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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E.H. and Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Stockton, CA
E.H. and Defense Logistics Agency (ECAB 23-1011): Missed telephone hearing treated as abandoned
A Defense Logistics Agency employee requested a hearing after OWCP denied authorization to remove a septic tank. OWCP mailed notice of a telephone hearing to his address of record. He did not join the hearing, seek a postponement, or explain his absence within 10 days. The Board found that the…
A.B. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs & Border Protection, Chula Vista, CA
A.B. and U.S. Customs & Border Protection (ECAB 23-0937): Lumbar injury claim denied for lack of medical link
A Border Patrol agent reported low back symptoms after running in full gear during an approved physical fitness activity. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found that an orthopedic surgeon’s reports used an inaccurate injury history, while other…
D.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Parkville Post Office, Parkville, MD
D.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Parkville Post Office (ECAB 23-0918): Disability claim returned for review of medical evidence
A postal worker sought wage loss compensation after an accepted low back injury. OWCP denied his claim for disability beginning May 7, 2022. Before affirming that denial, OWCP obtained a second opinion from an orthopedic surgeon who found that the worker could not return to his regular job but…
P.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Kingwood Post Office, Kingwood, TX
P.Y. and U.S. Postal Service, Kingwood Post Office (ECAB 23-0823): Overpayment upheld, waiver returned for review
A postal worker received FECA wage loss compensation while also receiving Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service. The Board upheld OWCP’s $20,379.42 overpayment finding but corrected the period to December 1, 2019 through September 10, 2022. It found that OWCP…
N.A. and U.S. Postal Service, North Texas Processing & Distribution Center, Coppell, TX
N.A. and U.S. Postal Service, North Texas Processing & Distribution Center (ECAB 23-0532): Knee award and remaining disability denied
A postal carrier had an accepted right knee sprain and contusion after being pinned between vehicles. She sought a permanent impairment award and compensation for additional intermittent time away from work. The Board found no physician evaluation of permanent impairment supporting the award. It…
S.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Southampton Post Office, Southampton, NY
S.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Southampton Post Office (ECAB 23-0509): Knee claim returned for clarified medical opinion
A postal letter carrier sought compensation for knee problems she attributed to prolonged standing and walking at work. OWCP denied the claim based on a second opinion physician’s reports. The physician said both that work aggravated the knee condition and that she could not determine whether…
E.B. and Department of Homeland Security, Immigration & Customs Enforcement, Mount Laurel, NJ
E.B. and Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ECAB 22-1384): Disability claim sent back for a reasoned medical opinion
A deportation officer sought disability compensation after an accepted work injury involving a detainee. OWCP denied compensation for work absence beginning April 26, 2020 based on a second opinion physician’s reports. The Board found that the physician had not explained why he believed the officer…
R.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Minneapolis Post Office, Minneapolis, MN
R.M. and Minneapolis Post Office (ECAB 23-1104): Related shoulder claim files must be combined
A postal employee filed a traumatic injury claim for a right rotator cuff tear after also filing an occupational disease claim for the same shoulder. OWCP denied the traumatic injury claim while referring to the separate file. The Board held that correct adjudication required the files to be…
S.G. and Department of the Navy, Naval Station Norfolk Security Department, Norfolk, VA
S.G. and Naval Station Norfolk Security Department (ECAB 23-1073): Dust exposure claim returned for medical opinions
A Navy employee claimed breathing problems after exposure to ceiling dust at work. OWCP denied the claim after obtaining second opinions. The Board found one opinion equivocal on whether the exposure caused reactive airway disease and the other inadequately explained its conclusion about continued…
J.R. and Department of the Air Force, Air Force Materiel Command, Robins Air Force Base, GA
J.R. and Air Force Materiel Command (ECAB 23-0980): Reconsideration denied after repeated evidence
An Air Force employee asked OWCP to reconsider an earlier denial of her claimed back injury. Her request relied on an attorney’s argument about a physician’s prior report and resubmitted a medical report and MRI already in the record. The Board found no new legal argument or relevant new evidence…
J.B. and Department of the Army, Military Entrance Processing Station, Memphis, TN
J.B. and Army Military Entrance Processing Station (ECAB 23-0926): Leg impairment ratings upheld
An Army employee sought greater schedule award compensation for her legs. An examining physician and OWCP’s medical adviser agreed on a two percent right leg rating for a meniscal injury under the applicable impairment guide. Neither found a left leg impairment, and the Board found no contrary…
B.F. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Danville VA Medical Center, Danville, IL
B.F. and Danville VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-0920): Hearing request abandoned after missed call
A VA employee requested a hearing after OWCP denied her wage loss claim. OWCP mailed her notice of a telephone hearing. She did not join the call or request another hearing within the required period. The Board found that notice was properly mailed and upheld the abandonment finding. It lacked…
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Greensboro, NC
P.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Greensboro Post Office (ECAB 23-0822): Ankle incident established, injury claim returned
A postal employee reported twisting his left ankle while delivering mail. OWCP denied his claim because it found that he had not established the incident. The Board found his account consistent with his supervisor’s acknowledgment and a medical provider’s report the next day. It reversed the…
M.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Jamaica Plain VA Medical Center, Jamaica Plain, MA
M.P. and Jamaica Plain VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-0759): Disability compensation denial affirmed
A VA police officer had accepted neck and back sprains after slipping while exiting his vehicle. He sought wage loss compensation for several months away from work. His doctors said he should remain off work, but the Board found that their reports did not sufficiently explain how the accepted…
F.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Brooklyn Post Office (Collection Unit), Brooklyn, NY
F.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Brooklyn Post Office (ECAB 22-0679): Intermittent disability claim denied
A postal carrier had accepted neck, back, and shoulder conditions after a work vehicle collision. He later claimed intermittent disability during a period when his doctor had released him to full duty. The Board found that the doctor’s reports addressed work capacity before and after the claimed…
Roy G. Russell v. Laurel Coal Corporation
Russell v. Laurel Coal (BRB 23-0252 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Roy Russell received black lung benefits after the judge found 26.82 years of qualifying coal mine employment and a totally disabling respiratory impairment. Laurel Coal challenged the finding that it had not rebutted the fifteen-year presumption. Its physicians relied in part on the lack of x-ray…
Richard Lee Addison, on behalf of Donald L. Addison v. Jewell Ridge Mining Corporation
Addison v. Jewell Ridge Mining (BRB 23-0019 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Donald Addison worked in underground coal mining for more than 27 years, and his son pursued the claim on his estate's behalf. After a prior appeal, the judge reconsidered CT scans and awarded black lung benefits based on complicated pneumoconiosis. Jewell Ridge argued that the doctors had not…
Harold G. Howell v. Tolers Creek Energy Incorporated
Howell v. Tolers Creek Energy (BRB 23-0013 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Harold Howell received black lung benefits after a judge found that his disabling lung impairment was significantly related to coal mine dust exposure. Tolers Creek Energy argued that the judge had wrongly weighed medical opinions about smoking, asthma, and coal dust. The Board upheld the judge's…
Micah Ramsey v. Ports America Gulfport, Incorporated
Ramsey v. Ports America Gulfport (BRB 23-0007): injury causation rulings partly reversed and remanded
Micah Ramsey sought Longshore Act benefits after a crane lifted the truck he was driving at work and returned it to the ground. The judge denied benefits, finding Ramsey had not proved a violent drop that could cause his claimed injuries. The Board held that this set too high a threshold for…
Paul V. Brown v. ICG Knott County LLC
Brown v. ICG Knott County (BRB 22-0503 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Paul Brown received black lung benefits after a judge found that he had complicated pneumoconiosis from coal mine work. ICG Knott County challenged the exclusion of one x-ray reading and the judge's weighing of conflicting x-ray interpretations. The Board held that the employer had an opportunity…
D.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Crossroads Post Office, Las Vegas, NV
D.H. and Crossroads Post Office (ECAB 23-1148): Right leg impairment remains at 21 percent
A postal carrier sought an increased schedule award for her right leg after a knee injury and replacement. An examining physician calculated 22 percent impairment, but OWCP’s medical adviser found that the calculation used a value unavailable in the applicable rating grid. The adviser calculated 21…
D.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Fort Point Post Office, Boston, MA
D.A. and Fort Point Post Office (ECAB 23-1065): Back condition claim lacked medical causal explanation
A postal employee reported a flare of lower back pain after a work incident. A physician attributed her symptoms to the incident but did not sufficiently distinguish them from preexisting degenerative back conditions. Other reports described pain without a compensable diagnosis, and diagnostic…
S.I. and U.S. Postal Service, Cascade Heights Station, Atlanta, GA
S.I. and Cascade Heights Station (ECAB 23-1055): Increased schedule award request needs merits review
A postal carrier requested a larger permanent impairment award for her upper extremities. OWCP rejected her reconsideration request as late and without clear evidence of error. The Board found that a new medical report contained relevant impairment ratings under the applicable guide. It directed…
L.M. and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Downers Grove, IL
L.M. and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (ECAB 23-1028): Termination of injury benefits upheld
An FDIC bank examiner received benefits after a work fall caused accepted contusions and a neck sprain. OWCP ended her benefits based on an orthopedic surgeon’s opinion that the accepted conditions had resolved and she could return to her job without restrictions. The Board found the opinion well…
D.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Jacksonville Post Office, Jacksonville, FL
D.H. and Jacksonville Post Office (ECAB 23-0954): Concussion claim denied before response period ended
A postal carrier reported a head injury after striking a shelf inside a delivery vehicle. OWCP asked for more evidence and gave him 60 days to respond, but denied the claim on June 23, 2023. The Board calculated that the response period ran through Monday, June 26, because its last calendar day…
T.P. and Department of the Navy, Military Sealift Command, Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk, VA
T.P. and Military Sealift Command (ECAB 23-0886): Written review request filed too late
A Navy employee requested written record review of an OWCP decision dated January 10, 2022. His request was postmarked April 20, 2023, well beyond the 30-day period for review as of right. OWCP also declined to grant review at its discretion and pointed to reconsideration as another route. The…
J.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Johnston Post Office, Johnston, RI
J.B. and Johnston Post Office (ECAB 23-0884): Visible elbow bruise accepted after mail truck collision
A postal worker reported injuries after another vehicle struck his mail truck. OWCP accepted the collision but denied his injury claim. The Board found that a medical provider had observed a visible left elbow contusion on the incident date. It found that the physician’s reports did not adequately…
Y.J. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Philadelphia, PA
Y.J. and Bureau of Prisons (ECAB 23-0764): Additional spine conditions not accepted
A Bureau of Prisons employee had accepted left knee and shoulder injuries and sought to add neck and lower back diagnoses to her claim. OWCP obtained an impartial medical specialist after the treating and referral physicians disagreed. The Board found that the specialist was properly selected and…
F.S. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Coleman Federal Correctional Complex, Coleman, FL
F.S. and Coleman Federal Correctional Complex (ECAB 23-0707): Left leg impairment requires new examination
A correctional officer sought a larger schedule award for her left leg after an accepted knee injury. Her doctor gave a three percent rating without the clinical details needed to support it, and OWCP’s medical adviser gave a two percent rating while noting limited information. The Board held that…
C.G. and Department of Veterans Affairs, William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans’ Hospital, Madison, WI
C.G. and Middleton Memorial Veterans’ Hospital (ECAB 23-0362): Appeal dismissed for lack of an OWCP decision
A VA employee appealed a purported January 11, 2023 OWCP decision. The Board found that the decision issued on that date was its own earlier ruling, not an OWCP decision. The transmitted record contained no recent final adverse OWCP decision that the Board could review. It dismissed the new appeal…
B.S. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, Fort Worth, TX
B.S. and Bureau of Prisons (ECAB 22-0738): COVID claim filed in time for continuation of pay
A Bureau of Prisons employee reported COVID-19 after working with infected inmates and sought continuation of pay. OWCP denied it as untimely because she filed her claim on February 7, 2022, 31 calendar days after her last workplace exposure. The Board found that day 30 fell on Sunday, February 6…
Secretary of Labor obo Jimmy Lee Hoover v. MoSeneca Manufacturer, LLC d/b/a American Tripoli
Secretary of Labor obo Jimmy Lee Hoover v. American Tripoli (FMSHRC CENT 2024-0024): Electrical work refusal supported temporary reinstatement
Jimmy Lee Hoover refused to reach into an energized breaker box to reset mill equipment because he feared electrocution from the 220-volt current. American Tripoli terminated him the next morning, while maintaining that the decision resulted from his late return from lunch, disrespectful response…
P.C. and Department of the Navy, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard & Intermediate Maintenance Facility, Bremerton, WA
P.C. and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard (ECAB 23-1152): Hearing loss too small for schedule award
A Navy shipyard employee sought a schedule award for accepted work related hearing loss. OWCP’s medical adviser calculated zero percent ratable loss in each ear under the applicable formula, and the Board found the calculation correct. The employee also requested reconsideration, but offered no new…
E.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Coppell, TX
E.C. and Coppell Post Office (ECAB 23-0992): $29,505 compensation overpayment upheld
A postal employee continued receiving wage loss payments after returning to full time work. The Board upheld OWCP’s $29,505.95 overpayment calculation for February 4 through October 8, 2022. It found him at fault for accepting payments from February 27 onward, so that portion could not be waived…
T.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Oklahoma City, OK
T.D. and Oklahoma City Post Office (ECAB 23-0856): Benefit suspension returned for review of filed form
A postal carrier receiving disability compensation was asked to return a financial disclosure form. OWCP suspended her payments on June 7, 2023, saying no completed form had arrived. The Board found that OWCP received her completed form that same day but did not acknowledge it in the suspension…
John D. Owens v. Orange Construction Corporation
Owens v. Orange Construction (BRB 23-0258 BLA): denial of black lung benefits affirmed
John Owens sought black lung benefits after at least fifteen years of qualifying surface coal mine work. The judge found legal pneumoconiosis but denied benefits because Owens had not shown a totally disabling respiratory impairment. Owens argued that a doctor's opinion supported disability despite…
Earlene A. Barr, on behalf of and widow of Billie B. Barr v. Fairfield Southern Company
Barr v. Fairfield Southern (BRB 23-0180 and 23-0181 BLA): miner and survivor benefits affirmed
Earlene Barr pursued a miner's claim on behalf of Billie Barr and a survivor's claim as his widow. The judge awarded both after the Board's earlier ruling established enough qualifying coal mine employment for the fifteen-year presumption and the employer failed to rebut it. Fairfield Southern…
Earlene A. Barr, on behalf of and widow of Billie B. Barr v. Fairfield Southern Company
Barr v. Fairfield Southern (BRB 23-0180 and 23-0181 BLA): miner and survivor benefits affirmed
Earlene Barr pursued a miner's claim on behalf of Billie Barr and a survivor's claim as his widow. The judge awarded both after the Board's earlier ruling established enough qualifying coal mine employment for the fifteen-year presumption and the employer failed to rebut it. Fairfield Southern…
Roger D. Salyers v. Paramont Coal Corporation
Salyers v. Paramont Coal (BRB 23-0024 BLA): black lung benefits award affirmed
Roger Salyers received black lung benefits after the judge found more than 43 years of qualifying coal mine employment and a disabling respiratory impairment. Paramont Coal challenged the validity of several pulmonary function studies and the judge's weighing of medical opinions. The Board upheld…
Ray Douglas Brummett v. Left Fork Mining Company, Incorporated
Brummett v. Left Fork Mining (BRB 22-0337 BLA): benefits award vacated for medical evidence review
Ray Brummett obtained a black lung benefits award on modification after a judge found clinical and legal pneumoconiosis. Left Fork Mining challenged how the judge considered evidence about pulmonary alveolar proteinosis, a lung disease the doctors disputed was related to silica exposure at work…
Gracie Kidd, survivor of Arnold Kidd v. Ranger Fuel Corporation
Kidd v. Ranger Fuel (BRB 22-0312 BLA): survivor claim dismissal vacated
Gracie Kidd filed a second survivor's claim for black lung benefits after her first claim was denied as abandoned. The judge dismissed the new claim, reasoning that she could not show a change in a condition of entitlement unrelated to her husband's physical condition. The Board held that…
S.P. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Bob Stump VA Medical Center, Prescott, AZ
S.P. and Bob Stump VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-1158): Inadvertently docketed appeal dismissed
A VA employee submitted an appeal request form with the box for an OWCP oral hearing selected. The Board’s clerk inadvertently assigned the form a Board appeal docket. The Board found that she had not requested its review of an OWCP decision and dismissed the docket. It did not address the merits…
L.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Morton Post Office, Morton, IL
L.W. and Morton Post Office (ECAB 23-1153): Cervical condition lacked work causation evidence
A postal employee sought compensation for neck and right arm symptoms attributed to his work. A doctor diagnosed cervical radiculopathy and disc disease but did not give a sufficient medical explanation linking them to the accepted work factors. Other records described pain or work restrictions…
J.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Bellmawr, NJ
J.C. and Bellmawr Post Office (ECAB 23-1101): Back and leg claim needs combined files
A postal carrier reported back and left leg symptoms after walking stairs at work. She had an earlier accepted back injury and initially thought the new symptoms might relate to it. OWCP denied the new claim while the earlier file remained separate. The Board held that the related files had to be…
K.S. and Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Long Beach, CA
K.S. and Internal Revenue Service (ECAB 23-1058): Social Security offset overpayment upheld
An IRS employee received Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service while also receiving FECA wage loss payments. OWCP had not applied the required offset, creating an overpayment of $10,870.85. The Board upheld the amount and found that the worker was not at fault…
T.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Des Moines Post Office, Des Moines, IA
T.B. and Des Moines Post Office (ECAB 23-0888): Related back and leg claims must be combined
A postal worker filed multiple claims involving his lower back and right leg over several decades. OWCP had combined two earlier files but had kept his newer occupational disease claim separate. The Board held that deciding the current claim required access to evidence in all three related files…
B.K. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Doris Miller VA Medical Center, Waco, TX
B.K. and Doris Miller VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-0679): Workplace stress factors established, medical claim returned
A VA painter claimed anxiety, depression, and insomnia from working conditions. OWCP denied the claim after finding no compensable employment factor. The Board found corroborated evidence of unsafe work assignments, overwork, and harassment. It did not accept separate allegations of error or abuse…
J.L. and Department of Defense, Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow, Barstow, CA
J.L. and Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow (ECAB 23-0633): Hearing loss claim was timely
A retired firefighter at the Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow filed a claim for occupational hearing loss after working at the base’s Nebo and Yermo fire stations. OWCP rejected it as untimely. The Board found that the employer’s own audiometric testing and hearing conservation records…
B.B. and U.S. Postal Service, Lebanon Post Office, Lebanon, PA
B.B. and Lebanon Post Office (ECAB 22-1165): Recurrence of disability not established
A postal carrier with accepted shoulder and arm injuries returned to modified work. He later claimed that new restrictions could not be accommodated and that his condition had worsened. The Board found that the modified position remained available within the established limits. The later medical…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 916 and United States Department of the Air Force, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma
AFGE Local 916 and Tinker Air Force Base (FLRA 0-AR-5901): Authority upholds weekend-overtime denial
A Tinker Air Force Base employee signed up for Saturday overtime but took medical leave on Friday. The agency denied the overtime under a claimed longstanding practice of making employees who miss the immediately preceding workday ineligible for weekend assignments. An arbitrator found no evidence…
D.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Eau Claire, WI
D.M. and Eau Claire Post Office (ECAB 23-1099): Chiropractic treatment authorization denied
A postal employee requested authorization for chiropractic treatment. Her doctor recommended continuing several therapies and later noted an x-ray finding, but did not show that the chiropractor was treating her under his direction for the accepted conditions in this claim. The Board found OWCP’s…
C.J. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Dayton VA Medical Center, Dayton, OH
C.J. and Dayton VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-0997): Reported arm incident not established
A VA employee reported that a patient pulled and twisted her right arm at work. An employer human resources specialist disputed the claim, saying she was on family medical leave on the alleged incident date. She did not provide a factual response to clarify the conflict, and the medical reports did…
S.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Oak Park, IL
S.L. and Oak Park Post Office (ECAB 23-0887): Benefits suspension upheld after missed examination
A postal worker receiving benefits was directed to attend a medical examination about her continuing disability and injury residuals. She did not attend the December 21, 2021 appointment. OWCP gave notice of proposed suspension, and the Board found her response did not establish good cause for…
R.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing and Distribution Center/Facility, Los Angeles, CA
R.L. and Los Angeles Processing and Distribution Center (ECAB 23-0885): Hearing request filed years too late
A postal employee sought an oral hearing on an OWCP decision dated November 13, 2018. His hearing request was dated December 6, 2022, years after the 30-day deadline. OWCP declined to grant a discretionary hearing and pointed to reconsideration as another way to raise the issue. The Board found no…
T.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, John J. Pershing VA Medical Center, Poplar Bluff, MO
T.S. and John J. Pershing VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-0839): Emotional condition claim needs employer response
A VA employee attributed stress symptoms to alleged harassment, union retaliation, leave actions, and discipline. OWCP requested statements and records from the employer, but none arrived before it denied the claim. The Board held that OWCP shared responsibility for obtaining evidence normally held…
C.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Mount Vernon Post Office, Mount Vernon, NY
C.A. and Mount Vernon Post Office (ECAB 23-0812): Missed hearing treated as abandoned
A postal employee requested a hearing after OWCP denied his injury claim. OWCP mailed notice of a telephone hearing to his address of record. He did not join the scheduled call or timely request another hearing. The Board upheld the abandonment finding and did not reach the injury claim’s merits.
J.H. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Southwest Laredo Sector, Laredo, TX
J.H. and Customs and Border Protection (ECAB 23-0657): Right leg award remains at eight percent
A Border Patrol employee sought a greater schedule award after right knee injuries. An examining physician rated the knee at eight percent using the applicable impairment guide, and OWCP’s medical adviser agreed. The Board held that the rating properly used the most impairing diagnosis for the same…
S.H. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Brockton VA Medical Center, Brockton, MA
S.H. and Brockton VA Medical Center (ECAB 23-0432): Continuation of pay claim was timely
A VA nurse filed a traumatic injury claim on August 15, 2022, after a reported July 14 injury. OWCP denied continuation of pay because it counted the filing as outside 30 days. The Board found that day 30 was Saturday, August 13. The deadline therefore ran to Monday, August 15, when the nurse…
C.G. and U.S. Postal Service, Processing & Distribution Center, Tampa, FL
C.G. and Tampa Processing and Distribution Center (ECAB 23-1089): Debt collection letter could not be appealed
A postal employee appealed an OWCP letter about how an existing overpayment debt would be collected. The Board found the letter informational, rather than a new final adverse decision. Its jurisdiction did not extend to review of that letter. It dismissed the appeal without reaching the underlying…
C.K. and Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Socorro, NM
C.K. and Bureau of Reclamation (ECAB 23-0880): $33,433 overpayment recovery upheld
A Bureau of Reclamation employee received Social Security retirement benefits partly attributable to federal service while also receiving FECA wage loss payments. The Board upheld OWCP’s $33,433.61 overpayment finding for June 2013 through January 2021. Although he was without fault, he did not…
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.