland District and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 37
IRS Cleveland District and NTEU Chapter 37 (FLRA 0-AR-2543): Furlough exceptions dismissed
The IRS furloughed part-time seasonal employees in its Cleveland District for two weeks. NTEU Chapter 37 challenged the furloughs, arguing that the employees should have been treated as permanent and given adverse action procedures. An arbitrator rejected that claim, although he found that the…
Great Lakes Division of National Steel Corp
In re Great Lakes Division of National Steel Corp (EAB EPCRA Appeal No. 93-3): violations affirmed and penalty upheld
Great Lakes Division of National Steel operated a steel manufacturing facility on Zug Island, Michigan. A hydrogen sulfide release occurred after a pilot flame went out in a stack releasing combusted coke oven gas. The Environmental Appeals Board upheld findings that National did not promptly…
Maggie Yates, widow of Jefferson Yates, v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Yates v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 92-2322): employer credit limited to widow's share
Jefferson Yates worked as a shipfitter at Ingalls Shipbuilding and was exposed to asbestos. After his death, his widow Maggie won Longshore Act death benefits, while she and six adult children settled claims against asbestos product makers. The Board upheld her eligibility despite earlier…
Robert Ryan v. Lane and Company
Ryan v. Lane and Company (BRB 91-1697): final disability award cannot be reopened for later legal change
Robert Ryan received a permanent total disability award after a work-related back injury. The award included cost of living adjustments based on controlling law at the time and became final without an appeal. A later federal appellate decision rejected the method used to calculate those…
Conie Construction, Inc.
Willful excavation violation affirmed with $21,000 penalty
Three Conie Construction employees worked in an excavation about 20 to 21 feet deep, with hard clay above solid rock. The Commission found that the excavation was too narrow at the top to provide the slope required for Type A soil. Conie's foreman knew the excavation standard but relied on his own…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1164 and United States Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, District Office, Worcester, Massachusetts
SSA Worcester and AFGE Local 1164 (FLRA 0-NG-2175): Reception duty proposals rejected
At the Social Security Administration's Worcester office, claims employees were assigned reception duties. AFGE Local 1164 proposed limits on how those duties would affect performance ratings and performance improvement plans. The Authority held that a proposal to limit the weight of reception…
Marvin E. Vaughn v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Vaughn v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 90-2005): hearing loss claim timing clarified
Marvin Vaughn sought compensation for work-related hearing loss at Ingalls Shipbuilding. An administrative law judge had found the claim untimely because Vaughn's former attorney received an audiogram years earlier. The Board had reversed that ruling and returned the claim for remaining issues. On…
American Bridge/Lashcon, J.V.
Fall protection and cylinder-storage violations affirmed
American Bridge/Lashcon employees repeatedly crossed a 13-inch-wide beam 28 feet above the ground while wearing safety belts that were not tied off. The Commission held that protection was required for this discrete crossing task even though employees tied off while performing other work. It also…
MATTER OF D-
Indeterminate sentences counted at their maximum terms
The respondent was ordered deported to Haiti after Massachusetts convictions for armed robbery, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and assault with a dangerous weapon. The Board held that an indeterminate sentence is measured by its maximum term, so the convictions were aggravated…
MATTER OF SPARROW
Attorney suspended for immigration-law misconduct
The respondent was an attorney who had been convicted of offenses involving a sham-marriage scheme, false statements to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, subornation of perjury, and theft of government property. The record also showed suspensions from practice in several states and…
Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees and National Federation of Federal Employees
Social Security Administration, AFGE, and NFFE (FLRA WA-RO-30057): Election objections rejected
AFGE won a mail ballot election for a Social Security Administration bargaining unit previously represented by NFFE. NFFE objected that SSA had unfairly limited its campaign access to offices and temporarily removed its campaign material from bulletin boards. A regional director rejected the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2241 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Denver, Colorado
Denver VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2241 (FLRA 0-AR-2577): Attorney fee amount remanded
A Denver VA Medical Center employee prevailed in a grievance over a 14-day suspension, but an arbitrator excluded attorney fees for the employee's unsuccessful racial discrimination argument. AFGE Local 2241 challenged that fee reduction. The Authority held that both arguments arose from the same…
Panama Canal Commission and Maritime Metal Trades Council
Termination exceptions dismissed
The Panama Canal Commission terminated an employee under a rotation agreement after he became a United States citizen. The Maritime Metal Trades Council challenged the termination under the Panama Canal Treaty and the labor agreement, but an arbitrator denied the grievance. The Authority dismissed…
J&L Specialty Products Corp.
In re J&L Specialty Products Corp. (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 92-22): copper compliance condition remanded
J&L Specialty Products operated a facility in Louisville, Ohio, whose discharge affected the East Branch Nimishillen Creek. J&L challenged Ohio's Clean Water Act section 304(l) listing of the creek and J&L as a source of copper and nickel, and argued that cyanide in its discharge came from off-site…
Grady E. Hamilton, Sr. v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Hamilton v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 91-1035): hearing loss award redirected to estate
Grady Hamilton, a retired sheet metal worker at Ingalls Shipbuilding, developed work-related hearing loss and died before his claim was decided. An administrative law judge had calculated benefits under the retiree impairment provision and directed payment to the Special Fund. After a federal court…
MATTER OF MENDES
Withdrawn joint petition required waiver process
The respondent, a Cape Verdean citizen, became a conditional lawful permanent resident through marriage and jointly filed a petition to remove the conditions on her residence. Her husband later withdrew support during the interview, and the Service terminated her status for failure to file a joint…
Department of Health and Human Services, Navajo Area Indian Health Service, Shiprock Service Unit and National Association of Government Employees, Local R14-146; Indian Health Service, Dzilth-Na-O-Dith-Hle PHS Indian Health Center and Navajo Nation Health Care Employees, Local 1376
Indian Health Service Shiprock and Dzilth-Na-O-Dith-Hle Center (FLRA DA-CU-30056): Separate unit election may proceed
The Indian Health Service asked to add employees at the Dzilth-Na-O-Dith-Hle Health Center to an existing Shiprock bargaining unit represented by NAGE. Those employees had been expressly excluded from the earlier unit agreement, and another union sought an election to represent them separately. An…
United States Department of the Air Force, Air Education and Training Command, Randolph Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1840
Randolph Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1840 (FLRA 0-AR-2558): Higher grade backpay award set aside
An employee at Randolph Air Force Base claimed that he had performed WG-9 duties while paid at the WG-5 rate. An arbitrator ordered three years of backpay based on the higher grade of work. The Air Force argued that the award resolved a position classification issue excluded from the negotiated…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-109 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Newington, Connecticut
Newington VA Medical Center and NAGE Local R1-109 (FLRA 0-AR-2531): Fee reconsideration denied
The Authority had set aside an arbitrator's denial of attorney fees because the arbitrator had not explained the ruling under the Back Pay Act's requirements. NAGE Local R1-109 asked the Authority to reconsider that decision and to reconsider its general rule requiring reasoned fee decisions. The…
Wilbur Boone v. Ingalls Shipbuilding, Incorporated
Boone v. Ingalls Shipbuilding (BRB 93-1312): withdrawn claim remains closed on reconsideration
Wilbur Boone withdrew his asbestos related Longshore Act claim before the agency decided it, and the district director approved withdrawal without prejudice. Ingalls Shipbuilding appealed, arguing that its request for a hearing and motion for summary judgment should have prevented that result. The…
Sacramento Air Logistics Center, McClellan Air Force Base, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1857
McClellan Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1857 (FLRA SF-CA-20247): Information request complaint remanded
AFGE Local 1857 asked McClellan Air Force Base for a disciplinary advice form while representing an employee who had been reprimanded. An administrative law judge found that the agency unlawfully withheld the form and ordered a sanitized copy. Before the Authority reviewed that ruling, it adopted a…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1418 and United States Information Agency, Voice of America and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1812
Voice of America and NFFE Local 1418 (FLRA 0-NG-1613): Broadcast work proposal partly negotiable
NFFE Local 1418 proposed reserving specified broadcast equipment work at Voice of America for its radio broadcast technicians. After a federal court remanded an earlier Authority ruling, the Authority compared the proposed work with the functions the parties had negotiated before August 19, 1972…
International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots and Panama Canal Commission
Panama Canal Commission and Masters, Mates and Pilots (FLRA 0-AR-2616): Late exceptions dismissed
The International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots sent exceptions to an arbitration award through the State Department's diplomatic pouch. Although the pouch was stamped before the filing deadline, the exceptions were postmarked by the Postal Service after that deadline. The Authority…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3723 and United States Department of the Navy, Navy Exchange Service Center
Navy Exchange Service Center and AFGE Local 3723 (FLRA 0-AR-2567): Unit status ruling set aside
A Navy Exchange Service Center employee grieved her nonselection for an Assistant Buyer position. The arbitrator dismissed the grievance after deciding that the position was outside the bargaining unit. AFGE Local 3723 challenged that ruling, arguing that the position's unit status was disputed…
United States Department of the Navy, Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Planners, Estimators, Progressmen and Schedulers Union, Local 2
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and IFPTE Local 2 (FLRA 0-AR-2549): Supervisor assignment award set aside
After a supervisory vacancy arose at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, the Navy assigned its duties to an employee already serving as a temporary supervisor. An arbitrator found that the Navy had bypassed competitive selection procedures and voided the assignment. The Authority held that the award…
Gordon Redd Lumber Company
In re Gordon Redd Lumber Company (EAB RCRA (3008) Appeal No. 91-4): enforcement findings and penalty remanded
Gordon Redd operated a creosote wood-treating facility in Brookhaven, Mississippi. EPA Region IV alleged violations involving surface impoundments used for contaminated wastewater and the storage of K001 hazardous waste in plastic garbage bags. The Environmental Appeals Board held that the surface…
Hackney, Inc.
General PPE rule requires safety belts for crane fall hazards
Hackney manufactured carbon steel flanges at a Mississippi plant where maintenance employees regularly worked on an overhead crane and trolley about 33 feet above the ground. Some work areas lacked guardrails, and employees did not use safety belts even though the company had belts available and…
Service Employees International Union, Local 556 and United States Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay Morale, Welfare and Recreation Activity
Kaneohe Bay Morale, Welfare and Recreation Activity and SEIU Local 556 (FLRA 0-NG-2191): Exchange access negotiable
Employees of the Kaneohe Bay Morale, Welfare and Recreation Activity had been allowed to shop at the base exchange after a consolidation. The Defense Department then directed the Marine Corps to limit that privilege to exchange employees. SEIU Local 556 proposed preserving shopping access for the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1138 and United States Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency
Defense Commissary Agency and AFGE Local 1138 (FLRA 0-AR-2569): Part-time conversion remedy upheld
The Defense Commissary Agency used 17 intermittent employees to fill continuing work. An arbitrator found that they should have had part-time status and ordered a change in status and make-whole relief beginning no earlier than the union's grievance. AFGE Local 1138 argued that relief should reach…
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Denver Regional Office and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3972
HUD Denver and AFGE Local 3972 (FLRA 0-AR-2554): Career ladder promotion upheld
HUD denied a Denver employee a career ladder promotion after changing his performance rating from fully successful to marginally successful. An arbitrator found that the earlier rating had become official under the labor agreement and ordered a GS-7 promotion with backpay and interest. HUD argued…
The Ruhlin Company
Bridge fall-protection and inspection items vacated, unguarded rebar affirmed
Ruhlin Company was the general contractor building the South Avenue bridge in Youngstown, Ohio. After a 1993 inspection, OSHA cited Ruhlin for three items tied to the work of its steel subcontractor: no fall protection for ironworkers walking the girders, a failure to run frequent and regular…
Marco Electronics Sales & Service
Locked exit and blocked fire extinguisher affirmed, penalties reduced
Marco Electronics Sales & Service repairs and sells electronic equipment in Corpus Christi, Texas. After a February 1993 inspection, OSHA cited the shop for a marked exit door that was locked, a fire extinguisher mounted low and blocked by a rolling work table and a TV being repaired, and two…
Tropical Brands Packing Corp.
Late notice of contest dismissed, citations stand
Tropical Brands Packing Corp., a New Jersey company, received two OSHA citations with a proposed penalty on June 1, 1993. An employer has 15 working days after receiving a citation to file a written notice of contest. The company received the citations on June 4, 1993 but did not respond until an…
Federal Emergency Management Agency, Headquarters, Washington, D.C. and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 4060
FEMA Headquarters and AFGE Local 4060 (FLRA WA-CA-20467): Bargaining complaint dismissed
AFGE Local 4060 charged that FEMA Headquarters refused to recognize and bargain with the local. An administrative law judge found no unfair labor practice. The Authority adopted the judge's findings and dismissed the complaint. It rejected the General Counsel's attempt to treat the case as a…
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.