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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Federal Employees Metal Trades Council and U.S. Department of the Navy, Long Beach Naval Shipyard, Long Beach, California
Long Beach welding suspension (FLRA 0-AR-2028): Award upheld
A Long Beach shipyard welder applied heat to a deck socket without checking whether the area was free of gas. An explosion followed and injured a coworker. The Navy suspended the welder for ten days, and an arbitrator denied the grievance. The union argued that the arbitrator improperly weighed…
U.S. Department of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration, Southeastern District and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2519
Mine safety specialist selection (FLRA 0-AR-2023): Removal remedy struck
An arbitrator found that the Mine Safety and Health Administration violated its labor agreement when filling a mine safety specialist vacancy. The award required the agency to remove the selectee and rerun the selection. The Authority held that removing the selectee conflicted with governing…
U.S. Department of the Army, New Cumberland Army Depot, New Cumberland, Pennsylvania and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2004
Army depot hazard pay reconsideration (FLRA 0-AR-1992): Request denied
The union sought reconsideration of an Authority ruling that left environmental differential pay retroactive only to the grievance filing date. It argued that employees should receive pay for earlier hazardous work. The Authority found that the union was repeating arguments already considered and…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1592 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, Ogden Air Logistics Center, Hill Air Force Base, Utah
Hill Air Force Base cold weather gear (FLRA 0-AR-1976): Grievance denial upheld
Four Hill Air Force Base employees assigned outside maintenance work asked the agency for cold weather clothing. The Air Force agreed that protective clothing was needed for safe work but said its rules did not authorize issuing the items requested. An arbitrator denied the union’s grievance under…
National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 251 and U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Washington, D.C.
IRS career ladder promotions (FLRA 0-AR-1906): Retroactive awards struck
An arbitrator ordered retroactive career ladder promotions and backpay for five IRS tax law specialists under a disputed labor agreement provision. The agency had disapproved that provision during agency head review, and the Authority later found it nonnegotiable. The Authority held that the…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Austin, Texas and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 219
HHS future discipline clause (FLRA 0-AR-1905): Automatic suspension removed
An arbitrator reduced a three day suspension for disruptive conduct to a written reprimand. The award also required an automatic five day suspension if the employee committed specified misconduct later. Both the agency and union challenged parts of the award. The Authority upheld the reprimand but…
United States Customs Service, Region IV, Miami District, Miami, Florida and National Treasury Employees Union
Miami Customs employee addresses (FLRA 4-CA-90558): Disclosure ordered
The Miami Customs district refused to give its union bargaining unit employees’ names and home addresses. An administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice, and Customs challenged summary judgment, citing inspector safety and privacy concerns. The Authority found that Customs had not shown…
Matter of Lemhammad
Conditional resident status terminated after divorce
The Board reviewed a Jordanian respondent’s deportation appeal after his conditional permanent resident status was terminated following divorce from his United States citizen spouse. The Board held that the Service could terminate conditional status when the qualifying marriage was judicially…
Matter of Meza
Aggravated-felony conviction may qualify for section 212(c) relief
The Board reviewed an appeal involving a lawful permanent resident convicted of a drug-related aggravated felony and a controlled-substance violation. The Immigration Judge had denied a section 212(c) waiver because the respondent was convicted of an aggravated felony. The Board held that the 1990…
Naval Air Station and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2225, AFL-CIO
Naval Air Station addresses (FLRA 3-CA-90516): Disclosure ordered
The union asked the Naval Air Station for names and home addresses of represented employees. The station refused to provide the addresses even though the parties agreed they were maintained and reasonably available. Applying its prior address disclosure rulings, the Authority found that refusal to…
Naval Aviation Depot and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2225, AFL-CIO
Naval Aviation Depot addresses (FLRA 3-CA-90514): Disclosure ordered
The Naval Aviation Depot refused the union’s request for names and home addresses of employees in its bargaining unit. It cited possible Privacy Act problems, and the parties agreed that other ways to communicate with employees existed. The Authority found that the requested information met the…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1482 and U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Mapping Agency, Hydrographic/Topographic Center, Louisville, Kentucky
Defense Mapping security forms (FLRA 0-NG-1833): Training proposals negotiable
Defense Mapping Agency employees had to complete questionnaires to retain security clearances. The union proposed training for supervisors reviewing the forms and for employees completing them, along with limits and disclosures concerning supervisory input. The Authority found both training…
Gary Concrete Products, Inc.
Unstable concrete piling storage was a serious violation
Gary Concrete Products manufactured and stored large concrete pilings at a Georgia worksite. An improperly stacked group of pilings collapsed and killed a rigger while employees were moving pilings with a crane. The Commission found that the company could have discovered the unstable stack because…
Regina Construction Company
Foreman's assignment supported unprotected fall citation
Regina Construction was a concrete subcontractor on a hospital construction project in Washington, D.C. OSHA observed an employee performing concrete finishing beside an unguarded floor edge 24 feet above the ground without a safety belt. The Commission admitted and credited the employee's…
Department of the Navy, Naval Resale Activity, Naval Air Station Memphis, Millington, Tennessee and National Association of Government Employees, Local R5-66, AFL-CIO
Memphis Navy employee addresses (FLRA 4-CA-90632): Disclosure ordered
The Naval Resale Activity at Naval Air Station Memphis refused to give the union names and home addresses of its bargaining unit employees. An administrative law judge granted summary judgment for the General Counsel and found an unfair labor practice. The Authority adopted that ruling and ordered…
National Weather Service Employees Organization and U.S. Department of Commerce, National Weather Service, Washington, D.C.
Weather Service agreement disapproval (FLRA 0-NG-1875): Petition dismissed
The National Weather Service disapproved two provisions of a labor agreement, but the record did not show that it served the disapproval on the union within 30 days of signing. After the Authority asked for proof of service, neither party supplied it. The Authority treated the agreement as…
U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Washington, D.C. and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 26
Kennedy Center employee addresses (FLRA 3-CA-10074): Disclosure ordered
The union asked the National Park Service for names and home addresses of Kennedy Center employees in its bargaining unit. The agency refused, citing the Privacy Act and other ways for the union to contact employees. The parties agreed that the information was normally maintained and reasonably…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1692 and U.S. Department of the Air Force, Mather Air Force Base, California
Mather voluntary drug disclosure (FLRA 0-NG-1856): Safe harbor proposal negotiable
The union proposed that employees who voluntarily disclosed illegal drug use, entered rehabilitation, and refrained from further use receive protection from discipline for the admitted conduct. The Air Force argued that the proposal interfered with management’s discipline authority, but filed its…
National Treasury Employees Union and Department of the Treasury, Office of Chief Counsel, Internal Revenue Service
IRS agreement provisions (FLRA 0-NG-1582): Reconsideration partly favors union
The union asked the Authority to reconsider a prior negotiability decision that had not resolved three provisions of its agreement with the IRS Office of Chief Counsel. The Authority granted reconsideration and reviewed the provisions. It found negotiable outside employment approval procedures, a…
U.S. Department of Defense, Dependents Schools and Overseas Education Association
Overseas teacher salary steps (FLRA 0-AR-1996): Settlement interpretation upheld
Teachers who returned to Defense Department overseas schools sought more salary credit for earlier teaching service. An arbitrator denied the grievance based on a memorandum of understanding that settled the parties’ earlier step placement dispute. The union argued that the settlement and award…
Department of Justice, United States Immigration and Naturalization Service, United States Border Patrol, El Paso, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, National Border Patrol Council
El Paso Border Patrol performance records (FLRA 6-CA-80173): Sanitized disclosure ordered
The union sought Border Patrol performance records to decide whether to grieve an agent’s rating. The agency refused to provide the requested data. The Authority found the information necessary for the union’s representational work and held that refusing it was an unfair labor practice. It allowed…
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and National Treasury Employees Union
FDIC union certification (FLRA 3-CA-10255): Bargaining required
Employees in two FDIC bargaining units voted for National Treasury Employees Union representation, and the union was certified in December 1990. FDIC refused to recognize the certifications or negotiate ground rules for a contract and a dues withholding procedure. The Authority found that the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 644 and U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Norfolk, Virginia
OSHA paging devices (FLRA 0-NG-1854): Voluntary use proposal dismissed
OSHA planned to require field compliance staff to carry electronic pagers to receive work instructions and emergency assignments. The union proposed making pager use voluntary and removing routine call-in duties for employees who chose to use one. The Authority found that the proposals interfered…
U.S. Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration and Professional Airways Systems Specialists, MEBA, AFL-CIO
FAA drug testing program (FLRA 3-CA-70647): Bargaining and records ordered
The FAA implemented a Department of Transportation drug testing order affecting employees represented by Professional Airways Systems Specialists. The Authority found that FAA withheld requested disciplinary information and implemented testing without completing required bargaining over procedures…
General Services Administration and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 26, AFL-CIO
GSA employee addresses (FLRA 3-CA-10114): Disclosure ordered
The union requested names and home addresses of employees in its GSA bargaining unit. GSA refused, although the parties agreed the information was normally maintained and reasonably available. Applying its earlier employee address decisions, the Authority found an unfair labor practice. It ordered…
National Association of Government Employees, SEIU, AFL-CIO and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Department of Memorial Affairs
VA work schedules and leave (FLRA 0-NG-1640): Five provisions negotiable
A VA medical center disapproved agreement provisions on days off, cleanup time, Saturday overtime, sick leave, distribution of work, and union dues revocation. The Authority found five provisions negotiable, including two consecutive days off where possible, time to put away equipment and clean up…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Region VI, Dallas, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1336
SSA performance appraisal (FLRA 0-AR-2066): Grievance denial upheld
A Social Security Administration employee challenged several ratings in her annual performance appraisal, alleging improper treatment tied to prior complaints. An arbitrator found the grievance arbitrable but concluded that the agency had rated her properly under the applicable standards. The union…
U.S. Department of the Army, Headquarters III Corps and Fort Hood, Fort Hood, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1920
Fort Hood personnel rules (FLRA 0-AR-2012): Contract remedy upheld
The Army implemented new government wide personnel rules at Fort Hood while a labor agreement remained in force. The union grieved, and an arbitrator ordered the agency to rescind implementation to the extent it affected related contract articles. The Army argued that the new rules superseded the…
Panama Canal Federation of Teachers and U.S. Department of Defense, Dependents Schools, Panama Region
Panama schools salary schedule (FLRA 0-AR-1863): Grievance denial upheld
Teachers transferred from Canal Zone Government schools to Defense Department dependents schools received salary protection when the schools changed operators under the Panama Canal Treaty. Some later moved from the retained pay schedule to the Defense schools schedule. An arbitrator found the move…
Matter of Roberts
Section 212(c) relief denied in discretionary balancing
The Board reviewed the Service's appeal after an immigration judge granted a Jamaican lawful permanent resident a waiver of inadmissibility under section 212(c). The respondent had been convicted in Missouri of selling cocaine, and he argued that the conviction resulted from entrapment and that his…
Bland Construction Company
Trenching violations affirmed, willful classifications reversed
Bland Construction Company was cited after OSHA inspected an Austin, Texas, worksite where a trench wall collapsed and killed an employee. The Commission affirmed violations involving an unstable bedrock trench and a separate soil trench under 29 C.F.R. § 1926.652(b). It found that Bland could have…
National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 51 and Internal Revenue Service, Wichita District Office
Wichita IRS workplace exposure (FLRA 0-AR-1645): Hazard pay and medical remedies narrowed
IRS employees grieved health and safety conditions after moving into a building with ventilation problems near a urethane manufacturer. An arbitrator ordered hazard pay or a petition to change the pay regulations, leave restoration, medical expense reimbursement, and medical examinations. The…
Archer-Western Contractors, LTD., and Gilbert Corp. Of Delaware, Inc., A Joint Venture
Crane-overload violation affirmed, training item vacated
Archer-Western Contractors and Gilbert Corporation of Delaware operated a joint venture constructing an airport terminal in West Palm Beach, Florida. A tower crane collapsed after supervisors pressed the crane operator to lift a concrete stairwell form despite repeated warnings that the load…
Spancrete Northeast, Inc.
Repeated guardrail violation affirmed after defenses fail
Spancrete Northeast employees grouted a mezzanine floor about 13 feet, 8 inches above the ground while working near hundreds of feet of unguarded perimeter. The Commission reversed the judge and found a violation of 29 C.F.R. § 1926.500(d)(1). Spancrete's greater-hazard defense failed because it…
Air Force divisions at Los Angeles Air Force Base and AFGE Local 2429
Untimely reconsideration waiver denied
The Air Force sought reconsideration of an earlier order finding unlawful changes to bargaining unit employees’ working conditions. It filed after the regulatory deadline and asked the Authority to waive the expired time limit. Questions about compliance with the earlier order and a later…
Veterans Administration Medical Center, Leavenworth, Kansas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 85
Leavenworth canteen tobacco sales (FLRA 7-CA-80676): Bargaining complaint dismissed
The Leavenworth VA medical center stopped selling tobacco products at its hospital canteen without bargaining with the union. An administrative law judge found no unfair labor practice. The Authority majority agreed, finding that the record did not show a direct connection between sales at that…
Army Soldier Support Center and AFGE Local 1141
Restriction on informational picketing violated labor law
The Army refused to let the union conduct informational picketing at Coleman Circle on Fort Benjamin Harrison. The Authority adopted the administrative law judge’s finding that the refusal interfered with employees’ protected activity. It ordered the installation to stop the restriction and post a…
National Treasury Employees Union and Customs Service
Customs performance appraisal proposals are negotiable
The union proposed that authorized representational time and factors beyond an employee’s control be considered in performance appraisals. Customs argued that the proposals infringed management’s rights to direct employees and assign work. The Authority found both proposals to be appropriate…
AFGE Border Patrol and INS Councils and Immigration and Naturalization Service
Firearms policy proposals partly negotiable
Two unions challenged the negotiability of six proposals responding to the Immigration and Naturalization Service’s revised firearms policy. The Authority allowed bargaining over written notice when firearms authorization is withdrawn, certain reassignment protections, and union representation…
Navy Resale Activity Guam and AFGE Local 1689
Reconsideration denied and jurisdiction clarified
The Navy asked the Authority to reconsider its dismissal of exceptions to an award involving a nonappropriated fund employee’s removal. The Authority found no extraordinary circumstances warranting reconsideration. It clarified that removal is an action described in the statute’s review exclusion…
American Federation of Government Employees, General Committee and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration
SSA travel radius policy (FLRA 0-AR-1937): Reimbursement award upheld
The Social Security Administration applied a department travel rule that expanded the local travel radius from 30 to 50 miles while national bargaining with the union continued. An arbitrator found the implementation violated the agreement and federal labor statute. The award restored the prior…
NAGE Local R5-66 and VA Medical Center Memphis
Suspension case remanded for whistleblower determination
A VA medical center suspended a union representative for 14 days after he used records from an internal investigation. An arbitrator denied the grievance but did not resolve the employee’s claim that the suspension was reprisal for protected disclosures. The Authority rejected the union’s other…
Naval Hospital San Diego and AFGE
Naval hospital ordered to provide employee addresses
The union asked the Naval Hospital for the names and home addresses of employees in the bargaining unit. The hospital refused, citing privacy concerns and disputing the need for the information. On the parties’ stipulated facts, the Authority found the information necessary for the union’s…
AFGE Local 1612 and Bureau of Prisons Medical Center Springfield
Correctional officer suspension upheld
A correctional officer at the federal prison medical center made racially harassing remarks to another officer over a shared intercom. The agency suspended him for 14 days, and an arbitrator denied his grievance. The Authority rejected the union’s challenges to the findings and penalty. It held…
Beale Air Force Base and AFGE Local 2025
Unilateral changes to civil engineering work routines unlawful
Beale Air Force Base changed where certain civil engineering employees reported, took lunch, and returned to wash up before lunch or shift end. The Authority adopted the judge’s finding that the base made those changes without first notifying the union and offering impact and implementation…
Arco Chemical Co., Lyondell Petrochemical Co.
Fire-equipment cases remanded for further proceedings
These consolidated cases arose after a fire extinguisher exploded during a fire-control training exercise at Lyondell Petrochemical Company's Houston facility, killing an Arco Chemical Company employee. The ALJ granted summary judgment to both companies without stating the reasons for the rulings…
Pacific Missile Test Center and NAGE Local R12-33
Missile test center ordered to furnish employee addresses
The union requested names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees at the Pacific Missile Test Center. The center refused to provide the home addresses. On stipulated facts, the Authority found the requested information necessary for union representation and ordered the center to provide it…
IRS Detroit District and NTEU Chapter 24
Complaint over inspector testimony dismissed
An IRS inspector testified at an arbitration hearing that the agency could pursue other avenues, including criminal referral, if a discharged employee was reinstated. The union and General Counsel alleged that the statement unlawfully interfered with protected rights. The Authority adopted the…
Allenwood Federal Prison Camp and AFGE Local 148
Prison camp ordered to provide promotion crediting plan
A union requested the crediting plan used for a promotion vacancy while considering a grievance over an employee’s nonselection. The prison camp refused the request. The Authority found the plan necessary for the union’s representation duties and found that withholding it violated the labor…
NAGE Local R12-33 and Navy Pacific Missile Test Center
Police shift and meal proposal found nonnegotiable
The union proposed an eight hour duty tour for police officers and use of government vehicles for meals. The Authority found the tour provisions conflicted with management’s assignment rights and the vehicle provisions conflicted with federal vehicle use law. It made no finding on an unaddressed…
Overseas Education Association and Defense Dependents Schools
Overseas teacher allowance proposals partly negotiable
The union offered three proposals concerning living quarters allowances and transportation expenses for teachers overseas. The Authority found two proposals inconsistent with government wide regulations or federal law. It rejected the agency’s objections to the third proposal concerning waiver of…
AFGE Local 2022 and Army 101st Airborne Division
Grievance schedule and cleanup proposals negotiable
The union presented five proposals covering grievance scheduling, scout leave, cleanup time, long shifts, and selection priority. The Authority ordered bargaining over the grievance scheduling and cleanup time proposals. It dismissed the petition as to the other three because they interfered with…
Scott Air Force Base and NAGE Local R7-23
Cash award grievance remanded for arbitrability findings
After a performance rating settlement, an employee sought a cash award and grieved its denial. The arbitrator found the grievance nonarbitrable under an Air Force regulation. The Authority found the record insufficient because the arbitrator did not decide whether the parties’ agreement superseded…
Naval Resale Activity Long Beach and NAGE Local R12-173
Naval resale activity ordered to provide employee addresses
The union requested names and home addresses of employees it represented at Naval Station Long Beach. The Naval Resale Activity refused the home addresses. On stipulated facts, the Authority found an unfair labor practice and ordered the activity to provide the information. It also ordered a notice…
Bureau of Public Debt and NTEU Chapter 199
Bureau ordered to provide bargaining unit addresses
NTEU Chapter 199 requested names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees for an upcoming labor management meeting. The Bureau of Public Debt refused. Based on stipulated facts, the Authority found the refusal violated the federal labor statute. It ordered the bureau to provide the…
Phoenix Roofing, Inc.
Attorney-fee request remanded for substantial-justification finding
This order concerns Phoenix Roofing's application for attorney's fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act. The Fifth Circuit reversed and remanded an ALJ award because the judge found Phoenix Roofing was the prevailing party but did not decide whether the Secretary's position was substantially…
Smith Steel Casting Company
Air-contaminant violations and silica controls affirmed
Smith Steel Casting Company employees were exposed to excessive respirable silica dust from sand-handling work and excessive copper fume from arc-air gouging. The Commission rejected Smith Steel's challenge to the validity of the air-contaminant standard at 29 C.F.R. § 1910.1000 because the cited…
Naval Ordnance Station and Machinists Columbia Local 174
Naval ordnance station ordered to furnish employee addresses
The Machinists union requested names and home addresses of the Naval Ordnance Station employees it represented. The station refused to provide the home addresses. The Authority found that the refusal violated the federal labor statute. It ordered the station to furnish the information and post a…
Machinists Local 830 and Naval Ordnance Station Louisville
Drug testing delay petition dismissed on incomplete record
The union proposed delaying drug testing until the Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of federal employee testing. The Authority could not determine what effect the proposal would have because the union had not explained its meaning and intent. Without a sufficient record, the Authority…
NAGE Local R14-77 and VA Medical Center Grand Junction
VA cleanup time grievance denial upheld
Dietetic Service employees at a VA medical center had been allowed duty time to change uniforms and clean up at shift end. The center ended that practice, and an arbitrator denied the union’s grievance. The Authority held that the union’s exceptions did not show the award was deficient. It left the…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Federal workers' compensation appeals from the Department of Labor's Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), federal-sector labor-relations cases from the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), Longshore Act and Black Lung Benefits Act appeals from the Department of Labor's Benefits Review Board (BRB), precedent decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB), and whistleblower and other labor appeals from the Department of Labor's Administrative Review Board (ARB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission, Board and Authority decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Authority at FLRA, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Review Board at Labor, and the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.