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 Treasury Employees Union and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Washington, D.C.
NTEU and FDIC (FLRA 0-AR-2423): arbitrator must reconsider remedies for contracting-out violation
The FDIC awarded a contract to manage small assets without first notifying the union or giving it a chance to bargain over the impact on employees. An arbitrator found an unfair labor practice and ordered bargaining, but declined several other remedies because he believed he lacked authority to…
Town of Seabrook, New Hampshire
In re Town of Seabrook, New Hampshire (EAB NPDES Appeals Nos. 93-2 and 93-3): review denied
The Town of Seabrook, New Hampshire, received an NPDES permit for a proposed municipal wastewater treatment plant with a 2,100-foot ocean outfall. Nearby residents and community groups sought evidentiary hearings and challenged the outfall, water quality, and permit process. The Environmental…
Neil Abbott, Jr. v. Louisiana Insurance Guaranty Association
Abbott v. Louisiana Insurance Guaranty Association (BRB 91-1991): rehabilitation award reclassified
Neil Abbott injured his back at work and completed a Department of Labor vocational program that prepared him for work as a medical technician. After the employer and its insurers became insolvent, the Louisiana Insurance Guaranty Association contested liability and the duration of Abbott's total…
Mannkraft Corporation
Late-contest dismissal vacated for factual inquiry
The chief administrative law judge dismissed Mannkraft Corporation's notice of contest as untimely. Mannkraft's operations manager told the Commission that the citation had been addressed to a person who no longer worked for the company and that bankruptcy-related management changes and an…
Flintco, Inc.
Unguarded rebar violation classified as serious
Flintco was the general contractor for a hospital addition in Norman, Oklahoma. OSHA cited 12-inch reinforcing steel near an elevator shaft because employees could fall onto the uncapped rebar. The Commission held that the judge applied the wrong test when he focused on the low probability that an…
American Cyanamid Company et al.
In re American Cyanamid Company et al. (EAB NPDES Appeals Nos. 92-18 and 92-8): review denied
American Cyanamid Company operated an acrylic fiber plant in Florida, and Jefferson Smurfit Corporation operated a paperboard mill there. EPA Region IV included effluent toxicity limits and biological testing requirements in their NPDES permits to implement Florida's whole-effluent-toxicity…
F. D. Barnes v. Alabama Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Corporation
Barnes v. Alabama Dry Dock (BRB 91-1374): self-insured employer pays hearing claim
F. D. Barnes worked in shipbuilding and repair and received compensation for hearing loss measured by a November 1986 audiogram. Alabama Dry Dock argued that Travelers Insurance, which began covering it in May 1988, should pay the claim because Barnes continued to encounter noise afterward. The…
Donald Hudson, Jr. v. Puerto Rico Marine, Incorporated
Hudson v. Puerto Rico Marine (BRB 91-1262): bankruptcy interest recovery denied
Donald Hudson settled a Longshore Act injury claim and separately settled a suit against a railroad over the same accident. During Hudson's bankruptcy case, Puerto Rico Marine recovered part of the third-party settlement under its lien, plus interest awarded by the bankruptcy court. Hudson argued…
Patent Office Professional Association and U.S. Department of Commerce, Patent and Trademark Office, Washington, D.C.
Patent Office employees (FLRA 0-NG-2136): religious compensatory-time provision negotiable
The Patent and Trademark Office's agency head disapproved a negotiated provision on compensatory time for religious observances. The agency argued that the provision required it to grant reasonable time even when a schedule change would interfere with its work. The Authority read the provision…
U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Distribution Region West, Stockton, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1857
Defense Distribution Region West and AFGE Local 1857 (FLRA 0-AR-2424): overtime award remains set aside
An arbitrator awarded overtime pay to two Defense Logistics Agency employees, but the Authority set aside the award because it lacked findings required by the Back Pay Act. The union sought reconsideration, saying the parties and arbitrator had agreed on a simple yes-or-no decision and asking to…
DaNite Sign Co.
Aerial-lift controls violation affirmed
DaNite Sign used truck-mounted crane booms and attached platforms to raise employees for sign installation. Three platforms lacked upper controls, and a fourth crane's lower controls could not override the upper controls in an emergency. The Commission held that the standard applied because DaNite…
Irvin M. Lassiter v. Nacirema Operation Company
Lassiter v. Nacirema Operation (BRB 92-498): Special Fund relief denied for missing filing
Irvin Lassiter received permanent total disability benefits for a back injury sustained while working for Nacirema Operation Company. The employer sought to have the Special Fund cover part of its liability under Section 8(f), but the district director's office had no record of receiving the…
Ray Bates v. Creek Coal Company, Incorporated and Old Republic Insurance Company
Bates v. Creek Coal Company (BRB 85-1800): Benefit award and insurer liability upheld
Ray Bates worked for Creek Coal as a sole proprietorship and after it incorporated. A judge awarded black lung benefits, and the company and insurer contested liability and the medical findings. The Board held that incorporation did not split Bates's work into separate employers for the responsible…
Herasco Contractors, Inc.
Abatement letter treated as timely contest
OSHA issued two citations to Herasco Contractors, and the company timely filed a document titled “Abatement Letter.” OSHA did not forward that letter to the Commission and later sought collection of penalties and late fees. The Commission held that the letter clearly disputed the citations by…
Social Security Administration and National Treasury Employees Union and American Federation of Government Employees
SSA, NTEU and AFGE (FLRA 3-CA-10859): reconsideration of fact finding remand denied
NTEU challenged the Social Security Administration's refusal to let it distribute leaflets in public areas of the Woodlawn complex, where AFGE also had an interest in the dispute. The Authority had sent the case back to a Regional Director because the agreed record did not establish whether the…
MATTER OF BAPTIST EDUCATIONAL CENTER
Recognition withdrawn for nonprofit and independence failures
The Board reviewed a proceeding to withdraw recognition from the Baptist Educational Center, an organization authorized to represent people before the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Board. The record showed that the organization operated through its founder, Reverend Marc Azard…
George E. Shrout v. General Dynamics Corporation
Shrout v. General Dynamics (BRB 91-1846): Special Fund contribution sent back
George Shrout, a General Dynamics machinist, received permanent partial disability benefits for lung impairment after workplace asbestos exposure. The administrative law judge also granted the employer relief that would shift later compensation liability to the Special Fund. On the Director's…
Kraft Food Ingredients Corp.
Mixed ruling on hot-work explosion hazards
Two Kraft maintenance employees were cutting bolts from a valve on a corn-oil pipeline when a fire and explosion occurred; one employee died and the other sustained severe burns. The Commission held that an explosive atmosphere could develop when the cutting torch heated a pressurized mixture of…
James Childs v. Western Rim Company
Childs v. Western Rim (BRB 91-1622): container work qualifies as longshoring
James Childs injured his left arm while unloading bags from a shipping container at Western Rim's Pier 50 freight station. The employer argued that his work was warehousing rather than covered longshoring because the containers had been moved from the ship to another pier. The Board held that…
John Pimpinella v. Universal Maritime Service Incorporated
Pimpinella v. Universal Maritime Service (BRB 91-127): finger impairment award reconsidered
John Pimpinella injured his left arm while working as a terminal laborer for Universal Maritime Service. He appealed the denial of additional temporary total disability benefits, the judge's refusal to hear a permanent total disability claim raised after the hearing, and the rating of his lasting…
Bert Love v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas Company and Aetna Casualty & Surety Company
Love v. Owens-Corning Fiberglas (BRB 89-3065): asbestos claim found timely
Bert Love worked as an insulation installer and was exposed to asbestos at shipyards, including during work for Owens-Corning Fiberglas. His employer argued that the 1984 claim was late because Love knew years earlier that asbestos had affected his lungs. The Board upheld the judge's finding that…
International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 89 and U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Grand Coulee Project Office
Grand Coulee Project Office (FLRA 0-NG-2127): four drug testing proposals must be bargained
The union proposed 15 terms for the Bureau of Reclamation's drug testing program at the Grand Coulee Project Office. The Authority found four proposals negotiable, including advance notice to employees in testing positions, a way for a medical review officer to contact employees with positive…
Westvaco Corporation
Printer-slotter lockout violation affirmed
Westvaco employees adjusted the cutting and slotting heads of a paperboard printer-slotter between customer orders without locking out the machine. The Commission held that the adjustments were “setting up” performed before normal production operations, so they did not qualify for the exception for…
Contractors Welding of Western New York, Inc.
Earlier Commission decision vacated after court remand
Contractors Welding was cited after OSHA inspected repair work on a metal drawbridge in Buffalo, New York. The disputed items concerned life jackets for employees working over or near water and ring buoys equipped with sufficient line for emergency rescue. In 1991, the Commission vacated the…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1636 and U.S. Department of Defense, National Guard Bureau, Albuquerque, New Mexico
National Guard Bureau (FLRA 0-AR-2421): technician selection grievance returns to arbitrator
A National Guard technician challenged the way the agency filled six new technician jobs after its fighter group changed aircraft. The arbitrator dismissed the grievance as outside the grievance procedure, treating it as a dispute about examination, certification, or appointment. The Authority held…
John J. Smith Masonry Co.
Two scaffold violations affirmed and one vacated
John J. Smith Masonry used a mobile scaffold while replacing a limestone window sill at the Cervantes Convention Center in St. Louis. The ALJ vacated the allegation that the scaffold was not erected under competent-person supervision because the Secretary did not identify who supervised its…
Security Elevator, Inc.
Fuel-cylinder wrench citation vacated
Security Elevator was cited after an OSHA inspection at a construction project for Sterling Drug Company in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. One alleged violation concerning fuel-gas equipment was settled before the hearing. The remaining item alleged that a required wrench was not left on a fuel-gas…
Food and Drug Administration, Mid-Atlantic Region, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and American Federation of Government Employees, Council No. 242
FDA information requests (FLRA BY-CA-20054 and BY-CA-20056): violations upheld, remedy expanded
AFGE Council No. 242 asked the FDA for records to prepare an employee's pay increase grievance and for the basis of a second employee's medical-documentation rejection. The Authority upheld findings that the agency answered the first request late, withheld the requested Chilean grape file, and…
U.S. Department of Defense, Stateside Dependents Schools, Fort Benning Schools, Fort Benning, Georgia and Benning Education Association, OEA/NEA
Fort Benning Schools election (FLRA AT-RO-30016): employer objections rejected
In a mail ballot election at Fort Benning Schools, 136 employees voted for the Benning Education Association and 95 voted against exclusive recognition. The school activity objected to union campaign claims about children's school attendance and a possible federal pay freeze. The regional director…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3172 and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Modesto, California
SSA Modesto (FLRA 0-NG-2131): mandatory rotation and volunteer assignment proposals rejected; later partly reversed
The Social Security Administration planned to establish a Disability Unit in its Modesto office. The union proposed rotating claims representatives into the unit about every twelve months and assigning volunteers based on seniority. The Authority found that the rotation rule would control when…
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Arlington, Texas and National Treasury Employees Union
NRC promotion grievance (FLRA 0-AR-2420): union exceptions denied
The National Treasury Employees Union challenged the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's selection of an employee for a senior radiation specialist position. The union argued that the selectee lacked the knowledge equivalent to a master's degree required by the position announcement. The arbitrator…
National Treasury Employees Union and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Division of Liquidation, Orlando Consolidated Field Office
FDIC temporary employee grievance (FLRA 0-AR-2410): arbitrability ruling upheld
The FDIC removed a temporary employee before his appointment expired, and the union grieved the removal. The arbitrator found that the collective bargaining agreement excluded terminations of temporary employees from the grievance procedure unless contrary legal requirements applied. The union…
U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, Grand Coulee Project Office and Columbia Basin Trades Council
Grand Coulee Project Office (FLRA 0-AR-2392): wage supplement award set aside
An arbitrator awarded a one-time wage supplement to certain Grand Coulee Project Office employees after considering signing bonuses paid by nearby public utilities. An earlier Authority ruling had required the pay decision to follow current prevailing industry rates and practices. On remand, the…
U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Commissary Agency, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Hawaii Federal Lodge 1998
Defense Commissary Agency (FLRA 0-AR-2382): five-day suspension upheld
A cash clerk at the Pearl Harbor commissary challenged a five-day suspension over alleged improper use of merchandise coupons. An arbitrator found the discipline justified and declined to reduce the penalty. The union argued that the arbitrator assessed the evidence incorrectly and was biased. The…
U.S. Department of Defense, National Guard Bureau, Arkansas Army National Guard, North Little Rock, Arkansas and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1671
Arkansas Army National Guard (FLRA 0-AR-2362): severance pay award set aside
A civilian National Guard technician lost his Guard membership after failing to meet military weight standards, and his technician employment ended. An arbitrator awarded severance pay, treating the separation as involuntary and rejecting a National Guard personnel rule that barred pay in those…
Sparrow Construction Corp.
General contractor liable for unshored fire-damaged floors
Sparrow Construction was the general contractor for the rehabilitation of fire-damaged residential buildings in New York City. Two subcontractor employees removed debris beneath floors and structural areas that had partially collapsed, with hanging debris above them and no shoring or bracing. The…
Association of Civilian Technicians, Arizona Army Chapter 61 and U.S. Department of Defense, National Guard Bureau, Arizona National Guard
Arizona National Guard uniforms (FLRA 0-NG-2126): civilian technician proposals negotiable
The Arizona National Guard disputed a union proposal to provide civilian technicians with ten sets of required uniforms and a separate proposal to exchange worn uniforms. The Guard argued that the proposals concerned military service, exceeded statutory uniform limits, and interfered with its work…
Department of Health and Human Services, Regional Personnel Office, Seattle, Washington and Jeffrey A. Saul
HHS Seattle notice (FLRA SF-CA-20065): regional director must sign
The Authority had found that the HHS Regional Personnel Office in Seattle unlawfully refused to credit Jeffrey Saul's federal union experience when assessing his qualifications for a position. Its remedy required a posted notice signed by “the Commissioner.” The General Counsel asked the Authority…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Baltimore, Maryland and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
SSA Baltimore appraisal (FLRA 0-AR-2427): reevaluation remedy stands
An SSA disability examiner challenged level 4 ratings on two job tasks and sought higher ratings. The arbitrator found that the supervisor had not compared the examiner's work with the performance standards as the agency's manual required. He set aside the disputed ratings and ordered SSA to…
Gerald Langley v. Kellers' Peoria Harbor Fleeting and Hartford Insurance Company
Langley v. Kellers' Peoria Harbor Fleeting (BRB 89-4068): employer's fund request remanded
Gerald Langley injured his back while working on a barge for Kellers' Peoria Harbor Fleeting. He pursued both federal Longshore Act and Illinois workers' compensation claims, then withdrew the federal claim to seek benefits under state law. The employer objected because it wanted a decision on…
Freelan Matney v. Trace Fork Coal Company
Matney v. Trace Fork Coal Company (BRB 89-3229): Trust Fund liability upheld
Freelan Matney won black lung benefits, but the parties disputed who would pay. The Director sought to charge Trace Fork Coal Company, even though Matney later worked for Arizona Fuel and Vernon Mining. The Board held that the record did not establish the later operators' ability to pay, and the…
Rog's Inc.
Two personnel-platform defects affirmed as nonserious
Rog's Inc., a crane rigging and erection company, used a crane-suspended seat while removing an unused smokestack. The ALJ treated the device as a personnel platform under the cited crane standards. He vacated the crane-equipment items because OSHA inspected and photographed a different crane from…
Irwin Steel Erectors Inc.
Four contested construction items vacated
Irwin Steel Erectors performed steel erection and welding during construction of a Motorola facility in Austin, Texas. At the hearing, it resolved six serious citation items by withdrawing its contests in exchange for reduced penalties. The four remaining items concerned fire-extinguisher access…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Headquarters 92nd Bomb Wing, Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 11
Fairchild Air Force Base appraisal (FLRA 0-AR-2418): early exceptions dismissed
An employee at Fairchild Air Force Base challenged an excellent performance rating and the legality of the performance plan used to rate him. The arbitrator upheld the rating under the existing standards but kept the case open for further briefing and possibly another hearing on the plan's legal…
Henry B. Salyers, Darryl Keene, Steve Vinson, Jimmy D. Wyatt Employed by Middle Creek Energy Incorporated
Henry B. Salyers, Darryl Keene, Steve Vinson, and Jimmy D. Wyatt Employed by Middle Creek Energy Incorporated (FMSHRC VA 92-83): Coal-dust violation upheld in part
MSHA alleged that four Middle Creek Energy supervisors knowingly allowed loose coal and coal dust to accumulate at the company's No. 1 Mine and that the mine superintendent knowingly used a damaged trailing cable. The judge found that Henry Salyers and Jimmy Wyatt knowingly violated the coal-dust…
Social Security Administration, Douglas Branch Office, Douglas, Arizona and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 147
SSA Douglas standing mats (FLRA SA-CA-20418): bargaining complaint dismissed
AFGE Council 147 asked SSA's Douglas branch office to bargain over placing an anti-fatigue mat at the reception counter where employees stood. SSA declined to bargain, and the union alleged an unfair labor practice. The Authority found that the parties' national agreement already provided a…
United States Border Patrol, Tucson Sector, Tucson, Arizona and National Border Patrol Council, American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2544
Tucson Border Patrol records (FLRA SA-CA-20236): prior order vacated for further fact finding
The National Border Patrol Council requested disciplinary proposal and decision letters to prepare for arbitration over an employee's suspension. The Authority had previously ruled that the Tucson Sector unlawfully withheld one proposal letter. The General Counsel sought reconsideration, arguing…
U.S. Department of Defense, National Guard Bureau, North Carolina Air National Guard and John A. Teague, Jr. and Association of Civilian Technicians, Tarheel Chapter
North Carolina Air National Guard election (FLRA AT-DR-20035): union review granted
In a North Carolina Air National Guard decertification election, 73 voters opposed continued union representation and 60 favored it. The union objected to the Guard's limits on campaign access and to the processing of the election while contract negotiations were at impasse. A regional director…
Manter Co., Inc.
Trench violations affirmed and willful classification reduced
Manter Company excavated a nine-foot-deep trench to install a valve on an existing water main at a restaurant property in Woburn, Massachusetts. Employees had no ladder or stairway and climbed a wet, steep Type C soil bank that was partly blocked by a backhoe, so the ALJ affirmed the safe-egress…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 2050 and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C.
EPA bargaining proposals (FLRA 0-NG-2143): negotiability petition dismissed without prejudice
NFFE Local 2050 submitted four bargaining proposals to EPA and asked for a written statement on their negotiability. EPA did not give that statement, and the union filed a timely negotiability petition. The Authority found that the absence of a response could support an appeal but that both…
Cyprus Plateau Mining Corp.
Contest cases dismissed and penalties assessed
Cyprus Plateau Mining contested a roof-control order and related enforcement action at its Star Point No. 2 coal mine, while MSHA sought civil penalties for the same mine. The judge dismissed the contest proceedings in WEST 92-370-R and WEST 92-371-R. In WEST 92-485, the order was modified to a…
Donald R. Holder v. Nevada Gold Mining, Inc.
Discrimination proceeding dismissed after settlement
Donald R. Holder brought a discrimination proceeding against Nevada Gold Mining, Inc. concerning the Sleeper Mine. The parties reached an amicable settlement, and Holder requested dismissal of the complaint. Judge John J. Morris granted the request and dismissed the case.
Mayaguez Regional Sewage Treatment Plant
In re Mayaguez Regional Sewage Treatment Plant (EAB NPDES Appeal No. 92-23): review denied
The Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority sought a modified NPDES permit for a wastewater treatment plant in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, under the Clean Water Act's Section 301(h) marine-discharge program. EPA Region II denied the permit and the related evidentiary hearing request because the…
Foster-Wheeler Constructors, Inc.
Initial asbestos-monitoring violation affirmed
Foster-Wheeler Constructors renovated a boiler at a Florida power plant while an asbestos-abatement subcontractor removed insulation nearby. Foster employees worked and traveled in areas where monitoring and physical samples showed that asbestos fibers had escaped the removal enclosures, but Foster…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Area II, New York Region and American Federation of Government Employees
SSA New York performance awards (FLRA 0-AR-2411): cash awards upheld
Six SSA New York Region employees with high performance ratings were denied awards because they had been disciplined during the appraisal period. SSA later paid three of them, leaving three awards in dispute. The arbitrator found that the regional office had added a discipline-based exception to…
MATTER OF SHIH
Appeal waiver made the Immigration Judge's decision final
The Board reviewed an applicant's appeal from an Immigration Judge's exclusion order after the applicant had expressly waived his right to appeal. The applicant later filed a Notice of Appeal within the ordinary filing period and argued that his waiver was not knowing or considered. The Board held…
Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers International Union
PSM abatement schedule challenge remanded
After an explosion injured or killed employees at an IMC Fertilizer plant in Sterlington, Louisiana, the Secretary and the employer entered a pre-contest settlement that included $10 million in penalties and a corporate process safety management implementation schedule. The employees' union…
Phillips 66 Company
Union settlement-rescission dispute remanded for evidence
After an explosion and fire caused fatalities and injuries at Phillips 66's Houston Chemical Complex, OSHA issued citations proposing more than $5.6 million in penalties. The Secretary and Phillips later reached a $4 million main settlement that also established a corporate process safety…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 916 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma
Tinker Air Force Base drug-related suspension (FLRA 0-AR-2415): arbitration award upheld
The Air Force suspended a Tinker Air Force Base mechanical parts repairer for fourteen days after a drug-related incident. An arbitrator denied the union's grievance, finding that the labor agreement and Air Force regulation did not bar administrative discipline. The union argued that a possible…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Office of Hearings and Appeals and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 215
SSA union officers' performance awards (FLRA 0-AR-2408): arbitration award upheld
Four SSA union officers worked full time on union duties and had excellent performance ratings carried over under a letter of understanding. The agency withheld performance awards or a quality step increase that the arbitrator found they would otherwise have received. The arbitrator ordered backpay…
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.