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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Stripe-A-Zone, Inc.
Traffic-safety case remanded for findings and a merits hearing
Stripe-A-Zone installed ceramic traffic buttons and stripes on a federally funded Texas highway project. OSHA issued four citations concerning traffic-control procedures, practices, and training. The company argued that Department of Transportation authority displaced OSHA jurisdiction, and the…
Secretary of Labor v. Youghiogheny & Ohio Coal Company
Methane citation and judge's ruling vacated
An MSHA inspector measured a high methane concentration near the working section of Youghiogheny & Ohio Coal Company's Nelms No. 2 Mine and issued a withdrawal order alleging a violation of 30 C.F.R. § 75.308. A judge upheld the citation, but the Secretary later asked the Commission to vacate it…
United Mine Workers of America on behalf of James Rowe and others, and Secretary of Labor on behalf of Thomas L. Williams v. Peabody Coal Company
UMWA and Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Coal Company (FMSHRC KENT 82-103-D, et al.): Settled damages removed from review
Peabody Coal Company and miner Thomas L. Williams reached a written agreement settling Peabody's liability for monetary damages in Williams's discrimination case. The agreement did not admit any Mine Act violation. The Secretary asked the Commission to remove only that damages issue from its…
Secretary of Labor v. Creole Mining, Inc.
Three reporting citations upheld by default
MSHA cited Creole Mining, operator of Utah's Little Joe Mine, for failing to file a required mine form, notify the agency of the mine's opening, and promptly report a blasting accident. Creole missed the deadline to answer the penalty petition; after a show-cause order, the judge accepted its…
Secretary of Labor v. Zeigler Coal Company
$182 settlement approved with caution about penalty discounts
Zeigler Coal Company and the Secretary of Labor proposed to settle two citations at the Zeigler No. 5 Mine. One concerned equipment permissibility and a possible fire or explosion; the other concerned electrical maintenance and possible shock. The proposed penalties were $91 each after a 30 percent…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1857 and McClellan Air Force Base
AFGE Local 1857 and McClellan Air Force Base (FLRA O-NG-1096): Negotiability appeal filed late
AFGE Local 1857 asked the Authority to review McClellan Air Force Base's claim that a proposal was outside its duty to bargain. The agency apparently mailed its allegation of nonnegotiability on December 21, 1984. Under the filing rules then in effect, the petition had to reach the Authority by…
Department of the Army, Military Ocean Terminal, Sunny Point, Southport, North Carolina and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1708
Military Ocean Terminal, Sunny Point and AFGE Local 1708 (FLRA O-AR-879): Late arbitration exceptions dismissed
AFGE Local 1708 challenged an arbitrator's award concerning the Army's Military Ocean Terminal at Sunny Point. The award was dated October 15, 1984, and appeared to have been mailed to the parties that day. The union filed its exceptions on November 23, four days after the November 19 deadline…
ITT Grinnell Corp.
Court-remanded case returned for additional evidence
The Third Circuit returned ITT Grinnell’s case to the Commission. The Commission then remanded it to the chief administrative law judge for reassignment. The assigned judge was directed to let the parties present additional evidence on the issues covered by the court’s order and to conduct any…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2250 and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Muskogee, Oklahoma
AFGE Local 2250 and Muskogee VA Medical Center (FLRA 0-NG-1042): Employee departure moots petition
AFGE Local 2250 submitted ten proposals about a planned detail assigning a Muskogee VA Medical Center employee to drive a shuttle bus. It sought Authority review after management did not provide a timely written allegation that some proposals were nonnegotiable. The employee was detailed and then…
U.S. Steel Mining Co., Inc. v. Secretary of Labor and United Mine Workers of America
Imminent danger withdrawal order upheld
U.S. Steel challenged an MSHA imminent danger order at its Morton Mine after a shuttle car moved during repairs and a miner died. The inspector identified a protruding tram control, a practice of leaving mobile equipment unblocked during repairs, and the prospect that miners would continue to work…
Secretary of Labor v. Johnson's Trucking, Inc.
Truck alarm citation upheld and penalty reduced
MSHA cited Johnson's Trucking after an inspector saw one of its coal haulage trucks back into a mine pit without a working audible reverse alarm. The company disputed MSHA's jurisdiction over it as a trucking contractor and pointed to an earlier case the agency had withdrawn. Judge George A…
Sun Ship, Inc.
Record-disclosure citations vacated as untimely
Sun Ship built and repaired ships and provided its union with OSHA injury and illness logs after deleting employee names under its confidentiality policy. It later refused to provide complete records to OSHA unless the agency signed a nondisclosure agreement. The judge found two willful…
Secretary of Labor v. Monument Mining Corporation
$500 citation affirmed after company defaulted
MSHA sought a $500 penalty against Monument Mining Corporation for a violation of a surface mine equipment safety standard. After the company's lawyers withdrew, Judge Richard C. Steffey asked Monument to identify a new representative and provide an address for case notices. The company did not…
Secretary of Labor v. Dean Fuels Inc.
Four mine safety penalties assessed by default
MSHA sought $140 in penalties for four alleged mine safety violations at Dean Fuels' Dean No. 1 Mine. The judge ordered the parties to discuss settlement and submit information about the disputed penalties, but Dean Fuels did not respond to that order or to the Secretary's attempts to contact it…
Secretary of Labor v. Voyager Mining Company
Mine noise citation settled for $20
MSHA cited Voyager Mining for employee noise exposure above the level permitted by 30 C.F.R. § 70.501 and proposed a $42 penalty. Voyager and the Secretary agreed to a $20 penalty based on the company's noise reduction efforts. Before the January 1983 citation, its manager had begun work on the…
Concrete Construction Co., Inc.
Backhoe power-line violations affirmed for $500
Concrete Construction used a backhoe to lay large pipe beneath energized power lines. The backhoe’s knuckle joint contacted a 7,620-volt line while an employee assigned to watch clearance was also steadying the pipe, and the employee was electrocuted. The Commission held that the crane…
James H. Tucker v. Southern Ohio Coal Company
Hiring complaint dismissed for lack of a Mine Act claim
James H. Tucker alleged that Southern Ohio Coal Company refused to hire him because of his race and age, and filed a discrimination complaint with the Commission after MSHA denied his agency complaint. Judge Gary Melick treated the company's response as a motion to dismiss and assumed Tucker's…
Secretary of Labor v. Standard Metals Corporation
Consolidated penalty total corrected to $4,672
The judge amended his earlier decision in five consolidated civil penalty cases concerning Standard Metals Corporation's Sunnyside Mine. The January 4 decision had listed a $2,000 penalty for one citation in docket WEST 84-79-M. Judge John A. Carlson found that the hearing transcript showed the…
Secretary of Labor v. Homestake Mining Company
Two citations upheld and two vacated by settlement
MSHA sought penalties for four alleged safety violations at Homestake Mining Company's Homestake Mine. The parties reached a settlement during the hearing. Judge John J. Morris approved it, affirming citations under sections 57.19-106 and 57.3-22 with $20 penalties each. He vacated the two other…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of I.B. Acton and others v. Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Seventeen review cases reconsolidated
The Commission had granted petitions for discretionary review in 17 cases involving Jim Walter Resources, the Secretary of Labor, and the United Mine Workers of America. Because the cases presented similar legal and factual issues and had been consolidated before the judge, the Commission…
John A. Voyten v. Canterbury Coal Company
Discrimination case settlement approved
John A. Voyten brought a discrimination case against Canterbury Coal Company concerning its DiAnne Mine. Voyten asked the judge to approve a settlement. Judge Joseph B. Kennedy found the proposed agreement in Voyten's interest and consistent with the Mine Act's purposes. He approved the settlement…
Steve L. Turner v. Terry Glenn Coal Company
Discharge complaint dismissed for lack of protected activity
Steve L. Turner alleged that Terry Glenn Coal Company fired him after falsely accusing him of smoking inside a mine. He filed a discrimination complaint under the Mine Act after MSHA denied his agency complaint. Judge Gary Melick treated the company's response as a motion to dismiss and assumed…
Austin Bridge Company
Cable-guardrail citation vacated
Austin Bridge installed cable guardrails along an elevated highway exit ramp while a concrete-finishing screed moved along the deck. OSHA alleged that the cables deflected six to eight inches under less than 200 pounds of pressure, exceeding the standard’s requirement for minimum deflection. The…
Mettiki Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Withdrawal order reduced to citation and contest dismissed
Mettiki Coal Company contested an MSHA withdrawal order concerning its C-Mine. After two hearings, the Secretary asked Judge Gary Melick to change the section 104(d)(2) withdrawal order to a section 104(a) citation. The judge granted that request for reasons stated on the hearing record, which this…
Secretary of Labor v. Valley Camp Coal Company; Donaldson Mine Corporation v. Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Labor v. Valley Camp Coal Company and related contest (FMSHRC WEVA 84-147-R): Roof hazard order upheld
An overhanging section of rock remained in an active work area at Valley Camp Coal Company's No. 15-A Mine after an earlier roof fall; it later fell and killed a miner. Valley Camp and its subsidiary Donaldson Mine Corporation contested a withdrawal order alleging that the company failed to remove…
U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Prison System and American Federation of Government Employees, Council of Prison Locals
Federal Prison System and AFGE Council of Prison Locals (FLRA O-AR-873): Arbitration exception dismissed for filing defect
The union filed an exception to an arbitrator's award involving the Federal Prison System. The Authority told the union that its filing did not meet the requirement in 5 C.F.R. § 2425.1(d) and specified what it needed to submit. The union made no submission within the time allowed. The Authority…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Larry Duty v. West Virginia Rebel Coal Company, Inc.
Two retaliatory discharges found
Larry Duty, a miner and union safety representative, challenged two discharges by West Virginia Rebel Coal Company at its No. 1 Surface Mine. Judge James A. Broderick found that Duty acted in good faith on safety concerns about blasting near equipment in 1982 and overloaded coal trucks in 1983, and…
Westmoreland Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Unguarded roller order and related citations upheld
Westmoreland Coal contested an MSHA withdrawal order for an unguarded, moving belt tail roller at its Hampton No. 3 Mine, and the judge considered related civil penalty cases. Judge William Fauver found that miners could reach the roller while cleaning or greasing it and that the company knew or…
Kitt Energy Corporation v. Secretary of Labor
Withdrawal order changed to section 104(d)(1) citation
The Commission sent Kitt Energy's contest back to Judge William Fauver for another look at the form of an MSHA enforcement action. The judge had previously changed a section 104(d)(2) withdrawal order into an ordinary section 104(a) citation. On remand, he accepted the Secretary's argument that it…
Secretary of Labor v. Amherst Coal Company; Amherst Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Labor v. Amherst Coal Company and related contest (FMSHRC WEVA 83-127): Runaway rail car protection citation upheld
Nine runaway rail cars passed through a derail device at Amherst Coal Company's MacGregor Cleaning Plant and struck six other cars, killing one miner and seriously injuring another. MSHA cited Amherst under a standard requiring adequate protection from runaway railroad equipment. Judge Charles C…
Secretary of Labor v. H J and H Coal Company
Three mine safety citations upheld for $1,080
H J and H Coal Company offered to stop contesting three MSHA citations and pay the agency's assessed penalties, but the Secretary requested a hearing so the judge could independently set penalties. Judge Charles C. Moore, Jr. found that an unguarded scoop drive shaft could contact a worker's foot…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Samuel E. Griffith v. Bowman Coal Company, Inc.
Unsafe equipment refusal found protected
Samuel E. Griffith refused to keep operating a scoop at Bowman Coal Company's No. 2 Mine after experiencing trouble with its ignition, accelerator, brakes, and steering. The judge also found defective lights, but Griffith's refusal reflected both concern about the scoop's safety and frustration…
Thomas F. Murphy v. Consolidation Coal Company
Discrimination complaint settled and dismissed
Thomas F. Murphy and Consolidation Coal Company asked Judge Joseph B. Kennedy to approve a settlement of Murphy's mine discrimination complaint. The judge found the agreement in Murphy's interest and consistent with the Mine Act's purposes. He ordered the company to pay the money due to Murphy…
Secretary of Labor v. Homestake Mining Company
Two citations settled for $40 after amendment
MSHA brought two safety citations against Homestake Mining Company at its Homestake Mine. The parties reached a settlement during the hearing. Judge John J. Morris approved the proposed $20 penalty for citation 2097208 under section 57.12-30. For citation 2097774, the parties said the evidence…
Westdale, Inc.
Review dismissed after company failed to brief
An administrative law judge affirmed a citation against Westdale after a hearing. Westdale petitioned for Commission review, and the Commission granted review and ordered briefing. The company did not file a brief, did not state that it would decline briefing, and did not respond to a later…
Secretary of Labor v. Marty Corporation
Two surface mine violations upheld, straw order vacated
MSHA cited Marty Corporation for three conditions at its surface mine. Judge Gary Melick upheld a citation for leaving an unstable tree above a highwall where a mechanic worked and an order concerning a front end loader whose missing ladder made an emergency exit unsafe. He found both conditions…
Secretary of Labor v. Penn Coal Company, Inc.
$150 penalty made final after waiver
Penn Coal Company told Judge Joseph B. Kennedy that it would not challenge his October 26, 1984 tentative decision in a civil penalty case. The judge adopted that tentative decision as his final ruling. He ordered Penn Coal to pay the $150 penalty found warranted by February 1, 1985, and directed…
Secretary of Labor v. Pyro Mining Company
Eight citations upheld, two significant and substantial findings rejected
MSHA cited Pyro Mining Company for eight conditions at its No. 9 Wheatcroft Mine across two penalty cases. The cited conditions involved missing or displaced roof supports, entries wider than the roof control plan allowed, loose coal and coal dust, unsafe equipment conditions, and inadequate…
Bridge Builders, Inc.
Citation withdrawn during Commission review
Bridge Builders obtained Commission review of its case, and the Commission issued a briefing notice. After further review, the Secretary concluded that continued litigation was not warranted and filed a notice withdrawing the citation. The Commission treated that notice as a motion and granted it…
Secretary of Labor v. Maiden Mining Company
$214 penalties imposed by default
MSHA sought civil penalties against Maiden Mining Company concerning its No. 3 Mine. Judge James A. Broderick ordered the parties to confer and exchange information for a possible hearing, but Maiden did not respond. The judge then issued a show-cause order giving the company 15 days to explain why…
Secretary of Labor v. Gililbert Corporation of Delaware
$336 penalties assessed by default
MSHA sought civil penalties against Gililbert Corporation of Delaware concerning its Cannon Mine. Judge James A. Broderick ordered the parties to exchange hearing materials and respond to a prehearing order, but the company did not reply. The judge then gave Gililbert 15 days to explain why it…
Secretary of Labor v. Standard Metals Corporation
Five penalty cases settled, one citation dismissed
Standard Metals Corporation and the Secretary settled five consolidated civil penalty cases concerning its Sunnyside Mine when the first case came to hearing. The Secretary agreed to dismiss one citation arising from a heavy equipment accident for lack of sufficient evidence. Standard Metals…
Secretary of Labor v. Trent Coal, Inc.
$6,000 roof control settlement approved
MSHA cited Trent Coal at its Hritz Mine for failing to follow an approved roof control plan while preparing to extract a pillar. A long crack had been found in the roof; a roof fall in the cited area killed two miners. Chief Judge Paul Merlin found the violation extremely serious and the company…
Robert K. Roland v. Secretary of Labor
): Late brief accepted during pending review
The Commission had granted the Secretary's petition for interlocutory review in Robert Roland's case. The Secretary missed a briefing deadline and said its attorneys had not received the briefing order, although its mail room had. The Commission allowed the late filing and treated the Secretary's…
Veterans Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2400
Veterans Administration and AFGE Local 2400 (FLRA 0-AR-884): Late arbitration exceptions dismissed
AFGE Local 2400 challenged an arbitrator's award involving the Veterans Administration. The award was dated and apparently mailed on October 2, 1984, making November 5 the deadline for exceptions. The union sent its filing to an FLRA regional office on November 21, and the national office received…
New England Container Company, Inc.
Valve item affirmed, noise items vacated
New England reconditioned used 55-gallon drums and operated a noisy blasting machine. The judge affirmed an other-than-serious, no-penalty violation because drums of flammable liquid lacked self-closing valves after installed valves broke and replacements were ordered. Chairman Buckley agreed that…
Department of the Air Force, Lowry Air Force Base, Colorado and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1974
Lowry Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1974 (FLRA 7-CA-652): Commissary bargaining ruling narrowed
Lowry Air Force Base changed commissary store hours and employee shifts after notifying AFGE Local 1974 and meeting with it. An administrative law judge found that the base unlawfully failed to bargain over the changes. The Authority rejected that broad finding because store hours were a management…
Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO
Social Security Administration and AFGE (FLRA 3-CA-413): Bargaining violation upheld, remedies narrowed
The Social Security Administration put nationwide performance standards and critical elements into effect without first notifying or bargaining with affected employees' representatives. The Authority agreed with the administrative law judge that this violated the duty to bargain over implementation…
Department of the Navy, Naval Underwater Systems Center, Newport, Rhode Island and Federal Union for Scientists and Engineers/National Association of Government Employees, Local R1-144
Naval Underwater Systems Center and NAGE Local R1-144 (FLRA 1-CA-354): Union dues withholding ordered
The Navy's Naval Underwater Systems Center refused to honor written union dues assignments from two employees while they were in the bargaining unit. It also terminated dues withholding for two others. The Authority held that a pending unit clarification petition did not suspend the center's duty…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1445 and Alabama Air National Guard
Alabama Air National Guard and NFFE Local 1445 (FLRA 0-NG-792): Travel time rejected, layoff appeal negotiable
The Alabama Air National Guard disapproved two provisions of a local agreement with NFFE Local 1445. One would have granted technicians compensatory time for all temporary-duty travel outside normal work hours. The Authority found that provision nonnegotiable because it extended beyond the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1546 and Sharpe Army Depot, Department of the Army, Lathrop, California
Sharpe Army Depot and AFGE Local 1546 (FLRA 0-AR-779): Selection remedy modified
An arbitrator found that Sharpe Army Depot used improper procedures to fill a supervisory physical science technician job and ordered the selection canceled and rerun. The Authority agreed that the selection process should be rerun but held that the incumbent could not be removed before corrective…
Immigration and Naturalization Service, Southern Regional Office, Dallas, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, National INS Council
INS Southern Regional Office and AFGE National INS Council (FLRA 0-AR-343): Overtime award set aside
INS criminal investigators on temporary detail for the Cuban Refugee Program received annual premium pay for administratively uncontrollable overtime. An arbitrator awarded them additional regular overtime pay for work before their shifts, finding that it occurred frequently and could be predicted…
Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Depot Tracy, Tracy, California and Laborers' International Union, Local 1276
Defense Depot Tracy and Laborers Local 1276 (FLRA 9-CA-20439): Environmental pay complaint dismissed
Defense Depot Tracy ended environmental differential pay for motor pool servicers after an industrial hygienist reported that the relevant exposure had been substantially reduced. The union alleged that the depot acted without bargaining and bypassed the union by telling employees directly. The…
Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital, Columbia, Missouri and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3399
Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital and AFGE Local 3399 (FLRA 7-CA-20125): Meeting complaint dismissed
AFGE Local 3399 alleged that the Truman Memorial Veterans Hospital held two discussions with an employee without giving the union a chance to attend. An administrative law judge found that the first meeting was not a formal discussion but that the later meeting was. The Authority agreed about the…
U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, Airways Facilities Sector, Chicago O'Hare Airport and Professional Airways Systems Specialists, Local 301
FAA O'Hare Airways Facilities and PASS Local 301 (FLRA 5-CA-20057): Employee shuttle restored
FAA technicians at Chicago O'Hare used a government vehicle as a shuttle between two agency facilities under an agreement with PASS Local 301. The FAA ended the shuttle, saying federal law barred the arrangement, and offered to bargain only about the effects of ending it. The Authority held that…
Department of Defense, Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Depot Memphis and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2501
Defense Depot Memphis and AFGE Local 2501 (FLRA 4-CA-1087): Union representation complaint dismissed
AFGE Local 2501 alleged that Defense Depot Memphis changed the conditions under which its vice president could act as union president and improperly disciplined him for representing employees. The administrative law judge found that the complaint did not establish a change in the specific leave…
U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1917
INS and AFGE Local 1917 (FLRA 2-CA-20427): Brooklyn employee parking restored
The Immigration and Naturalization Service reduced employee parking at its Brooklyn Service Processing Center without first notifying and bargaining with AFGE Local 1917. The administrative law judge found a bargaining violation, and the Authority adopted that finding. It ordered the agency to undo…
Social Security Administration, Field Operations, New York Region and Douglas Chauvin; Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees
SSA New York Region and AFGE (FLRA 2-CA-20342, 2-CA-20345): EEO meeting complaint dismissed
An employee and AFGE filed charges after the Social Security Administration held EEO complaint resolution meetings without advance union notice. They argued that the meetings were formal discussions at which the union had a right to be represented. The administrative law judge found that the EEO…
Social Security Administration, Office of Hearings and Appeals and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3615
SSA Office of Hearings and Appeals and AFGE Local 3615 (FLRA 0-AR-863): Probationary separation award set aside
A probationary employee of the Social Security Administration grieved her separation. The arbitrator found the grievance arbitrable but denied it on the merits. The Authority held that governing law and regulations prevent negotiated grievance procedures from covering a probationary employee's…
Audie L. Murphy Veterans Administration Hospital, San Antonio, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3511
Audie L. Murphy VA Hospital and AFGE Local 3511 (FLRA 0-AR-844): Attorney fee denial upheld
An arbitrator denied attorney fees in a grievance involving the Audie L. Murphy Veterans Administration Hospital. After an earlier remand, he clarified that he had found no pay loss, awarded no backpay, and had no evidence that the employee incurred attorney fees. The union challenged the clarified…
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.