Federal Agency Decisions
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Lewis v. Deepwell Energy Services, LLC
Three interlocutory STAA petitions denied and consolidated
Lorenzo Lewis alleged that Deepwell Energy Services fired him for internal complaints about transportation-safety compliance. Before a final decision, he filed multiple petitions asking the Board to review limits on summary-decision filings, denial of interlocutory certification, a recusal request…
United States Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving and Printing and Fraternal Order of Police, District of Columbia Lodge No. 1, Bureau of Engraving and Printing Labor Committee
Bureau of Engraving and Printing and Fraternal Order of Police (FLRA 0-AR-5891): Authority sets aside pandemic hazard pay
Bureau of Engraving and Printing police officers sought a hazardous-pay differential for work performed during the COVID-19 pandemic. An arbitrator found that the agency's mitigation measures did not eliminate the unusual risk and awarded backpay under a contract article referring to the federal…
Matter of N-N-B-
CAT deferral reversed and respondent ordered removed
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's grant of deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture to a native and citizen of Russia. The Immigration Judge found that the respondent could be tortured for refusing to join the military, but the Board held that this…
Dish Network, L.L.C.
Willful rooftop fall-protection citation vacated
A DISH technician installed a satellite antenna on a flat restaurant roof about 14 feet above the ground in Syracuse, New York. Two OSHA compliance officers observing from a restaurant 175 to 200 feet away believed the technician was not attached to fall protection and OSHA issued a willful…
Matter of O-A-R-G-
Protection claims denied
The lead respondent, a former Colombian police officer, was beaten and threatened by the FARC after participating in a police operation, and his partner and minor daughter joined his applications for relief. The Board held that the harm was tied to his conduct as a serving police officer, not to…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company, LLC
Unassessed withdrawal order reopened
Consol requested an MSHA conference to challenge a section 104(b) withdrawal order and expected to contest it with the later penalty assessment for the underlying citation. MSHA assessed no separate penalty for the order, so it was not included as a contestable item in the petition and became final…
Secretary of Labor v. TM Crushing, LLC
Vague staffing explanation rejected
TM Crushing said a personnel change prevented its proposed penalty assessment from reaching outside counsel before the contest deadline. The operator did not identify who changed roles, when the transition occurred, how responsibilities were covered, when the error was discovered, or what…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Timely contests misrouted by MSHA
Consol Pennsylvania Coal mailed two penalty contests within days after receiving the assessments, and MSHA's Arlington mail room received them before the deadline. An internal MSHA error kept the forms from reaching the Civil Penalty Compliance Office, leading to delinquency letters. The Secretary…
Secretary of Labor v. Thomas Crushing, LLC
Omitted MSHA guidance defeated reopening
Thomas Crushing claimed it believed an earlier conference request counted as a penalty contest because MSHA never followed up. MSHA records showed that an official had called the operator the same day, explained how to contest after receiving the assessment, and received an email confirming the…
National Labor Relations Board Union and National Labor Relations Board
National Labor Relations Board Union and NLRB (FLRA 0-AR-5973): Authority upholds dismissal of probationary appraisal grievance
The National Labor Relations Board Union challenged a probationary attorney's performance appraisal and minimally successful efficiency rating, which resulted in a step increase rather than a grade promotion. An arbitrator found that the parties' grievance procedure excluded performance-appraisal…
Secretary of Labor v. Kiewit Mining Group
Unexplained address lapse defeated reopening
The Postal Service could not deliver Kiewit's proposed assessment because the company had moved without leaving a forwarding address. Kiewit cited a corporate-office miscommunication but did not say when the move occurred or explain why repeated quarterly prompts had not led it to update its MSHA…
Secretary of Labor v. Mitsubishi Cement Corporation
Duplicate mailing confusion supported reopening
Mitsubishi prepared two similar packages containing its contest form for 13 citations. One package also held the payment check and went to MSHA's St. Louis lockbox, while the other held a check copy and was sent to Arlington, but MSHA did not receive the Arlington contest. The Secretary did not…
Secretary of Labor v. Holcim (US) Incorporated
Temporary mail staffing supported reopening
Holcim's plant and safety managers did not receive an assessment covering 17 citations after the administrative assistant responsible for mail was terminated. A temporary employee handled mail along with other duties, and the safety manager discovered the assessment while checking MSHA's database…
Matter of Zaid ISKANDARANI
Appeal deadline tied to oral decision
The Board denied a respondent's motion to reconsider its dismissal of his appeal as untimely. The respondent argued that his 30-day appeal period should have started when the Immigration Court mailed a memorandum summarizing the Immigration Judge's oral decision. The Board held that the period…
Secretary of Labor v. Cook Stone Company, LLC
Counsel's case mix-up excused
Cook Stone promptly sent its assessment to outside counsel with instructions to contest it. An attorney confused the assessment with another operator's matter and mistakenly reported that Cook Stone's contest had been filed. Cook Stone had already filed pre-penalty contests for the five citations…
Tyson v. R.E. Garrison Trucking, Inc.
STAA matter closed after extended petition deadline missed
Ricky Tyson sought more time to petition for review after an administrative judge dismissed his STAA complaint for failure to prosecute and comply with orders. The Board found good cause and extended the petition deadline from March 11 to March 14, 2025, while warning that no further extension…
Secretary of Labor v. CalPortland Company o/b/o Grimes Rock, Inc.
Operator appeal dismissed
The Commission had granted Grimes Rock's petition for discretionary review in August 2024. CalPortland later notified the Commission that it had become the mine's operator and would appear on behalf of Grimes Rock. The Commission amended the caption to reflect that change. It then granted the…
Bobcat Contracting, LLC
Pipeline pigging citation vacated
Bobcat Contracting was loading a pipeline inspection device into a natural-gas launcher in Farmersville, Texas, when residual gas ignited and an explosion ejected the device and a steel push pole. Two workers were killed and two were seriously injured. OSHA cited Bobcat under the General Duty…
Secretary of Labor v. CONSOL Mining Company, LLC
Rule 30(b)(6) deposition blocked
CONSOL sought to depose an MSHA representative about how the Secretary developed special-assessment penalties in the Itmann No. 5 civil penalty case. Judge Alan G. Paez granted the Secretary’s protective-order motion and denied CONSOL’s motion to compel. He found that some requested topics sought…
Secretary of Labor v. CONSOL Mining Company, LLC
Unredacted penalty forms denied
CONSOL Mining Company asked the Secretary to produce unredacted special-assessment review forms related to two proposed penalties. The Secretary argued that the redacted portions contained deliberative communications protected by the deliberative-process privilege. Judge Alan G. Paez found the…
Secretary of Labor v. CONSOL Mining Company, LLC
Special-assessment motion denied
CONSOL asked the judge to vacate the Secretary’s proposed special assessments for two section 104(d)(1) violations and require regular assessment procedures instead. Judge Alan G. Paez held that the Mine Act gives the Secretary discretion to propose penalties and that the regulations permit special…
Secretary of Labor v. Staker & Parson Companies
Repeated omission defeated reopening
Staker & Parson timely contested 27 of 28 citations but later said it had intended to contest the omitted order too. Its assessment form did not select the contest-all option, and two separate citation lists in its cover letter also omitted the order. The operator additionally waited more than two…
Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials Northeast, LLC
Multiple routing failures defeated reopening
Heidelberg's assessment passed through a new safety coordinator and eventually reached an area manager who was often away from his office. The coordinator did not notify the manager, the assessment's six-week internal routing delay was unexplained, and the manager calculated the deadline from an…
Secretary of Labor v. Carmeuse Lime and Stone, Inc.
Eighth citation omission excused
Carmeuse consistently marked and identified an eighth citation for contest, but conflicting counts in its emails led counsel's paralegal to prepare a form covering only the first seven marked citations. The paralegal found the omission immediately upon receiving the penalty petition, and counsel…
Administrator, Office of Foreign Labor Certification, Employment and Training Administration, USDOL v. Central Florida Labor Services, LLC
H-2A contractor debarments vacated for fuller explanation
The Office of Foreign Labor Certification debarred four related H-2A labor contractors for three years based on alleged material misrepresentations about seasonal labor needs in 2020 and 2021 applications. An administrative judge affirmed the debarments but reduced their duration to one and…
Montroy Development LLC
Excavation safety violations affirmed
Montroy Development was working in an excavation in Camillus, New York, when an OSHA compliance officer saw two people inside and directed them to exit. OSHA cited Montroy because a spoil pile and excavator were within two feet of the edge and because an employee worked in an excavation more than…
Matter of Christofer Alejandro Beltrand-Rodriguez
Bond order vacated and respondent detained
The Department of Homeland Security appealed an Immigration Judge's order releasing the respondent on a $10,000 bond with conditions. The respondent had convictions for lewd or lascivious acts with a minor and for sending harmful matter to a minor, and the record showed sexual conduct involving his…
Matter of M-S-I-
CAT acquiescence claim denied
The respondent, a native and citizen of Nepal, argued that Maoist-affiliated individuals had harmed and threatened him because of his political opinion and that Nepalese authorities would not protect him or would acquiesce in his torture. After a remand from the Fifth Circuit, the Board affirmed…
Young v. CSX Transportation, Inc.
Railroad's same-action dishonesty defense upheld
Michael Young reported that a falling metal gate injured his knee while he worked for CSX Transportation. After reviewing surveillance video, medical records, and his statements, CSX investigated and fired him for dishonesty about how the injury occurred. The administrative judge found that…
United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Eastern Colorado Health Care System and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2241
VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System and AFGE Local 2241 (FLRA 0-AR-5979): Authority sets aside pharmacist backpay
Department of Veterans Affairs pharmacists alleged that the agency conducted a salary survey late and delayed resulting pay increases. An arbitrator found that 38 U.S.C. § 7451 covered the pharmacists unless the Secretary of Veterans Affairs had affirmatively excluded them, then awarded backpay for…
United States Department of Defense, Adjutant General Nevada, Nevada Army National Guard and Laborers' International Union of North America, Local 1776
Nevada Army National Guard and LIUNA Local 1776 (FLRA 0-AR-5752): Authority upholds temporary-promotion award
The Nevada Army National Guard assigned a GS-9 logistics-management specialist to perform food-program-manager duties for six years without a temporary promotion. An arbitrator found that the grievance sought compensation for established duties of a higher-graded position rather than…
Secretary of Labor v. Croell, Inc.
First misaddressed contest reopened
Croell intended to contest two citations but mailed the contest form with payment for four uncontested citations to MSHA's St. Louis lockbox instead of the contest office. It sent the paperwork about three weeks before the deadline and moved to reopen about three weeks after receiving a delinquency…
Secretary of Labor v. Canyon Fuel Company, LLC
Missed counsel referral reopened
Canyon Fuel failed to forward the relevant proposed penalties to counsel for the next step in contesting them. It sought reopening promptly after discovering the mistake. The Secretary withdrew her opposition to help facilitate a broader settlement involving other cases. The majority reopened the…
Secretary of Labor v. Envirotech Drilling, LLC
Missing email explanation defeated reopening
Envirotech timely contested an assessment and later said it received no further correspondence until a delinquency letter. Records showed that MSHA's penalty petition and the Commission's show-cause order had both been sent to the safety manager's active email address. Envirotech did not identify…
Secretary of Labor v. CalPortland Company obo Grimes Rock, Inc.
Two appeals dismissed, one remained pending
Grimes Rock obtained Commission review of several related dockets in August 2024. CalPortland later notified the Commission that it had become the mine's operator and moved unopposed to dismiss two of the reviewed cases. The Commission amended the caption, vacated review in WEST 2023-0015 and WEST…
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. CalPortland Company obo Grimes Rock, Inc.
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. CalPortland Company o/b/o Grimes Rock, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2021-0178): Reinstatement appeal dismissed
This temporary-reinstatement case concerned miner Alvaro Saldivar and was under Commission review at Grimes Rock's request. CalPortland later notified the Commission that it had become the facility's operator and would appear on behalf of Grimes Rock. The Commission amended the caption to reflect…
American Tripoli v. Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor v. American Tripoli
Backpay-enforcement citation and order affirmed
An earlier discrimination decision ordered American Tripoli to pay former miner Robert Baumann back pay and interest. The company did not pay while Commission review was pending, even after the Commission denied its request to stay enforcement. MSHA issued a citation for failing to comply with the…
Matter of F-B-G-M- & J-E-M-G-
Motion to reconsider denied
The respondents, natives and citizens of Guatemala, appealed an Immigration Judge's denial of their applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. The Board had summarily dismissed the appeal because the notice of appeal did not explain the…
Secretary of Labor v. Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc.
Disciplinary briefing stayed
An administrative law judge referred a disciplinary matter involving counsel for Cactus Canyon Quarries from the related CENT 2023-0045 cases. The Commission opened a separate disciplinary docket, CENT 2025-0180. It then stayed further briefing on the disciplinary matter until a later Commission…
Secretary of Labor v. Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc.
Jurisdiction briefing resumed
The Commission had stayed briefing in these eleven consolidated civil-penalty dockets in October 2024. It lifted that stay and directed the parties to resume briefing under Commission Rule 75. The specified issue was whether the stone-finishing plant qualifies as a mine subject to MSHA jurisdiction…
Worksource East Central Georgia v. Employment and Training Administration, USDOL
Dismissal affirmed where OALJ lacked WIOA jurisdiction
Worksource East Central Georgia failed to replace its resigning fiscal agent, and Georgia imposed a sanction after extensions did not bring the local workforce board into compliance. A Labor Department grant officer upheld the state sanction, and Worksource then asked the Office of Administrative…
Matter of Jonalson DOR
Controlled-substance conviction measured at conviction
The Board reviewed a Haitian lawful permanent resident's challenge to his removal proceedings after a Massachusetts conviction for possessing marihuana with intent to distribute. He argued that the federal drug schedule in effect when his removability was finally decided should control, because…
Matter of C-A-R-R-
Asylum application completeness and declaration rule
The Board reviewed four asylum applications filed by a Salvadoran respondent. It held that an Immigration Judge may treat an asylum application as incomplete when it lacks specific answers required by Form I-589, particularly after giving the applicant an opportunity to correct it. But the Board…
Wesley Mallery v. El Segundo Coal Company, LLC
Miner discrimination complaint reinstated
Miner Wesley Mallery alleged that he raised workplace safety concerns and was immediately placed on administrative leave, followed by disability status at reduced pay. The judge dismissed his pro se discrimination case for failure to state a claim after issuing two show-cause orders. The Commission…
Secretary of Labor v. Genesis Alkali, LLC
Unsupported settlements remained denied
A judge rejected proposed settlements covering 34 citations because major modifications and vacaturs lacked enough factual support. One proposal would have reduced a ventilation citation from S&S and fatal gravity to non-S&S and lost-workdays gravity, with a penalty cut from $12,007 to $729…
Secretary of Labor v. Certified Crane and Rigging Services, LLC
Suspended-load citation modified and affirmed
Certified Crane left one end of a multi-ton shaker screen suspended while installation work paused, and two riggers stood about 18 inches from the load. The Judge held that the screen was an ordinary load rather than a component of the crane, so the originally cited raised-component standard did…
Jahanbin v. The Boeing Company
AIR21 complaint filed 377 days after termination dismissed
Boeing suspended Shahrooz Jahanbin in December 2020, terminated him with an ineligible-for-rehire designation in January 2021, and later declined to rehire him after a contractor ended his assignment. Jahanbin filed an AIR21 complaint 377 days after Boeing terminated him, making it 287 days beyond…
United States Department of the Army, Kentucky National Guard, The Adjutant General, Commonwealth of Kentucky and Association of Civilian Technicians, Kentucky Long Rifle Chapter
Kentucky National Guard and Association of Civilian Technicians (FLRA 0-AR-5896): Authority sets aside retroactive retention incentive
The Kentucky National Guard approved a retention incentive for an employee several months after promoting him to a qualifying position, and the union sought payments retroactive to the promotion date. An arbitrator found it arbitrary and capricious that the agency could not identify a law or policy…
Secretary of Labor v. Cobleskill Stone Products, Inc.
Contest mailed with payment reopened
Cobleskill Stone Products paid two citations and intended to contest a third, but mailed the contest form with its payment to MSHA's St. Louis lockbox instead of the Arlington contest office. It moved to reopen within 30 days after the assessment became final. The Secretary did not oppose. The…
Secretary of Labor v. R.J. Valente Gravel, Inc.
Payment mooted reopened case
The Commission had reopened R.J. Valente Gravel's case, and the Secretary appealed that reopening order to the D.C. Circuit. The operator then accepted the citation and paid the full penalty, leading the court to dismiss the appeal as moot and return the matter to the Commission. After jurisdiction…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Gateway North Mining, LLC
Repeated filing failures barred reopening
Peabody's recently hired safety manager and a consultant decided to contest an assessment but did not know the filing procedure or who was responsible. The contest arrived late. The Commission noted that Peabody had filed two other reopening motions in recent years after different missed deadlines…
Thomas v. Dupont Specialty Products USA, LLC
Environmental whistleblower reconsideration request denied
Tesia Thomas alleged that DuPont Specialty Products and On-Board Services retaliated against her in violation of three federal environmental statutes. An administrative judge dismissed the claims as untimely with no basis to modify the deadlines, and the Board affirmed that ruling in February 2025…
JMT Services, Inc.
Six citations vacated because workers were independent contractors
JMT Services supplied a crew for framing and roofing work at an airport hangar project in Chillicothe, Missouri. OSHA issued six citations covering eye protection, scaffold support, equipment safety, fall protection, ladders, and forklift training, with $30,675 in proposed penalties. The parties…
Avalos Home Improvements WI LLC
Contest dismissed after signed settlement
OSHA cited Avalos Home Improvements for four serious construction violations after employees were observed roofing without fall protection in New Berlin, Wisconsin. The company signed an expedited informal settlement agreement that reduced the proposed penalties from $13,828 to $9,679.60 and…
Wabash Carbon Services, LLC
In re Wabash Carbon Services, LLC (EAB UIC Appeal No. 24-01): Permit remanded for post-injection site-care analysis
Four farmers challenged two Underground Injection Control permits for Wabash Carbon Services' carbon-dioxide injection wells in Indiana. The permits used a 10-year post-injection site-care period instead of the usual 50-year default. The Environmental Appeals Board remanded the permits because the…
Administrator, Wage and Hour Div., USDOL v. The Edgewood Co., LLC
Interlocutory H-2B jury-trial appeal declined
The Edgewood Company demanded a jury trial in an H-2B enforcement proceeding, relying on the Supreme Court's Jarkesy decision. The administrative judge denied the demand but certified the controlling legal question for interlocutory review. The Board explained that it may consider some as-applied…
DeBuse v. Corr Flight S.
Late reconsideration and ALJ removal challenge rejected
The Board had affirmed an administrative judge's AIR21 ruling that Colin DeBuse engaged in protected activity and an award against Corr Flight Services. Corr Flight sought reconsideration 60 days later and asked the Board to reverse or stay the case while a federal court considered its challenge to…
Prime International Shipping, LLC
Three serious warehouse violations affirmed
Prime International Shipping used a crew to load vehicles into overseas shipping containers at its Houston facility. OSHA cited an unprotected gap between the loading dock and containers, inadequate forklift training, and a chop saw with its guard tied back. Prime argued that the loading crew…
Secretary of Labor v. Carver Sand & Gravel, LLC
Paid assessment could not be reopened
Carver Sand & Gravel sought to reopen an assessment after its contest was rejected as late. USPS records showed that a company representative signed for the assessment on March 9, 2024, making the contest due April 8, while Carver Sand asserted that it received the assessment on March 11. Before…
Secretary of Labor v. Gentry Mountain Mining, LLC
Safety findings affirmed and penalties increased
MSHA cited Gentry Mountain's underground coal mine for loose ribs along a haulage way, a come-along missing safety latches, a Jeep parked beneath the lifeline in the primary escapeway, and two nonfunctioning methane monitors. The Judge affirmed the loose-rib citation as significant and substantial…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission and Board decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, 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.