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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Overseas Education Association and Department of Defense Dependents Schools
Overseas Education Association and DoD Dependents Schools (FLRA O-AR-437): Grievance bar upheld
The union filed an unfair labor practice charge and later a grievance over substantially the same issue. The Regional Director declined to issue a complaint, and the General Counsel upheld that refusal. An arbitrator held that the union's first filing elected the unfair labor practice route under 5…
Federal Correctional Institution, Petersburg, Virginia and American Federation of Government Employees, Appomattox Local 2052
FCI Petersburg and AFGE Local 2052 (FLRA O-AR-419): Higher grade detail backpay award set aside
A GS-5 clerk at the Petersburg federal prison performed most duties of a GS-6 secretary position during a four-month detail, but she lacked the stenography skills required for that position. An arbitrator awarded her the pay difference as a retroactive temporary promotion. The Authority held that…
Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station Alameda and Federal Fire Fighters Association, Local 15 and International Association of Fire Fighters, Local F-15
Naval Air Station Alameda firefighters (FLRA 9-RO-30016): Representation petition filed too early
A firefighters association petitioned to represent employees at Naval Air Station Alameda. A different firefighters union already held exclusive recognition under a three-year agreement that had taken effect less than three weeks earlier. The Authority held that the new petition fell outside the…
Defense Logistics Agency, Defense Depot Tracy, California and Laborers' International Union, Local 1276
Defense Depot Tracy and LIUNA Local 1276 (FLRA 9-CA-946): Steward misconduct complaint dismissed
A union steward at Defense Depot Tracy repeatedly challenged ground rules for an employee meeting about workplace complaints. The depot removed him from the meeting and later suspended him for ten days. The union alleged that both actions violated its representation rights and punished protected…
Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration, Baltimore, Maryland and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO
SSA San Jose District Office and AFGE (FLRA 9-CA-1066): Early flexitime start restored
The Social Security Administration moved the earliest start time in its San Jose office's flexitime plan from 6:00 to 7:00 a.m. A local union representative declined to negotiate the change while nationwide bargaining was underway, but the agency implemented it without bargaining with AFGE at the…
Barretto Granite Corporation
Late written contest accepted for a merits hearing
OSHA issued two repeated citations to Barretto Granite. Acting without counsel, the company disputed the citations at an informal conference held within the 15-working-day contest period. It sent letters confirming that dispute after the deadline, and the judge treated the letters as the notice of…
Gates & Fox Company, Inc.
Two willful findings reversed and penalties reduced
Gates & Fox was a subcontractor building part of the Washington, D.C., subway system. The judge found willful violations because a truck crane operated within ten feet of a 4,000-volt line and because self-rescuers were not provided in a tunnel area without an advancing face. The Commission members…
Department of the Army, Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois and Federal Fire Fighters Association, Local 5
Rock Island Arsenal firefighters (FLRA 5-RO-30014): Representation petition barred by contract
The Federal Fire Fighters Association sought to represent firefighters and fire inspection employees at Rock Island Arsenal. The Army pointed to an existing three-year agreement with another firefighters union. The Authority found that the petition had been filed while that agreement had been in…
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Memphis Service Center and National Treasury Employees Union
IRS Memphis Service Center and NTEU (FLRA 4-CA-912): Steward reprimand ordered removed
An NTEU steward spoke to a supervisor for an employee upset about an absence without leave dispute and erroneous information given to the employee's sister. The steward called the supervisor a “fool” and received a written reprimand. The judge found that the remark occurred during union…
Department of Defense, Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Fort Eustis Exchange and National Association of Government Employees, Local R4-114
Fort Eustis Exchange and NAGE Local R4-114 (FLRA 4-CA-30433): Conduct form reprimand complaint dismissed
Fort Eustis Exchange officials asked employees to sign a standards of conduct review form. The local union president declined to sign, saying she needed to consult the union about a revised version, and later received an oral reprimand. The judge found that she had also declined to sign the older…
Environmental Protection Agency and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO
EPA and AFGE (FLRA 3-CA-2767, 3-CA-2803, 3-CA-2825): Performance standards bargaining ordered
EPA implemented procedures for setting employee performance standards while AFGE sought to negotiate the ground rules for bargaining over those procedures. EPA insisted that the union first submit specific written proposals about the standards process. The judge found that the union's ground rule…
Department of the Treasury, U.S. Customs Service, Region I, Boston, Massachusetts and National Treasury Employees Union
Boston Customs Service and NTEU (FLRA 1-CA-20060, 1-CA-20063): Overtime complaints dismissed
NTEU challenged two Customs Service practices affecting Boston inspectors' overtime. The judge found that combining seaport assignments when feasible was an established practice, not a new change requiring notice and bargaining. Requiring inspectors to call the airport supervisor after finishing…
Secretary of Labor v. S.M. Lorusso & Sons, Inc.
Guarding and footwear citations settled for $150
MSHA cited S.M. Lorusso & Sons for an unguarded tail pulley and a worker's failure to wear protective footwear at its crushed stone operation. The parties proposed settling the two $98 assessments for a total of $150. Chief Administrative Law Judge Paul Merlin approved $98 for the guarding citation…
Secretary of Labor v. Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Settlement limited to one docket
An earlier decision had approved a settlement in proceedings captioned under two Jim Walter Resources dockets. After remand, the operator asked Judge Joseph B. Kennedy to correct that decision because the settlement motion covered only SE 84-66. The judge amended the decision, confirmed the $150…
Matter of Ching and Chen
Escape from carrier custody constituted entry
Two Chinese citizens were refused admission at Los Angeles International Airport while traveling under the transit without visa privilege and were held by their airline pending removal. They escaped from the carrier's custody, were later apprehended in the United States, and were placed in…
Secretary of Labor v. Southern Ohio Coal Company
Settlement approved and belt citation upheld
At Southern Ohio Coal Company's Martinka No. 1 Mine, MSHA cited coal accumulations and standing water beside a conveyor belt. Judge Gary Melick approved a settlement reducing the accumulation penalty from $800 to $700 and allowed the company to withdraw its corresponding contest. For the belt…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Patricia Anderson v. Stafford Construction Company
Back pay and penalty awarded after remand
After a court held that Stafford Construction Company unlawfully discharged Patricia Anderson, the case returned to Judge John J. Morris to determine relief. He credited Anderson's testimony that a third party had not paid her wages and held that Stafford's insolvency did not prevent an award. He…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1622 and Department of the Army, Vint Hill Farms Station
NFFE Local 1622 and Vint Hill Farms Station (FLRA O-NG-752): Short detail rotation negotiable, work limits rejected
An Army agency head disapproved provisions of an agreement with NFFE Local 1622. The Authority held that rotating short details among qualified employees when feasible was a negotiable procedure because the agency still controlled qualifications and could depart from rotation when needed. It held…
Veterans Administration Medical Center and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2094
VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 2094 (FLRA O-AR-865): Removal award exceptions dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
AFGE Local 2094 filed exceptions to an arbitrator's award concerning an employee's removal at a Veterans Administration medical center. The Authority held that it lacked jurisdiction because section 7122(a) excludes arbitration awards relating to the adverse actions covered by section 7121(f)…
Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, Alaska Railroad and United Transportation Union
Alaska Railroad and United Transportation Union (FLRA O-AR-504): Baggage work award set aside
An Alaska Railroad trainmaster disassembled and stored a passenger's rifle for safekeeping. The train crew grieved, arguing that a bargaining unit employee should have handled the item as checked baggage. An arbitrator awarded compensation to the employee who otherwise would have done that work…
Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. and Region VII, Kansas City, Missouri and National Treasury Employees Union
HHS Region VII and NTEU (FLRA 7-CA-30131): Inspector General transfers left the bargaining unit
Ten HHS Region VII employees formerly represented by NTEU transferred to the Office of the Inspector General, including five whose union dues had been withheld from pay. HHS stopped recognizing NTEU as their representative and ended the dues assignments. The Authority adopted the administrative…
Keesler Air Force Base and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2670
Keesler Air Force Base and AFGE Local 2670 (FLRA 0-AR-505): Appraisal system grievance denial upheld
AFGE Local 2670 challenged Keesler Air Force Base's implementation of a civilian potential appraisal system under its collective bargaining agreement. The arbitrator found no violation of the agreement or incorporated regulations and denied the grievance. The Authority rejected the union's…
Secretary of Labor v. Markey Mines, Incorporated and Calvin Black Enterprises
Nine citations upheld, two vacated
MSHA brought six penalty cases involving Markey Mines and Calvin Black Enterprises. Judge John J. Morris rejected Markey's argument that five cases failed because the citations named the wrong operator: the penalty proposals named Markey, and the error caused no shown prejudice. He also rejected an…
Secretary of Labor v. Grundy Mining Company, Inc.
$27,000 settlement approved
The Secretary and Grundy Mining Company sought approval of a settlement in a civil penalty case and five related citation contests involving the No. 21 Mine. The assessment office had proposed $30,272, and the parties agreed to $27,000. Judge Charles C. Moore, Jr. considered MSHA's submitted…
Defense Depot Tracy and Laborers International Union of North America, Local 1276
Defense Depot Tracy and Laborers Local 1276 (FLRA O-AR-853): Late arbitration exceptions dismissed
Laborers Local 1276 filed exceptions to an arbitration award involving Defense Depot Tracy. The award was dated and apparently mailed on August 27, 1984. Under the governing filing rules, the Authority found that exceptions were due by October 1, but the union filed them on October 4. The Authority…
Peabody Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Electrical citations upheld and $4,850 assessed
Peabody Coal admitted electrical equipment violations at its Camp No. 2 underground mine and contested MSHA's findings that they were significant and substantial. Judge Gary Melick found that openings in electrical enclosures could permit methane to reach sparking components and could also create a…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of I.B. Acton and others v. Jim Walter Resources, Inc.
Training awards and penalties ordered
This order followed Judge Gary Melick's earlier decision on discrimination complaints by miners against Jim Walter Resources. The judge noted that no claim for interest or attorney fees had been filed within the time he allowed. He ordered the company to pay 13 miners the training expenses and…
United States Customs Service request for general statement of policy or guidance
Customs Service policy request (FLRA O-PS-27): New guidance denied because precedent covered the question
The Customs Service asked how an agency could resolve a negotiability dispute when a union kept pressing a proposal in impasse proceedings without filing a negotiability appeal. The Authority said an agency could not initiate that appeal and the Federal Service Impasses Panel could not decide…
Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees
Social Security Administration and AFGE (FLRA O-AR-503): Within grade backpay award set aside
An arbitrator found that the Social Security Administration violated its agreement in handling an employee's denied within grade pay increase and awarded the increase retroactively with backpay. The arbitrator also found that the employee's performance did not support the increase. The Authority…
Minnesota Army National Guard and Association of Civilian Technicians, Tony Kempenich Memorial Chapter
Minnesota Army National Guard (FLRA 5-CA-944): Uniform order refusal held lawful
The Minnesota Army National Guard declined to implement an impasse panel order that would have let technicians choose between military uniforms and agreed civilian attire. An administrative judge found this refusal to be an unfair labor practice and recommended compliance. Applying a later…
Bureau of the Public Debt and National Treasury Employees Union
Bureau of the Public Debt and NTEU (FLRA 3-CA-30034): Travel time owed, expenses denied
Two NTEU representatives traveled to mediation and arbitration sessions ordered by the Federal Service Impasses Panel. The Bureau of the Public Debt denied their requests for official travel time and reimbursement of travel and per diem expenses. On a stipulated record, the Authority held that…
Department of the Navy, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 4
Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and IFPTE Local 4 (FLRA 1-CU-30007): Quality assessment employees excluded from shipyard unit
IFPTE Local 4 sought a ruling on whether about 30 Naval Material Quality Assessment Office employees remained in its Portsmouth Naval Shipyard bargaining unit. The Authority found that a 1983 reorganization had made the office a separate Naval Sea Systems Command headquarters component, with its…
Secretary of Labor v. Zapata Coal Corporation
One citation vacated, others settled or upheld
Zapata Coal contested citations at the Monclo Prep. Plant, also called the Boone No. 2 Prep. Plant, while MSHA sought civil penalties. Judge James A. Broderick approved settlements for eight citations and allowed Zapata to withdraw their related contests. After hearing the remaining disputes, he…
Albert Vigne v. Gall Silica Mining Company
Discharge discrimination complaint dismissed
Albert Vigne alleged that Gall Silica Mining Company fired him because he raised safety concerns and cooperated with MSHA inspectors. Judge George A. Koutras found no credible evidence connecting the discharge to protected safety activity. He found that Vigne's dispute with his supervisor over work…
Matter of Kekic
Voluntary expatriation defeated visa petition
The petitioner sought visa preference status for her spouse as the spouse of a United States citizen. She had been born in the United States but later became a naturalized citizen of Venezuela, and the district director concluded that she had voluntarily and intentionally expatriated herself. The…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1920 and Department of the Army, Fort Hood
AFGE Local 1920 and Fort Hood (FLRA 6-CO-20012): Steward removal complaint dismissed
AFGE Local 1920 removed a Fort Hood firefighter from his union steward position after he testified for management at an FLRA hearing and promoted a rival firefighters' union. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that giving testimony was protected activity and was one reason cited for the…
Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Central Region and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 88
ATF Central Region and NTEU Chapter 88 (FLRA 5-CA-592): Holiday work change required notice and bargaining
ATF changed holiday assignments for inspectors at distilleries from a full day at the plant to shorter opening and closing visits, reducing the available holiday work pay. The Authority upheld the judge's finding that ATF violated the Statute by failing to give NTEU advance notice, refusing to…
Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, Central Region and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 88
ATF Central Region and NTEU Chapter 88 (FLRA 5-CA-535): Notice required for plant and inspector changes
ATF shifted one-person distilled spirits plants from direct to general supervision and detailed firearms inspectors to examiner work without advance notice to NTEU. The Authority upheld unfair labor practice findings for both changes because their effects on employees required notice and an…
Federal Aviation Administration, Chicago Airways Facilities Sector and Professional Airways Systems Specialists
FAA Chicago sector and PASS (FLRA 5-CA-30431): Midway shift change required bargaining
The FAA moved three Midway electronic technicians from an 8:00 a.m. start to 7:30 a.m. after PASS became their bargaining representative. The FAA offered consultation but refused the union's request to bargain, relying on a consultation clause in an expired agreement with the prior union. On the…
Department of the Navy, Naval Weapons Station Yorktown and National Association of Government Employees, Local R4-1
Naval Weapons Station Yorktown and NAGE Local R4-1 (FLRA 4-CA-20041): Hazard pay cuts required bargaining
The Navy stopped paying an 8 percent environmental differential to two inspectors in Yorktown's CAPTOR MINE facility and public works employees in another building without notifying NAGE Local R4-1. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that those payments were established working conditions…
Secretary of Labor v. St. Joe Resources Company
Working-alone citation vacated
MSHA cited St. Joe Resources after a miner was injured while scaling loose material in a stope at its zinc mine. The citation alleged that the company allowed him to work alone in a hazardous area where he could not be seen or heard. Judge George A. Koutras found that the Secretary had not proved…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Chester (Sam) Jenkins v. Hecla-Day Mines Corporation
Back-pay settlement approved after remand
The Commission had held that Hecla-Day Mines Corporation violated the Mine Act by suspending Chester (Sam) Jenkins without pay and returned the case for a back-pay award. Before the scheduled hearing, the parties agreed that Hecla-Day owed Jenkins $452.06. Judge John J. Morris approved their…
Secretary of Labor v. Joseph B. Necessary
Foreman held liable for unsafe bin support
Joseph B. Necessary supervised repair work on a mine refuse storage bin whose support structure later collapsed, killing three miners. MSHA sought to hold him personally liable under the Mine Act for knowingly carrying out a violation of the structural-maintenance standard. Judge George A. Koutras…
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 29
Army Corps Kansas City District and NFFE Local 29 (FLRA 7-CA-30503): Medical examination panel order enforced
The Federal Service Impasses Panel ordered the Army Corps' Kansas City District to adopt medical examination terms for employees in both hazardous and other jobs. The district implemented the first part but refused the part covering employees outside hazardous occupations, arguing that those…
Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 1923 (FLRA 3-CA-2563): Grievance responses had to reach union representatives
Social Security Administration supervisors delivered grievance responses to employees without giving them to their designated AFGE representatives. The Authority upheld the judge's finding that this bypassed the union and interfered with employees' right to rely on it during grievances. It…
Library of Congress and Fraternal Order of Police, Library of Congress Police Force Labor Committee and AFSCME Local 2477
Library of Congress police unit (FLRA 3-RO-40001): Separate election set aside
The Fraternal Order of Police sought a separate bargaining unit for Library of Congress special police officers who were already represented by AFSCME Local 2477 in a larger unit. An Acting Regional Director found both units appropriate and directed an election. The Authority granted review and…
International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 1 and Department of the Navy
IFPTE Local 1 and Navy (FLRA O-NG-1057): Desk audit petition dismissed after withdrawal
IFPTE Local 1 proposed union representation for bargaining unit employees during Navy desk audits. The Navy initially declared the proposal nonnegotiable, and the union petitioned the Authority for review. The agency then withdrew the allegation. With no live negotiability dispute remaining, the…
Secretary of Labor v. Tri-City Paving Company
Pit-wall violations settled for $2,150
MSHA issued a withdrawal order and a citation after a pit wall collapsed onto a front-end loader, killing its operator. The violations concerned work under a loose bank and the lack of standards for safe control of pit walls. The two proposed penalties totaled $3,300. Judge James A. Broderick…
Secretary of Labor v. United States Steel Corporation
Fall-protection order changed to citation
The Commission had upheld a safety-belt violation at United States Steel's Minntac Mine but found an intervening clean inspection that prevented the challenged order from retaining its original classification. On remand, Judge James A. Broderick considered whether the foreman's failure to wear a…
Secretary of Labor v. Incoal, Incorporated
Original assessment corrected to $64,000
Judge James A. Broderick corrected one sentence of his October 31, 1984 decision approving a settlement involving Incoal's No. 11 Mine. The corrected sentence says the nine violations were originally assessed at a total of $64,000. This order does not state a new settlement amount or change the…
Delaware Army and Air National Guard and Association of Civilian Technicians, Delaware Chapter
Delaware National Guard and ACT (FLRA 23-CA-104): Bargaining required on part of military staffing plan
The Delaware Army and Air National Guard planned to fill certain vacancies formerly held by civilian technicians with full-time military personnel. The Association of Civilian Technicians sought to bargain over seven proposals about the change's impact and implementation, but the Guard refused. The…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1285 and Department of the Air Force, Kirtland Air Force Base
AFGE Local 1285 and Kirtland AFB (FLRA O-NG-1053): Training petition dismissed after agency withdrawal
AFGE Local 1285 proposed employee training for a new appraisal and promotion system at Kirtland Air Force Base. The activity orally declared the proposals nonnegotiable, and the union petitioned the Authority for review. The agency later withdrew that allegation. The Authority dismissed the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of George Roy Logan v. Bright Coal Company, Inc. and Jack Collins
Informer privilege ruling reversed and case remanded
George Roy Logan claimed Bright Coal and supervisor Jack Collins fired him after he refused unsafe work. The judge dismissed the complaint after limiting the Secretary's informer privilege to people who gave information unfavorable to the company. The Commission rejected that limit: a person's…
Health Care Financing Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
Health Care Financing Administration and AFGE Local 1923 (FLRA 3-CA-40060): Dues withholding required for board advisor
A Health Care Financing Administration board advisor authorized union dues deductions, but the agency refused to process them because it regarded him as a management official outside the bargaining unit. On a stipulated record, the Authority found that he prepared draft decisions and…
AFGE Local 1812 and United States Information Agency
AFGE Local 1812 and USIA (FLRA O-NG-739): Two employee protection terms outside bargaining duty
AFGE Local 1812 challenged the United States Information Agency's disapproval of three contract provisions. The Authority held that a right to remain silent during investigations was outside the duty to bargain because it interfered with management's ability to obtain an account of employees' work…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Gregory Brown v. A & L Coal Company, Inc.
Discriminatory layoff found, back pay left for later order
Gregory Brown alleged that A & L Coal demoted him, laid him off, and later refused to return him to work because he raised safety concerns. Judge James A. Broderick found that protected activity partly motivated both the demotion and layoff, but the company proved it would have demoted Brown for…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Coal Company
Berm and seat-belt citations vacated
MSHA cited Peabody Coal after a dozer operator died in an accident at the Black Mesa surface mine. One citation alleged that an elevated bench lacked a berm; the other concerned the operator's seat belt. After a supplemental hearing, Judge John J. Morris found that the cited part of the bench had…
National Association of Government Employees and Department of the Air Force, Scott Air Force Base
NAGE and Scott AFB (FLRA O-NG-871): Commissary access and search limits rejected
NAGE proposed preserving a practice in which employees with commissary privileges bought food for coworkers without those privileges. It also proposed limits on unannounced searches of employees and their carried items. The Authority held that both proposals interfered with Scott Air Force Base's…
National Association of Government Employees, Local R7-23 and Department of the Air Force, Scott Air Force Base
NAGE Local R7-23 and Scott AFB (FLRA O-NG-826): Local-only vacancy proposal rejected
NAGE Local R7-23 proposed that Scott Air Force Base keep vacancy consideration local whenever qualified local applicants existed. The Authority held that this would prevent management from expanding the applicant pool, contrary to its statutory right to select from other appropriate sources. It…
AFGE Local 1409 and U.S. Army Adjutant General Publications Center
AFGE Local 1409 and Army Publications Center (FLRA O-NG-783): Shift vacancies negotiable, overtime assignment restricted
AFGE Local 1409 challenged the Army Publications Center's disapproval of two negotiated provisions. The first generally assigned overtime work to employees whose job descriptions covered it. The Authority held that this would limit management's right to assign work, so that provision was outside…
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.