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 1760 and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Office of Hearings and Appeals, Region II
SSA hearing analysts (FLRA 0-AR-1742): Promotion processing award upheld
GS-11 Social Security hearing analysts grieved the agency's refusal to advance them to GS-12 career ladder positions. An arbitrator found the grievance arbitrable and directed the agency to process promotion recommendations, with backpay if the promotions were approved. The agency argued that the…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Tactical Air Command, Cannon Air Force Base and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2308
Cannon Air Force Base (FLRA 6-CA-70450): Union address request enforced
AFGE Local 2308 requested the names and home addresses of Cannon Air Force Base bargaining unit employees. The base refused, citing a pending court case, record availability, and privacy. The Authority held that the base had to furnish the information and had violated its labor law duties by…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Brookhaven Service Center and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 99
IRS Brookhaven incentive award (FLRA 0-AR-1789): Higher award upheld
An IRS tax examiner at Brookhaven received a sustained superior performance award worth five percent of his salary. He grieved the amount, arguing that it understated his outstanding work. An arbitrator found that the grievance could be heard and that the award should exceed five percent, but left…
Potomac Electric Power Company
Trench-support citation settled for $1,000
OSHA cited PEPCO after employees entered an approximately 11.5-foot-deep trench before an adequate support system was installed. An ALJ affirmed the trench-support violation with a $200 penalty and severed a separate ladder-access allegation. During Commission review, the parties settled the…
Shank-Ohbayashi, Inc.
Underground-construction citations settled for $4,600
An ALJ had affirmed two willful underground-construction violations and assessed $11,000, while vacating a general duty clause item and another underground-construction item. The parties settled during Commission review. The Secretary changed the characterization of the two affirmed violations and…
U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service Denver Service Center and Rocky Mountain Regional Office and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3628
Interior and Denver Park Service (FLRA 7-CA-80556): Contact information ordered
AFGE Local 3628 sought names and home addresses of employees it represented at two Denver National Park Service offices. The Interior Department directed those offices to withhold the information. The Authority found that Interior unlawfully interfered with the union's bargaining relationship and…
U.S. Department of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 12
MSHA headquarters unit (FLRA 3-CU-90033): Technical staff remain represented
AFGE Local 12 sought to include seven MSHA headquarters employees in its bargaining unit. A regional director found that the program analysts, engineers, and industrial hygienists were technical specialists rather than management officials. MSHA sought review, arguing that their recommendations…
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Newark Office; American Federation of Government Employees; National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1616
HUD Newark representation (FLRA 2-R0-00002): Election petition dismissed
AFGE asked for an election among HUD Newark employees already represented by NFFE Local 1616. A regional director allowed the petition, treating an unfair labor practice settlement as having converted NFFE's agreement to an indefinite term. The Authority read the settlement with the existing…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Thrift Supervision and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3295
Office of Thrift Supervision (FLRA 0-AR-1909): Meeting room request procedure upheld
The Office of Thrift Supervision told its union to request space for meetings through the personnel director. The union continued to arrange space through other employees, and the agency grieved. An arbitrator found that the agreement allowed the agency to name the official who received requests…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, St. Albans, New York and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1988
St. Albans VA medical center (FLRA 0-AR-1898): Admonishments removed from award
Two VA medical center employees were charged three hours of absence without leave after staying to discuss an MSPB hearing once it ended. An arbitrator cancelled the charges and restored pay but also ordered letters of admonishment for failing to check with supervisors. The union challenged the…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Long Beach Naval Shipyard and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 174
Long Beach Naval Shipyard (FLRA 0-AR-1866): Temporary promotion upheld
A GS-9 production controller at Long Beach Naval Shipyard performed GS-11 controller duties for nearly a year. An arbitrator found that the shipyard's agreement required a temporary promotion and backpay for the period from December 3, 1987, to November 6, 1988. The Navy argued that the…
U.S. Department of the Army, Fort Campbell, Kentucky and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2022
Fort Campbell technician (FLRA 0-AR-1852): Noncompetitive promotion upheld
Fort Campbell reclassified an engineering technician position to a higher grade but did not promote the employee holding it. An arbitrator directed a noncompetitive promotion without retroactive pay. The Army argued that the grievance was an excluded classification dispute and that promotion…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
SSA temporary promotion claim (FLRA 0-AR-1655): Backpay denial upheld
A Social Security employee sought temporary promotions and backpay for periods when she said she performed GS-11 and GS-12 duties. The arbitrator found no evidence that she had been detailed to a higher-grade position covered by the agreement and denied the claim. He also called the grievance an…
United States Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia and AFSCME Capital Area Council of Federal Employees, #26
D.C. U.S. Attorney's Office and AFSCME (FLRA 3-CU-00004): Unit clarification upheld
AFSCME sought to add five positions at the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia to its bargaining unit. The regional director included the filled victim/witness advocate position because its duties were routine rather than professional, and included the supply and property management…
U.S. Department of the Army, Watervliet Arsenal; National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 2109; National Association of Government Employees, Local R2-98
Watervliet Arsenal election (FLRA 1-RO-90003): Objections rejected
NFFE won a representation vote among Watervliet Arsenal employees over incumbent NAGE. NAGE objected to campaign conduct, including an alleged parking lot encounter between representatives and statements in NFFE flyers. A regional director found the incidents did not warrant setting aside the…
U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Mapping Agency, Hydrographic/Topographic Center, Washington, D.C. and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3407
Defense Mapping Agency and AFGE Local 3407 (FLRA 0-AR-1938): Performance award grievance remanded
A Defense Mapping Agency employee with an outstanding performance rating was denied a cash award. The arbitrator rejected the union's grievance after relying in part on a later agency regulation that barred grievances over performance awards. The Authority could not tell whether the arbitrator had…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Air Logistics Center, McClellan Air Force Base, Sacramento, California and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 330
McClellan Air Force Base and IFPTE Local 330 (FLRA 0-AR-1864): Appraisal exceptions denied
An electrical engineer at McClellan Air Force Base challenged an annual performance appraisal. The arbitrator sustained some of the agency's allegations of poor performance and rejected others, then returned the partially sustained grievance to the parties for discussion under their stipulation…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1940 and U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Plum Island Animal Disease Center
AFGE Local 1940 and Plum Island Animal Disease Center (FLRA 0-NG-1804): Shorter ferry crew lunch is negotiable
The Plum Island Animal Disease Center's ferry crew carried people, supplies, and equipment between the island and mainland ports. The union proposed reducing the day crew's one hour lunch period to half an hour. The agency argued that this would alter its tours of duty, increase overtime, and…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 916
Tinker Air Force Base and AFGE Local 916 (FLRA 0-AR-1941): Expedited arbitration referral upheld
An employee at Tinker Air Force Base grieved a three day suspension. The arbitrator found that the labor agreement required expedited arbitration, so he sent the grievance to that procedure without deciding its merits. The agency argued that the arbitrator exceeded his authority by ordering that…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Asheville, North Carolina and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 446
Asheville VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 446 (FLRA 0-AR-1886): Reassignment remedy removed
A nursing assistant at the Asheville VA Medical Center grieved a 14 day suspension for patient abuse. The arbitrator found misconduct but reduced the penalty to a written reprimand, ordered lost pay restored, and directed the center to return him to his former position. The agency challenged only…
National Labor Relations Board, Office of the General Counsel and National Labor Relations Board Union
NLRB General Counsel and NLRB Union (FLRA 0-AR-1597): Appraisal information disclosure upheld
The NLRB union sought work descriptions and case identifiers removed from employees' performance appraisals. It needed them to examine whether a new appraisal system was lowering ratings. An arbitrator ordered limited disclosure to union officials for appraisal review or grievance work. The…
Shamrock Coal Company, Inc.
Settlement approved and violations affirmed without S&S findings
Shamrock Coal operated underground coal mines and a preparation plant. In KENT 90-75, Judge Avram Weisberger approved a settlement that reduced two citation penalties from $121 to $40. In KENT 90-60, the judge found violations involving self-contained self-rescuers, emergency materials…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Customs Service, Dallas, Texas and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 140
Dallas Customs Service and NTEU Chapter 140 (FLRA 0-AR-1734): Whistleblower remedy upheld
The Dallas Customs Service stopped scheduling three intermittent employees after they disclosed workplace problems to federal officials. An arbitrator found that the schedule changes were retaliation for protected disclosures, rejected a separate sex discrimination claim, and ordered restored work…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, 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 9-CA-80233): Grievance records ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 1857 requested records to investigate whether military personnel received temporary duty assignments that bargaining unit employees should have received. The Air Force refused, arguing that compiling records was burdensome, military assignments were outside the grievance, and disclosure…
U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Depot Tracy, California and Laborers International Union, Local 1276
Defense Depot Tracy and Laborers Local 1276 (FLRA 9-CA-80143): Union excluded from formal meeting
Defense Depot Tracy held a scheduled meeting with warehouse employees about new work reporting forms and performance standards without notifying their union. An administrative law judge viewed the meeting as monitoring and recommended dismissal. The Authority disagreed: supervisors discussed how…
Vern's Manufacturing, Inc.
Late-contest dismissal remanded for factual record
OSHA issued Vern's Manufacturing a $2,100 failure-to-abate notification for unguarded points of operation on two iron worker machines. The family-run company appeared without counsel and maintained that its informal conference, phone calls, and a letter to the OSHA area director served as a timely…
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
Furnace lockout case settled for $6,500
Bethlehem Steel used a flag-and-tag procedure to protect employees repairing equipment at its basic oxygen furnaces from unexpected movement or energization. OSHA alleged that the procedure did not provide positive control of power sources and cited the company under the general duty clause. An ALJ…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Indian Health Service, Indian Hospital, Rapid City, South Dakota and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 179
Rapid City Indian Hospital and NFFE Local 179 (FLRA 7-CA-70812(2)): Smoking policy change rescinded
The Indian Hospital in Rapid City banned smoking throughout the building after employees had been allowed to use a designated area. It offered bargaining about the effect of the change but refused to bargain over the policy itself. The Authority agreed that a hospital smoking policy was a method…
Tidewater Virginia Federal Employees Metal Trades Council and U.S. Department of the Navy, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia
Tidewater Metal Trades Council and Norfolk Naval Shipyard (FLRA 0-NG-1688): Performance proposals split
The union proposed rules for employees who could not be rated after fewer than 90 days of work in a position, plus automatic cash awards tied to performance ratings. The Authority found negotiable the parts that extended appraisal periods, kept prior ratings on file, removed the oldest rating after…
Peabody Coal Company
Walkaround pay violation affirmed
Peabody Coal operated the Sundial No. 10-B Mine. During a joint federal and state investigation of a roof fall, the company paid one miners' representative who accompanied the state inspector but refused to pay Ernest Eugene White, who accompanied the federal inspector. Judge William Fauver held…
U.S. Department of Defense, Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Dallas, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1345
Army and Air Force Exchange Service and AFGE Local 1345 (FLRA 7-CA-90172): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 1345 asked the Army and Air Force Exchange Service for the names and home addresses of unit employees at its Lowry Air Force Base facility. The agency refused. An administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice, and the Authority adopted that finding. It held that the request…
Keystone Coal Mining Corporation
Float coal dust citation settled for $800
MSHA cited Keystone Coal Mining for allowing float coal dust to accumulate on rock-dusted surfaces in the immediate return at the Jane Mine. The citation was originally assessed at $1,200 and was modified from a 104(d)(1) citation to a 104(a) citation because the operator's conduct did not rise to…
Keystone Coal Mining Corporation
Three accumulation orders settled for $2,250
Keystone Coal Mining faced three orders alleging that coal, coal dust, and gobbed materials had accumulated in underground working areas in violation of 30 C.F.R. § 75.400. The proposed settlement reduced the originally assessed penalties from a combined $3,700 to $2,250. Judge Paul Merlin accepted…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Kansas City, Missouri District and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1336
Kansas City Social Security office and AFGE Local 1336 (FLRA O-AR-1754): Sick leave portion restored
A Social Security teleservice representative requested leave because of illness and was charged absent without leave. An arbitrator found that management had properly denied annual leave and rejected the grievance. The Authority held that the arbitrator failed to apply the rule requiring sick leave…
U.S. Department of the Army, Fort Buchanan, San Juan, Puerto Rico and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2614
Fort Buchanan and AFGE Local 2614 (FLRA 42-CA-40232): Exchange shopping privileges bargaining ordered
Fort Buchanan ended civilian employees' post exchange shopping privileges without bargaining. A court held that those privileges were a condition of employment and sent the case back to the Authority. The Department of Defense then withdrew its remaining claim that an agency regulation barred…
U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Defense General Supply Center, Richmond, Virginia and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2047
Defense General Supply Center and AFGE Local 2047 (FLRA 34-CA-50359): Bargaining order complaint dismissed
A Federal Service Impasses Panel decision called for the Defense General Supply Center to publish benchmark descriptions used in local job announcements. The agency refused, and the Authority initially found an unfair labor practice. A court vacated that order and required the Authority to consider…
American Federation of Government Employees and U.S. Department of the Army, Fort Buchanan, San Juan, Puerto Rico
AFGE and Fort Buchanan (FLRA 0-NG-1835): Exchange privileges appeal dismissed after defense withdrawn
The union appealed a claim that a regulation barred bargaining over civilian employees' post exchange shopping privileges at Fort Buchanan. The appeal followed a court remand of a related unfair labor practice case. The agency argued that the appeal was procedurally improper, but said it would…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Region X, Seattle, Washington and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 220
SSA Region X and AFGE Council 220 (FLRA 9-CA-90143): Branch newspaper subscriptions restored
Social Security Administration Region X stopped providing branch offices with subscriptions to the Federal Times without notifying or bargaining with the union. The agency argued that newspaper subscriptions were not a condition of employment and that its budget decision was reserved to management…
Collier Stone
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Robert A. Cook alleged that Collier Stone fired him after he reported equipment safety defects to an MSHA inspector at the company's Pennsylvania open pit crushed-stone and aggregate mine. Judge William Fauver found that Cook had engaged in protected activity, but the evidence did not prove that…
International Salt Company
Discrimination complaint dismissed
Kathleen Tarmann alleged that International Salt suspended her because she raised health and safety concerns about a supervisor and unsanitary restroom conditions at the Cleveland Mine. Judge Gary Melick found that the suspension resulted from her refusal to clean the restroom and her departure…
United States Information Agency, Voice of America and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1418
Voice of America and NFFE Local 1418 (FLRA 3-CA-70062): Technician preparation time bargaining ordered
Voice of America reduced the preparation and cleanup time allotted to radio broadcast technicians without bargaining with their union. After a court remand, the Authority considered whether the time was a pay practice or a term and condition of employment under section 704 of the Civil Service…
U.S. Department of the Army, Headquarters, XVIII Airborne Corps, Fort Bragg, North Carolina and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1770
Fort Bragg and AFGE Local 1770 (FLRA 0-AR-1969): Late arbitration exceptions dismissed
The union challenged an arbitrator's supplemental award arising from a Fort Bragg grievance. The Authority calculated the filing deadline from the award's presumed June 26 service date, with extra time for mailing. The union said it received the award later and mailed its exceptions by July 31, but…
Southern Ohio Coal Company
Discrimination case dismissed for default
Cynthia Ray brought a discrimination proceeding against Southern Ohio Coal Company. After the company moved to dismiss, the judge ordered Ray to respond and later granted an extension when she said she was considering obtaining counsel. Ray did not file a response to the motion or the show-cause…
Western Fuels-Utah, Incorporated
Coal dust order affirmed with $950 penalty
MSHA cited Western Fuels-Utah after finding a broad accumulation of coal dust in an underground mine entry. Judge Avram Weisberger held that the operator had not shown an intervening clean inspection that would prevent a section 104(d)(2) order, and that the coal dust violated 30 C.F.R. § 75.400…
Dravo Basic Materials Company, Inc.
Settlement approved with reinstatement and backpay
Alonzo Walker was found to have been discharged in violation of the Mine Act from his dragline operator job at the Selma Mine. In this order, Judge William Fauver approved a settlement between Walker, Dravo Basic Materials, and R & S Materials. The settlement required $5,890.63 in backpay, $75 in…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Kansas City, Missouri and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1336
Kansas City Social Security office and AFGE Local 1336 (FLRA O-AR-1639): Promotion remedy modified
An arbitrator found that a Kansas City Social Security office failed to give an employee the priority consideration for promotion promised in its labor agreement. The arbitrator ordered a promotion within 90 days, without back pay. The Authority upheld the finding that the employee would have been…
Leeco, Inc.
Discriminatory discharge found after unsafe servicing refusal
Ricky Hays, an electrician at Leeco's No. 62 Mine, was discharged after refusing to grease an offset fitting on a continuous haulage system while the equipment was operating. Hays testified that the rotating fitting could pull him into the machine or against the rib, and that management required…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Hospital, Oakland, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1931
Oakland Naval Hospital and AFGE Local 1931 (FLRA 9-CA-90313): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 1931 twice requested the names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees at Oakland Naval Hospital. The hospital denied the request. The parties stipulated that the records were normally maintained and reasonably available. The Authority found that the refusal violated the…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Navy Publications and Printing Service, Detachment Office, Oakland, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1157
Oakland Navy Printing Office and AFGE Local 1157 (FLRA 9-CA-90066): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 1157 sought the names and home addresses of its bargaining unit employees at the Navy's Oakland printing detachment. The office refused, though the records were maintained and reasonably available. The Authority found the refusal an unfair labor practice and rejected an argument based on…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station Alameda, California and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Local 739
Naval Air Station Alameda and Machinists Local 739 (FLRA 9-CA-80480): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
Machinists Local 739 requested the names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees at Naval Air Station Alameda. The station refused, although the parties agreed that the information was normally maintained and reasonably available. The Authority found that the refusal violated the statutory…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1690
Naval Postgraduate School and NFFE Local 1690 (FLRA 9-CA-80354): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
NFFE Local 1690 requested the names and home addresses of employees in its Naval Postgraduate School bargaining unit. The school denied the request. The parties agreed that the records were normally maintained and reasonably available. The Authority found an unfair labor practice and rejected the…
U.S. Department of the Interior and National Park Service, Western Regional Office, San Francisco, California and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local No. 1
Interior Department and NFFE Local 1 (FLRA 9-CA-70387): Agency ordered to release employee addresses
NFFE Local 1 requested the names and home addresses of unit employees at the National Park Service's Western Regional Office. The Interior Department directed the office to refuse the request. The Authority found that the department's direction violated the statutory information duty and interfered…
Veterans Administration and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Denver, Colorado and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2241
Denver VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2241 (FLRA 7-CA-80500): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 2241 requested names and home addresses of employees it represented at the Denver VA Medical Center. The Veterans Administration and medical center refused. An administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice, and the Authority adopted that ruling. It ordered both respondents to…
Veterans Administration and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Fayetteville, Arkansas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2201
Veterans Administration and AFGE Local 2201 (FLRA 6-CA-80386): Parent agency address refusal unlawful
AFGE Local 2201 requested the names and home addresses of employees at the Fayetteville VA Medical Center. The national Veterans Administration directed the center to refuse. An administrative law judge found the national agency liable, while clearing the center because it had followed a binding…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Navy Exchange, Naval Training Station, Naval Hospital, Great Lakes, Illinois and Service Employees International Union, Local 11
Great Lakes Navy Exchange and SEIU Local 11 (FLRA 5-CA-80326): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
SEIU Local 11 requested the names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees at the Great Lakes Navy Exchange. The exchange refused, and an administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice. The Authority adopted the judge's finding and rejected the exchange's objection to the governing…
U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Bureau of Mines, Washington, D.C. and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1957
Bureau of Mines and NFFE Local 1957 (FLRA 3-CA-80584): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
NFFE Local 1957 asked the Bureau of Mines for the names and home addresses of employees it represented. The bureau refused, arguing in part that its personnel file addresses were not regularly updated. The Authority found that the bureau maintained the requested information and had to provide the…
U.S. Office of Personnel Management, Washington, D.C. and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 32
Office of Personnel Management and AFGE Local 32 (FLRA 3-CA-80267): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 32 requested names and home addresses of employees in its bargaining unit. The Office of Personnel Management refused. An administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice, and the Authority agreed that the information had to be furnished. It rejected the agency's argument that the…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Navy Ships Parts Control Center, Navy Fleet Material Support Office, NAVSEA Logistics Center, and Navy Publishing and Printing Service and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1156
Navy supply offices and AFGE Local 1156 (FLRA 2-CA-80243): Employee addresses ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 1156 sought the names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees from several Navy supply offices. The offices refused and proposed giving employees a choice about whether the union could receive home addresses. An administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice. The…
Veterans Administration and VA Medical Center, Brockton Division, Massachusetts and National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-25
Brockton VA Medical Center and NAGE Local R1-25 (FLRA 1-CA-80185): Union excluded from shift meetings
The Brockton VA Medical Center changed kitchen employees' schedules and held meetings where cooks chose new shifts. It did not notify their union. An administrative law judge recommended dismissing the complaint, finding that none of three encounters was a formal discussion. The Authority agreed…
International Association of Fire Fighters, Local F-159 and U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Station Treasure Island, San Francisco, California
Treasure Island firefighters and Navy (FLRA 0-NG-1728): Drill and holiday duty limits rejected
The firefighters' union proposed limiting weekday training drills to two hours and limiting what work could be assigned on holidays and holiday weekends. The Navy said both proposals restricted its right to assign work. The Authority agreed that the drill limit would excessively interfere with that…
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.