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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U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Avionics Center, Indianapolis, Indiana and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1744
Indianapolis Naval Avionics Center and AFGE Local 1744 (FLRA 5-CA-80431): Meeting scheduling change violated bargaining duty
At the Indianapolis Naval Avionics Center, supervisors had often contacted union officials directly to schedule employee representation meetings on official time. Management changed that practice by routing meetings through the union officials' supervisors, without notifying or bargaining with AFGE…
U.S. Department of the Army, Headquarters, 101st Airborne Division, Fort Campbell, Kentucky and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2022
Fort Campbell and AFGE Local 2022 (FLRA 4-CU-90008): Two analysts added to bargaining unit
AFGE Local 2022 sought to include ten management analysts at Fort Campbell in its bargaining unit. The Authority found that eight analysts performed nonclerical personnel work: their studies and recommendations could affect staffing, jobs, and contracting decisions. It kept those eight outside the…
International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots and Panama Canal Commission
Masters, Mates and Pilots and Panama Canal Commission (FLRA 0-NG-1123): Late disapproval left agreement in effect
After a court remand, the Authority reconsidered a Panama Canal Commission agreement provision crediting pilots for incentive pay while they performed union work on official time. It held that the arbitrator's issuance of the complete agreement started the 30 day agency head review period. The…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3028
Veterans Affairs and AFGE Local 3028 (FLRA 0-AR-1853): Three day suspension upheld
An Anchorage VA purchasing agent and union steward received a three day suspension after returning late from lunch on two days. The arbitrator found that he had not supplied proof that union business caused the absences and that a prior disciplinary incident could be considered when setting the…
Department of the Navy, Naval Aviation Depot, Naval Air Station Alameda, California and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Lodge 739
Alameda Naval Aviation Depot and IAM Lodge 739 (FLRA 9-CA-80529): Chief steward time limit rescinded
The Alameda Naval Aviation Depot imposed a 10 hour weekly limit on the chief steward's official time for union representation without bargaining with IAM Lodge 739. An administrative law judge found an unfair labor practice, and the depot did not challenge that finding. The Authority added a remedy…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Headquarters, Air Force Logistics Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio and American Federation of Government Employees, Council 214
Air Force Logistics Command and AFGE Council 214 (FLRA 5-CA-80086): Midterm bargaining delays unlawful
AFGE Council 214 asked Air Force Logistics Command to bargain over last chance agreements and temporary credentials for union representatives. The command delayed meetings and insisted on negotiating 16 proposed bargaining rules before discussing the union's subjects. Some proposed rules would have…
United States Customs Service, Region IV, Miami District, Miami, Florida and National Treasury Employees Union
Miami Customs Service and NTEU (FLRA 4-CA-70849): Inspector's transfer violated union rights
The Miami Customs Service transferred inspector and NTEU president Pedro Rodriguez from an intelligence assignment shortly after learning that the union planned informational picketing. An administrative law judge recommended dismissal, accepting the agency's explanation that Rodriguez was part of…
Overseas Private Investment Corporation and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1534
Overseas Private Investment Corporation and AFGE Local 1534 (FLRA 3-RA-90002): Representation election ordered
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation questioned whether AFGE Local 1534 still had majority support among its employees. A regional director dismissed the agency's petition, reasoning that low membership, employee turnover, and earlier union inactivity did not establish reasonable doubt. The…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Fresno, California and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2654
Fresno VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2654 (FLRA 0-AR-1846): Physician evaluation exceptions dismissed
AFGE Local 2654 challenged an arbitration award concerning a staff physician's proficiency rating at the Fresno VA Medical Center. The arbitrator had largely upheld the rating and rejected the physician's harassment claim, while ordering removal of one unsupported comment. The Authority did not…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Northeastern Program Service Center and American Federation of Government Employees, National Council of Social Security Administration Payment Center Locals, Local 1760
SSA Northeastern Program Service Center and AFGE Local 1760 (FLRA 0-NG-1684): Vacancy form proposal negotiable
The SSA's Northeastern Program Service Center planned to replace a short vacancy application form with one that required employees to provide more detailed qualifications. AFGE Local 1760 proposed keeping the earlier form, while the agency argued that the proposal interfered with its management…
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Office of Hearings and Appeals, Region II and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1760
SSA Office of Hearings and Appeals and AFGE Local 1760 (FLRA O-AR-1762): Manhattan radio grievance survives earlier charge
SSA's Office of Hearings and Appeals stopped employees from playing radios in its Manhattan work areas without first notifying AFGE Local 1760. An arbitrator found a contract violation and directed the office to permit radios as before until it complied with its contract duties. The agency argued…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Omaha, Nebraska District and National Treasury Employees Union
Omaha IRS District and NTEU (FLRA 0-AR-1738): Priority consideration for revenue officer applicant upheld
An Omaha IRS employee challenged the agency's selection process for revenue officer vacancies. The arbitrator found that the IRS had compared internal and outside applicants using different methods and had not properly compared their qualifications. He ordered priority consideration for the…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Newington, Connecticut and National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-109
Newington VA Medical Center and NAGE Local R1-109 (FLRA 0-AR-1676): Earlier charge bars reassignment grievance
NAGE Local R1-109 challenged the Newington VA Medical Center's reassignment of a photographer to a computer specialist position. The union filed an unfair labor practice charge first, then a grievance alleging that the same reassignment violated the collective bargaining agreement. An arbitrator…
U.S. Department of the Army, McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, McAlester, Oklahoma and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2815
McAlester Army Ammunition Plant and AFGE Local 2815 (FLRA 0-AR-1808): Hazard pay award returned for clarification
Employees at the McAlester Army Ammunition Plant sought an 8 percent hazard pay differential for removing explosives from depth charges, rather than the 4 percent differential the agency had paid. An arbitrator awarded 8 percent after finding that detonation remained possible during part of the…
U.S. Department of the Army, Aviation Systems Command, St. Louis, Missouri and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 405
Army Aviation Systems Command and NFFE Local 405 (FLRA O-AR-1749): Fitness center bargaining award upheld
The Army Aviation Systems Command planned a fitness center at its St. Louis facility without bargaining with NFFE Local 405 about its location and design. An arbitrator found that the command breached the collective bargaining agreement and ordered it to stop advancing the project until bargaining…
U.S. Department of the Army, Fifth Army, 122nd ARCOM, North Little Rock, Arkansas and National Association of Government Employees, Local R5-158 and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 386
Fifth Army and competing unions (FLRA 6-RO-90004): Election objections denied on review
NAGE Local R5-158 objected to a mail ballot election among Army employees, arguing that NFFE had sent false campaign literature to voters' homes and that NAGE had no chance to reply. A regional director rejected the objections and decided that thirteen ballots received after the agreed deadline…
Federal Employees Metal Trades Council of Charleston and U.S. Department of the Navy, Charleston Naval Shipyard, Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston Naval Shipyard and Metal Trades Council (FLRA 0-NG-1575): Holiday curtailment proposal nonnegotiable
The Federal Employees Metal Trades Council proposed paid administrative leave for employees during the Charleston Naval Shipyard's Christmas curtailment, subject to budget limits. If budget limits prevented paid leave, the proposal would let employees choose among other options, including working…
Smithsonian Institution, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1831
National Gallery of Art and AFGE Local 1831 (FLRA 0-AR-1888): Guard promotion grievance denied
An AFGE Local 1831 security guard at the National Gallery of Art sought promotion from GS-3 to GS-4 six months after his appointment under a veterans readjustment program. An arbitrator denied his grievance, finding that he had not met the agreement's satisfactory service requirement during that…
U.S. Department of the Army, Headquarters, XVIII Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg, North Carolina and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1770
Fort Bragg and AFGE Local 1770 (FLRA 0-AR-1782): Nurse's appraisal correction upheld
An occupational health nurse at Fort Bragg challenged her performance rating for scheduling employee medical examinations. An arbitrator found that she had scheduled all employees identified to her as needing appointments and ordered her job element raised to "exceed" and her overall rating to…
R & R Builders, Inc.
Motion to sever GFCI item denied for lack of good cause
The Secretary asked the Commission to sever and finalize an affirmed ground-fault-circuit-interrupter item so it could support future repeated citations and encourage compliance at other worksites. The Commission held that Federal Rule 54(b) is intended to permit immediate appeals and is not the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3342 and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, New York Region
AFGE Local 3342 and SSA New York Region (FLRA 0-NG-1763): Negotiability petition dismissed on filing grounds
AFGE Local 3342 challenged SSA's disapproval of one term in a New York Region agreement about part-time employees working beyond their regular schedules. The union also appealed an alternative proposal it submitted after the disapproval. The Authority dismissed the challenge to the agreement term…
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Western Region and National Joint Council of Food Inspection Locals, Southwest Council, Local 925, American Federation of Government Employees
Food Safety and Inspection Service and AFGE Local 925 (FLRA 0-AR-1803): Food inspector applicant remedy upheld
Food inspectors challenged how the Food Safety and Inspection Service filled three food technologist vacancies. An arbitrator found that the agency's selections did not violate the parties' agreement, but that it had failed to give full consideration to internal applicants close to meeting the…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Louisville District and National Treasury Employees Union
Louisville IRS District and NTEU (FLRA 0-AR-1661): Revenue agent applicant gets priority consideration
A Louisville IRS employee applied for a revenue agent opening but was passed over when the agency hired outside applicants. An arbitrator found that the selecting official had not compared those outside candidates with qualified IRS employees as the agency's policy and negotiated procedure…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R5-169 and U.S. Department of the Army, Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Fort Polk, Louisiana
Fort Polk Exchange Service and NAGE Local R5-169 (FLRA 0-AR-1860): Removal exceptions outside Authority jurisdiction
The Army and Air Force Exchange Service at Fort Polk terminated a lead sales associate after she claimed pay for days she had not worked. An arbitrator found just cause for the termination and denied the grievance. NAGE Local R5-169 challenged the award, but the Authority did not reach its…
U.S. Department of Defense, Tennessee National Guard and National Association of Government Employees, Local R5-165
Tennessee National Guard and NAGE Local R5-165 (FLRA 0-AR-1778): Aircraft foreman selection upheld
The Tennessee National Guard selected an aircraft mechanic foreman whose military rank was below that of some civilian technicians in the group he would supervise. It moved employees between two flights to avoid having the new foreman serve as the full-time supervisor of a technician senior to him…
U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Weather Service and National Weather Service Employees Organization
National Weather Service and its employees' union (FLRA 0-AR-1725): Witness travel time award upheld
The National Weather Service employees' union challenged the agency's forecaster training program, but an arbitrator denied that grievance. He separately ordered official time for union witnesses who traveled to and from the arbitration hearing, finding that the agency had wrongly denied schedule…
The Adjutant General, Massachusetts National Guard, Boston, Massachusetts and National Association of Government Employees
Massachusetts National Guard and NAGE (FLRA 1-CA-80328): Uniform bargaining complaint dismissed
The Massachusetts National Guard stopped allowing civilian technicians to wear retired "Class X" uniforms during messy work and instead required the prescribed military uniform beneath coveralls. NAGE proposed that technicians wearing coveralls need not wear the military uniform underneath. The…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Griffiss Air Force Base, Rome, New York and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2612
Griffiss Air Force Base and AFGE Local 2612 (FLRA 0-AR-1908): Union office fee adjustment upheld
Griffiss Air Force Base moved AFGE Local 2612 to replacement office space that initially lacked working air conditioning and included an open hallway. An arbitrator found that the premature move breached a settlement agreement and reduced the union's rent and utility charges for the period when the…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia and National Association of Government Employees, Local R4-19
Norfolk Naval Shipyard and NAGE Local R4-19 (FLRA 0-AR-1915): Conditional backpay award set aside
Norfolk Naval Shipyard suspended a police officer for 14 days after he accidentally discharged his service revolver during an attempted apprehension. An arbitrator would have removed the discipline and awarded backpay if the officer lost weight and completed a conditioning program. The Authority…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, 832d Combat Support Group, Luke Air Force Base, Arizona and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1547
Luke Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1547 (FLRA 8-CA-80396): No-smoking policy rescinded for lack of bargaining
Luke Air Force Base implemented a base-wide no-smoking policy before completing bargaining with AFGE Local 1547 over the policy and its effects on employees. An administrative law judge found that the unilateral change was an unfair labor practice. The Authority adopted the judge's findings and…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R7-72 and U.S. Department of the Army, Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island, Illinois
NAGE Local R7-72 and Rock Island Arsenal (FLRA 0-NG-1824): Petition dismissed as late
NAGE Local R7-72 asked the Authority to review Rock Island Arsenal's allegation that a proposal was nonnegotiable. The union received the allegation by hand on April 30, 1990, making May 15 the filing deadline. It sent its petition by Federal Express on May 15, but the Authority received it on May…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Salt Lake City, Utah and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 17
Salt Lake City IRS and NTEU Chapter 17 (FLRA 0-AR-1907): Revenue officer grievance exclusion upheld
An IRS employee in Salt Lake City challenged the selection of outside candidates for revenue officer positions under an internal IRS policy. An arbitrator found that the parties' negotiated grievance agreement excluded disputes alleging violation of that policy and denied the grievance. NTEU…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Omaha District and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 3
Omaha IRS District and NTEU Chapter 3 (FLRA 0-AR-1761): Revenue officer grievance excluded
An Omaha IRS employee challenged the selection of outside candidates for revenue officer positions under an internal policy favoring equally qualified agency employees. An arbitrator found that the parties' negotiated grievance agreement provided internal applicants first consideration but excluded…
U.S. Department of the Interior, Colorado River Storage Project and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 2159
Colorado River Storage Project and IBEW Local 2159 (FLRA 0-AR-1683): Sunday premium pay award set aside
The Colorado River Storage Project ended a longstanding practice of paying a 25 percent premium for non-overtime Sunday work. An arbitrator ordered the agency to restore the premium and repay affected employees, reasoning that the practice had become part of the parties' agreement. The Authority…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R3-112 and U.S. Department of the Army, 97th Army Reserve Command
97th Army Reserve Command and NAGE Local R3-112 (FLRA 0-AR-1865): Mechanic leader selection upheld
An aircraft mechanic challenged the Army Reserve Command's selection of another employee for a mechanic leader position. An arbitrator found that the agency had mishandled the selected employee's earlier acting leader detail, but the evidence did not show that the improper detail caused the…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 916
Tinker Air Force Base and AFGE Local 916 (FLRA 0-AR-1822): Fourteen-day suspension upheld
Tinker Air Force Base suspended an employee for 14 days after a workplace dispute and alleged breaches of an earlier grievance settlement. An arbitrator found just cause for the suspension and denied the grievance. AFGE Local 916 argued that using the same deciding official at two grievance steps…
Headquarters, XVIII Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg, North Carolina and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1770
Fort Bragg and AFGE Local 1770 (FLRA 4-CU-90003): Temporary TACOM employees excluded from unit
Fort Bragg asked whether 21 temporary Army Tank Automotive Command employees were included in AFGE Local 1770's certified unit, a question tied to a pending discharge grievance. After a prior remand, the regional director found that they had not joined the unit, and the Authority denied the union's…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2430 and U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Fort Lyon, Colorado
AFGE Local 2430 and Fort Lyon VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-NG-1822): Conditional petition dismissed
AFGE Local 2430 asked the Authority to review roughly 111 bargaining proposals only if its ground rules and the VA medical center's counterproposals counted as a written request for, and response alleging, nonnegotiability. The Authority found that the ground rules did not amount to a written…
Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company
Boiler asbestos case settled for $1,500
CEI employees removing boiler skin casing disturbed asbestos-containing insulation without a negative-pressure enclosure, exposure monitoring, required respirators and clothing controls, or warning signs. An ALJ affirmed six serious asbestos items with penalties totaling $2,100 and one…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1457 and U.S. Department of the Army, Letterman Army Medical Center
AFGE Local 1457 and Letterman Army Medical Center (FLRA 9-CO-90016): Exceptions dismissed as late; later superseded
AFGE Local 1457 sent exceptions to an administrative law judge's decision to the judge's office, although they were due at the Authority's Docket Room by June 4, 1990. The judge's office forwarded them, and the Docket Room received them on June 7. Because delivery to the wrong office did not count…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3601 and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Indian Hospital, Claremont, Oklahoma
AFGE Local 3601 and Claremont Indian Hospital (FLRA 0-NG-1799): Private-office proposal is negotiable; later rescinded
AFGE Local 3601 proposed a private office for the Claremont Indian Hospital employee who kept medical staff quality assurance records. The employee had been moved to a shared area separated by partitions that did not block sound, raising the union's concern about confidential discussions. The…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Indianapolis District and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 49
Indianapolis IRS and NTEU Chapter 49 (FLRA 0-AR-1776): Revenue-officer selection grievance stays denied
The Indianapolis IRS District filled revenue officer openings with some internal applicants and some outside candidates. NTEU Chapter 49 grieved for internal applicants who were eligible but not selected, arguing that an IRS manual policy gave them preference. The arbitrator found that the…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-109 and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Newington, Connecticut
NAGE Local R1-109 and Newington VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-AR-1632): Premium-pay reconsideration denied
An arbitrator found that the Newington VA Medical Center violated its agreement by scheduling an employee for more than six consecutive days and awarded premium pay. The Authority had set aside the pay remedy because the arbitrator did not find the required loss of pay under the Back Pay Act. NAGE…
Covington Roofing & Sheet Metal Company
Defaulted citation vacated by agreement
An ALJ had dismissed Covington Roofing's notice of contest after the company failed to answer the Secretary's complaint or respond to a show-cause order. That default order affirmed one serious citation item and assessed the proposed penalty. During Commission review, the Secretary and employer…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Lowry Air Force Base, Denver, Colorado and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1974
Lowry Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1974 (FLRA 7-CA-90075): Unit status cannot bar agency grievance access
Lowry Air Force Base rejected a union steward's negotiated grievance about selection for a supervisory position, then rejected an agency grievance about that selection because the employees were in a bargaining unit. The Authority agreed with the administrative law judge that excluding employees…
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Buffalo, New York and Service Employees International Union, Local 200-C
Buffalo VA Medical Center and SEIU Local 200-C (FLRA 0-AR-1849): Demotion exceptions dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
A Buffalo VA Medical Center employee developed reactions to chlorine solutions at work and was later reassigned and demoted to a nursing assistant position. An arbitrator denied his grievance seeking salary retention or a comparable placement. SEIU Local 200-C challenged that award, but the…
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
AFGE Local 1760 and SSA Region II (FLRA 0-AR-1757): Suspension award set aside after EEO election
An SSA employee challenged a ten-day suspension through a formal EEO complaint before the union sought arbitration over the same suspension. The agency did not attend the arbitration hearing, and the arbitrator ordered back pay because it had not proved just cause. The Authority set that award…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Aviation Depot, Norfolk, Virginia and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Local 39
Norfolk Naval Aviation Depot and IAM Local 39 (FLRA 0-AR-1696): Chief steward's suspension upheld
The Norfolk Naval Aviation Depot suspended its chief union steward for three days after he left to assist an employee at an off-depot payroll office without obtaining oral permission from his supervisor. The arbitrator denied the union's grievance under the agreement's permission rule. IAM Local 39…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1603 and U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station, Patuxent River, Maryland
Patuxent River Naval Air Station and AFGE Local 1603 (FLRA 0-NG-1747): Counseling provision approved
The Navy disapproved a contract provision saying that employees who received counseling or rehabilitation could still face administrative action for later conduct or performance problems. It argued that the provision would prevent prompt action against employees in sensitive positions and interfere…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R12-40 and Federal Union of Scientists and Engineers, Local R12-198 and U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Ship Weapon Systems Engineering Station, Port Hueneme, California
Port Hueneme Navy station and NAGE locals (FLRA 0-NG-1687): Travel-advance proposals rejected
Two unions proposed travel advances of up to 80 percent for Navy employees who declined a government travel card and for employees requesting funds before temporary duty travel. The Authority found the proposals nonnegotiable under the Federal Travel Regulations. Those rules barred an exception for…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-109 and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Newington, Connecticut
NAGE Local R1-109 and Newington VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-NG-1598): Pay-adjustment proposals outside bargaining duty
NAGE Local R1-109 proposed that a higher starting rate for a newly hired Newington VA Medical Center employee become the minimum rate for existing employees in the same grade, with retroactive adjustments for affected employees. The Authority found that the proposals would change General Schedule…
Federal Employees Metal Trades Council of Charleston and U.S. Department of the Navy, Charleston Naval Shipyard, Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston Naval Shipyard and Metal Trades Council (FLRA O-NG-1702): Observer duty status outside bargaining duty
The Federal Employees Metal Trades Council proposed that observers at contract negotiations attend in non-duty status. The Navy objected to applying that rule to its observers, who were outside the bargaining unit. The Authority found no showing that putting those observers off duty would…
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Washington, D.C. and Cincinnati District and National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 9
Cincinnati IRS and NTEU Chapter 9 (FLRA 5-CU-90010): Clerical personnel positions remain in unit
NTEU sought to add Cincinnati IRS personnel and staffing positions to its bargaining unit. A regional director included twelve employees in six positions and excluded two others. The IRS sought review, arguing that several positions involved more than clerical personnel work or confidential…
U.S. Small Business Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2532 and Council 228
SBA and AFGE Local 2532/Council 228 (FLRA 3-CU-80025): Reconsideration restores grievance, not award
An arbitrator had granted relief to an SBA employee after deciding that she belonged in a bargaining unit. The Authority set aside that award because arbitrators cannot decide unit status, while a later unit-clarification decision established that the employee was in the unit. AFGE asked the…
Veterans Administration Medical Center, Houston, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1633
Houston VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 1633 (FLRA O-AR-1660): Promotion award narrowed to one vacancy
Two Houston VA Medical Center employees grieved their nonselection for one air-conditioning operator vacancy. The arbitrator ordered both promoted and awarded back pay, placing one in the existing vacancy and the other in the next opening. The Authority upheld Scarbrough's selection for the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Department of Education Council of Locals and U.S. Department of Education
Education Department and AFGE Council of Locals (FLRA 0-NG-1586): Suspension timing negotiable, grievance proposal dismissed
AFGE proposed that the Education Department generally keep employees in pay status while they used the contract's review procedures for a proposed suspension or removal. The Authority held that this timing rule was negotiable because the contract preserved immediate action for safety, serious…
U.S. Department of Defense, Maxwell Air Force Base, Georgia and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 997
Maxwell Air Force Base and AFGE Local 997 (FLRA 4-CA-80344): Interview questions must be furnished
AFGE Local 997 requested interview questions used to rank an employee so it could process a grievance. Maxwell Air Force Base refused, arguing in part that disclosure would violate the Privacy Act. The Authority agreed with the administrative law judge that the base had unlawfully withheld…
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 O-AR-1823): Officer and steward official-time blocks do not stack
AFGE Local 1770 argued that a Fort Bragg union officer who also served as a steward should receive the steward's official-time block in addition to the officer's allotted time. An arbitrator read the agreement's separate list of officers and stewards to exclude that extra block and denied the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1513 and U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Oak Harbor, Washington
Whidbey Island Naval Air Station and AFGE Local 1513 (FLRA 0-NG-1785): Volunteer-program appeal dismissed
AFGE Local 1513 challenged the Navy's position on a Military Spouse Volunteer Program at Whidbey Island Naval Air Station. Its initial petition did not include specific proposal language, and it supplied three proposals only after the Authority ordered it to do so. The union acknowledged it had not…
U.S. Department of the Air Force, Griffiss Air Force Base, New York and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2612
Griffiss Air Force Base and AFGE Local 2612 (FLRA 0-AR-1841): Parking grievance remains denied
After AFGE Local 2612 moved offices at Griffiss Air Force Base, its reserved parking was farther away. An arbitrator denied its grievance, finding no proof that the base exceeded its regulation's limit on executive parking, and assigned half the off-base hearing-room cost to the union. The union…
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.