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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Local Union 1889, District 17, United Mine Workers of America v. Westmoreland Coal Company
Four hours’ mine closure pay granted
After an explosion at Westmoreland’s Ferrell No. 17 Mine, MSHA issued withdrawal orders and miners missed work. The union sought up to a week of pay and, alternatively, additional pay for the next shift. Judge Richard C. Steffey denied the week pay claim because the imminent danger order did not…
Consolidation Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor (MSHA)
Roof control citation upheld, order vacated
MSHA cited Consolidation Coal for roof bolts spaced wider than its approved roof control plan allowed at the Shoemaker Mine. On remand from a court, Judge George A. Koutras vacated an earlier failure to abate withdrawal order but upheld the later roof control citation, including its significant and…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3669 and Veterans Administration Medical Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
VA Medical Center and AFGE Local 3669 (FLRA O-NG-142): reconsideration of bargaining ruling denied
AFGE Local 3669 proposed rules for disciplinary and adverse actions involving employees at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Minneapolis. The Authority had held that the proposals did not conflict with the Title 38 disciplinary process and were within the medical center's duty to…
Black River Sand and Gravel, Inc.
Electrical and gas-cylinder penalties upheld
MSHA cited Black River Sand and Gravel for four electrical hazards involving damaged or exposed cables and one unsecured acetylene cylinder at its sand and gravel pit. The company admitted the conditions but disputed the seriousness of the violations and the proposed penalties. Judge John J. Morris…
Raid Quarries, Division of Medusa Aggregates Company
Raid Quarries (FMSHRC CENT 80-66-M): Berm and brake violations upheld; one individual case dismissed
MSHA charged Raid Quarries with failing to provide a berm on an elevated haul road and using an end loader with a brake defect at the Heinold Quarry. The case followed a worker's fatal accident, but Judge Virgil E. Vail said the evidence did not establish that either violation directly caused it…
Phillips Uranium Corporation
Owner citations vacated; contractor substitution remanded
MSHA cited Phillips Uranium for alleged mine safety violations caused by independent contractors building a uranium mine shaft. Phillips's employees and equipment did not cause the alleged violations, and the contractors corrected them. The Commission held that the Secretary's continued choice to…
NAGE Local R12-35 and Navy Public Works Center, San Diego
Navy temporary promotion appeal dismissed as moot (FLRA O-NG-646)
NAGE Local R12-35 sought review after a Navy facility declared a proposal about temporary promotions to supervisory positions nonnegotiable under a Navy regulation. The union asked the Authority to decide whether the regulation met the compelling need standard. The Navy later withdrew its…
National Council of Community Services Administration Locals, AFGE and Community Services Administration
CSA Locals and Community Services Administration (FLRA O-NG-127, O-NG-90): negotiability appeals dismissed as moot
The National Council of Community Services Administration Locals had brought two negotiability appeals against the Community Services Administration. The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit directed the Authority to vacate its earlier decisions and dismiss the cases…
Valley Limestone Company
Reconsideration of denied review refused
Valley Limestone sought reconsideration after the Commission did not grant its February 25, 1982 petition for discretionary review. The Commission reviewed both the reconsideration request and the earlier petition. It denied reconsideration without giving further reasons in this order.
DiCamillo Brothers Mining Company, a Corporation
DiCamillo Brothers Mining Company (FMSHRC WEST 81-210-M): Ventilation and door violations upheld in part
After a carbon monoxide accident at the Cross Mine, MSHA cited DiCamillo Brothers for three ventilation-related violations. Judge John A. Carlson found that removing an air door disrupted ventilation to an active work area and upheld the harmful-air citation as significant and substantial. He also…
Ronsco Construction Co., Inc.
Falling-object citation vacated
Ronsco built plank-covered structures over two entrances to protect workers from falling objects at a New York City construction project. The structures did not cover each entrance's full width, and other contractors' employees sometimes walked around them, but OSHA did not observe Ronsco's two…
Daniel International, Inc.
Falling-material general duty citation vacated
At a nuclear power plant project, ironworkers released a crane line before bolting a 4.5-ton girder, causing it to fall 120 feet and injure two employees below. OSHA did not cite the specific steel-erection bolting standard because Daniel had adequately instructed the ironworkers, but instead…
Kentucky Carbon Corporation
Discharge claim settled for $10,000
The Commission had remanded Kentucky Carbon's discrimination case to determine monetary relief for miner Bobby Gooslin after his discriminatory discharge. Kentucky Carbon, Gooslin, and the Secretary jointly asked the judge to approve a settlement. The company agreed to pay Gooslin $10,000 for back…
Daniel Construction Company
Roof fall citation reinstated as serious at $800, welding eye item affirmed, shears items vacated as wrongly cited
Daniel Construction was building a large pharmaceutical warehouse in Puerto Rico when compliance officers inspected on November 24, 1975. The roof stood 26 feet 10 inches above the ground and three of its perimeters had no guardrails. Judge David H. Harris vacated the fall protection citation and…
J. D. Miller and Wilbur Vanderpool
Housekeeping penalties upheld; dust charge vacated, lighting charge dismissed
MSHA sought personal penalties against mine officials J. D. Miller and Wilbur Vanderpool after an inspector found coal and coal dust accumulations, diesel fuel, and poor lighting in the Alchem Trona Mine's belt tunnel. Judge George A. Koutras found that both officials knowingly allowed the…
Naval Air Rework Facility, Norfolk, Virginia and IFPTE
Norfolk arbitration exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA O-AR-351)
IFPTE submitted exceptions to a November 30, 1981 arbitration award involving a Norfolk naval facility. The rule then in force required receipt by the Authority’s national office by December 29. The union initially sent the filing to the wrong regional offices, and the national office did not…
Peabody Coal Company
On-shift examination violation upheld
MSHA cited Peabody Coal for failing to make an adequate on-shift examination at its Eagle No. 2 Mine and correct hazardous conditions. Judge James A. Broderick found that uncorrected roof and equipment hazards during the production shift supported an inference that the required examination was not…
United States Steel Corporation
Inspector access and truck citations upheld
At U.S. Steel's Minntac Mine, an MSHA inspector issued two citations after the company restricted access to an accident scene and delayed an interview with a foreman. The inspector also cited the company for failing to record and correct a defect in a truck before it rolled over. Judge Richard C…
Allen Keller Company
Two citations vacated; $432 assessed for remaining violations
MSHA cited Allen Keller Company for several safety conditions at its crusher and pits, including unguarded conveyor pulleys, a missing road berm, unsafe access to a haul truck, and discharged fire extinguishers. Judge Forrest E. Stewart approved reduced penalties for two citations after reviewing…
Ultimate Distribution Systems, Inc.
Trailer wheel-blocking violation affirmed
An Ultimate Distribution employee suffered a broken back when a trailer moved away from a loading dock and his forklift fell into the gap. No witness directly testified that wheel chocks were absent, and the judge vacated the citation as unsupported by the circumstantial evidence. The Commission…
Point Mugu Joint Council of NAGE Local R12-33 and NFFE Local 1374 and Department of the Navy
Point Mugu contract appeal dismissed after late disapproval (FLRA 0-NG-661)
A Navy official disapproved a provision in a Point Mugu collective bargaining agreement more than 30 days after the parties signed it. Under 5 U.S.C. § 7114(c)(3), the agreement had already taken effect on day 31 without agency approval. The Authority found no negotiability dispute it could review…
Cambria Coal Company
Dragline boom citation vacated; other penalties approved
MSHA cited Cambria Coal because the boom of an unused dragline remained upright. Chief Judge Paul Merlin held that the boom was not a movable part similar to the buckets and blades covered by the cited standard. He also found that the boom's brake, ratchet, and worm gear secured it. He vacated that…
C F & I Steel Corporation
Roof control violation upheld with reduced penalty
MSHA cited C F & I Steel after a roof fall at its Allen Mine, alleging that the company failed to follow its roof control plan when conditions required additional support. Judge John J. Morris found adverse roof conditions and inadequate protection under the bolting machine's canopy, and upheld the…
C F & I Steel Corporation
Roof control citation vacated
MSHA cited C F & I Steel after a roof fall at its Maxwell Mine, alleging that the company failed to improve its roof control program. Judge John J. Morris found that the company withdrew workers, restricted entry to the affected area, used longer roof bolts, and added support measures when…
Kaynite Mining Corporation
Work-refusal complaint settled after bench ruling
Elmer Wayne Staton complained that Kaynite Mining dismissed him after he refused work near a fluid-bed dryer because he feared a burn hazard. Judge Joseph B. Kennedy first ruled from the bench that Staton's perception of danger was reasonable and his dismissal unlawful under the Mine Act. The…
U.S. Postal Service, Dallas, Texas and National Association of Letter Carriers
Postal Service arbitration exceptions dismissed for lack of jurisdiction (FLRA O-AR-363)
Exceptions were filed over an arbitration award involving the Postal Service in Dallas and the National Association of Letter Carriers. The Authority held that the Postal Service was outside the definition of an executive agency covered by the federal labor relations statute. It therefore lacked…
Department of the Army, Watervliet Arsenal and NAGE Local R2-98
Watervliet arbitration exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA O-AR-338)
The Army’s Watervliet Arsenal filed exceptions to a December 15, 1981 arbitration award. The Authority calculated a January 13, 1982 receipt deadline under the 30-day rule then in effect. Although the Army arranged next-day commercial delivery on January 12, the Authority did not receive the…
Betty B. Coal Company, Inc.
Federal canopy violation upheld with $1 penalty
MSHA cited Betty B. Coal for operating two roof-bolting machines without canopies at its No. 3 Mine. A Virginia inspector had ordered the company to remove those canopies the previous day because they lacked clearance under the mine roof. Judge Gary Melick held that the federal canopy rule…
Consolidation Coal Company
Saturday training citation vacated
MSHA cited Consolidation Coal for giving ten miners annual training on a Saturday morning outside the shifts they had worked earlier that week. Judge Gary Melick found that Saturday work on all three shifts was common at the McElroy Mine and that the company could assign miners to another shift…
Helvetia Coal Company
Trailing-cable penalty case dismissed
MSHA alleged that a two-inch cut in a trailing cable left insulated power wires exposed at Helvetia Coal's Lucerne No. 6 Mine. The parties agreed that, if proved, the violation would have been nonserious and created no immediate foreseeable shock hazard without damage to the wire insulation. After…
AFGE National Immigration and Naturalization Service Council and U.S. Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service
INS bargaining proposals receive split ruling (FLRA O-NG-52)
An AFGE council sought bargaining with the Immigration and Naturalization Service over 16 proposals on officer identification, grooming, employee questioning, grievances, assignments, and details. The Authority ordered bargaining on nine proposals, including alternative identification plates…
Leon's Coal Company, Leon Walker, and Robert Hartley
Leon's Coal Company (FMSHRC CENT 80-339-D): Discharge complaints settled with back pay
The Secretary brought Mine Act discrimination complaints for George W. Heiney and John Ghramm against Leon's Coal Company, Leon Walker, and Robert Hartley. Judge Gary Melick held that the company's bankruptcy did not stop the Commission from hearing the Secretary's regulatory enforcement case. He…
U.S. Army Operational Test and Evaluation Agency and NFFE Local 1975
Army professional unit found appropriate for election (FLRA 3-RO-60)
NFFE Local 1975 petitioned to represent professional employees at the Army Operational Test and Evaluation Agency. The Army sought to exclude 15 disputed positions as management officials. The Authority found that the examined incumbents used technical expertise to implement rather than formulate…
Alexander Brothers, Inc.
Coal-refuse preparation covered by the 1969 Coal Act
Alexander Brothers reclaimed coal from an old refuse pile and processed it for sale. It argued that the 1969 Coal Act did not cover its operation because it was separate from the original coal extractor and handled material containing substantial waste. The Commission held that the company's…
D. F. Goldsmith Chemical & Metal Corp.
Settlement dismissal conditionally affirmed
The Secretary agreed to withdraw the charges against D. F. Goldsmith with prejudice, and the company agreed to abatement measures addressing mercury exposure. The judge dismissed the case under that settlement. Because the record lacked certification that affected employees had received notice, the…
Duriron Company, Inc.
Foundry safety settlement approved
OSHA cited Duriron's Ohio foundry for a serious personal protective equipment violation and a repeated general duty clause violation. The parties settled all disputed issues before a hearing, properly notified affected employees, and received no employee objections. The Commission majority approved…
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
Safety belts held to fall within the general protective equipment standard, but the citation is vacated for lack of notice
OSHA inspected the mold yard at Bethlehem Steel's Burns Harbor plant in Chesterton, Indiana and cited a serious violation of the general industry personal protective equipment standard. Two employees worked on a hot top station about twelve feet above the ground, preparing large empty molds that…
Baldwin Industries, Inc.
Asbestos-in-talc citation stays vacated after a two-member split on employer knowledge
The Secretary charged Baldwin Industries with nonserious violations of the asbestos standard. The theory was that NYTAL 200, an industrial talc made by R.T. Vanderbilt and used by Baldwin, contains asbestos fibers, which would have obliged Baldwin to put caution labels on the containers, monitor…
Hull Pottery Company
Asbestos citation stays vacated because the Secretary did not prove the employer knew the talc contained asbestos
Hull Pottery made pottery tableware. An OSHA industrial hygienist inspected the plant in September 1977 and cited three nonserious violations of the asbestos standard, all tied to Ceramitalc HDT, an industrial talc supplied by the R. T. Vanderbilt Company. The items were dry sweeping spilled talc…
H. E. Wiese, Inc., & Industrial Electrical Construction Company
Scaffold access citations affirmed, safety belt citation vacated on supervisor misconduct
Wiese and Industrial were building at the Naptha Unit of a Dow Chemical plant when OSHA inspected. Two citations reached the Commission. Judge David G. Oringer affirmed both. The Commission affirmed the scaffold access citations against both companies and reversed the safety belt citation against…
Borton, Inc.
Scaffold access-ladder violation affirmed
A Borton employee entered a grain silo without using the available ladder, landed on an interior scaffold about 123 feet above the floor, broke through a plank, and died in the fall. The Commission held that the scaffold access standard requires an employer not only to supply a ladder or equivalent…
BJ-Hughes, Inc.
Offshore fall-protection case remanded for preemption and amendment issues
BJ-Hughes provided cementing services on an offshore oil drilling rig where an employee worked unsecured on a narrow ledge about 50 feet above the rig floor. Pressure expelled a cementing plug, which struck the employee and caused a fatal fall. OSHA cited the construction personal protective…
General Services Administration, National Archives and Records Service and AFGE Local 2578
National Archives analyst unit clarified (FLRA 3-CU-30)
AFGE Local 2578 and the National Archives disputed whether management analyst positions belonged in a bargaining unit. The Authority excluded one confidential employee involved in management labor relations and two supervisory deputy directors. It included the remaining occupied analyst positions…
Ozark Lead Company
Loose-roof citations vacated for lack of proof
MSHA sought penalties against Ozark Lead over loose roof at its Frank R. Milliken Mine. After other Commission rulings went against the Secretary's position, the remaining question was whether vehicle tire tracks under loose roof proved a violation. The parties could not say when the tracks were…
Huber, Hunt & Nichols, Inc.
Settlement agreement approved
The Commission approved the parties' stipulation and settlement agreement in the Huber, Hunt & Nichols case. The short order provides no facts about the employer's work, the alleged violations, or the settlement terms. It also does not identify any cited standards or penalties.
North River Energy Company
Loose-coal accumulation citation upheld
North River Energy intentionally stockpiled loose coal in an active working area of its mine to test MSHA's interpretation of the accumulation rule. Judge James A. Broderick held that the rule covered this stockpile and that the accumulation could contribute significantly and substantially to a…
U. S. Steel Mining Co., Inc.
Car-spotter safeguard and citation vacated
MSHA ordered U. S. Steel Mining to add a backup method for stopping mine cars moved by car spotters at its Robena Mine. The safeguard followed an accident at another mine, but Chief Judge Paul Merlin found that MSHA had not established comparable conditions or a specific need for it at Robena. He…
Carolina Stalite Company
Slate manufacturer held outside Mine Act
Carolina Stalite bought crushed slate from a separate quarry, heated it to make lightweight construction material, then crushed and sized the product for sale. The Commission held that this process was manufacturing rather than mineral milling or preparation under the Mine Act. It reversed the…
Crawford Construction Company, Inc.
Trench citation amended to the hard-soil standard and affirmed as serious
Crawford was laying sewer line near Galion, Ohio, in February 1979. An employee worked in a trench 32 feet long, 10 feet 3 inches deep, and 3 feet 4 inches wide with vertical walls and no shoring or trench box. The top layer was about a foot of blacktop over soil frozen to roughly 3 feet. Blue clay…
Consolidation Coal Company
Roof-fall citation vacated for lack of proof
MSHA cited Consolidation Coal after a roof fall trapped a continuous miner operator inside his machine at Blacksville No. 1 Mine for about an hour; he was not injured. The Secretary argued that visible roof defects required different mining and support steps. Judge Charles C. Moore, Jr. found the…
FMC Corporation
Loose-ground penalty assessed; second docket dismissed
MSHA alleged unsafe loose rock in a working and travel area of FMC's mine. Judge Virgil E. Vail credited the inspector's account of loose material that needed to be barred down and upheld the ground-control citation. He found FMC promptly abated the condition and assessed a $1,000 penalty. At the…
American Federation of Government Employees, International Council of U.S. Marshals Service Locals (Union) and U.S. Department of the Justice, U.S. Marshals Service (Agency)
Marshals airlift assignments partly negotiable (FLRA O-NG-309)
The marshals union submitted five proposals for assigning deputies to an airlift program. The Authority held that the first four, which prescribed volunteers, rotation, seniority, and swaps, interfered with management’s right to assign work. It found the fifth, barring arbitrary or punitive…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton, California (Activity) and Federal Firefighters Association, Inc. Local F-85, IAFF (Petitioner)
Camp Pendleton fire captains included, assistant chiefs excluded (FLRA 8-CU-23)
The firefighters union sought to add fire captains and assistant fire chiefs at Camp Pendleton to its existing unit. The Authority found that captains’ direction of crews was routine and did not require consistent independent judgment. Assistant chiefs, by contrast, spent most of their active duty…
Long Beach Naval Shipyard, Long Beach, California (Activity) and International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, Local 174, AFL-CIO & CLC (Labor Organization/Petitioner) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2237, AFL-CIO (Labor Organization/Intervenor)
Long Beach industrial suggestion specialist excluded from technical unit (FLRA 8-CU-13)
IFPTE Local 174 asked to add an industrial suggestion specialist at Long Beach Naval Shipyard to its technical employees’ unit. The Authority found that the position coordinated an employee suggestions program. Although technical expertise could be used, the job did not directly perform technical…
Defense Communication Agency, Defense Commercial Communications Office, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois (Activity) and National Association of Government Employees, Local R7-23 (Labor Organization/Petitioner)
Defense communications analysts included but senior adviser excluded (FLRA 5-CU-23)
NAGE asked the Authority to clarify the bargaining-unit status of three Defense Commercial Communications Office positions at Scott Air Force Base. The Authority found that a senior civilian adviser influenced the office’s policy choices and was a management official. It found that the database…
United States Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor, Region III (Activity) and National Council of Field Labor Locals, American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO (Petitioner)
DOL attorney unit petition dismissed (FLRA 2-RO-34)
AFGE sought an election for nonsupervisory attorneys in the Department of Labor Solicitor’s Region III office and sought to add the unit to an existing nationwide unit. The Authority found that the attorneys were generalists who could be called on to advise on and enforce the statute’s standards…
U.S. International Trade Commission, New York Office (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2211, AFL-CIO (Petitioner)
New York trade analysts added to ITC bargaining unit (FLRA 2-RO-33)
AFGE petitioned for an election among employees of the International Trade Commission’s New York office. Before the hearing, the agency closed that office and transferred most employees to Washington, leaving two customs records analysts in New York. The Authority treated the petition as a request…
Veterans Administration Medical Center, Brooklyn, N.Y. (Activity) and Veterans Administration Local No. One, an Affiliate of the Committee of Interns and Residents, an Affiliate of Physicians National Housestaff Association (Petitioner)
Brooklyn VA house staff election directed (FLRA 2-RO-16)
A union petitioned to represent medical interns, residents, and fellows paid by the Brooklyn VA Medical Center. The Authority found that house staff assigned to the center and paid by the VA were statutory employees sharing a community of interest. It excluded VA-paid house staff assigned to work…
U.S. Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (Respondent) and National Treasury Employees Union and National Treasury Employees and NTEU Chapter 22 (Charging Party)
IRS employee counseling meeting did not require union representative (FLRA 2-CA-503)
The IRS met with a revenue agent about problems found in his case files after he asked for union representation. The complaint claimed the meeting was an investigatory examination that required a union representative. The Judge found that supervisors had already reviewed the files and sought to…
Defense Contracts Administration Services Region, Boston, Massachusetts (Activity/Petitioner) and National Association of Government Employees, Local R2-56 (Labor Organization/Intervenor) and National Association of Government Employees, Local R2-65 (Labor Organization/Intervenor); Defense Contracts Administration Services Region, Boston, Massachusetts (Activity/Petitioner) and National Association of Government Employees, Local R2-45 (Labor Organization/Intervenor) and National Association of Government Employees, Local R2-65 (Labor Organization/Intervenor)
Defense contract units realigned after New York reorganization (FLRA 1-RA-2)
A Defense Contract Administration reorganization placed Buffalo and Binghamton residencies under the Syracuse management area while elevating IBM Owego and Singer-Link offices. The Authority added eligible Buffalo and Binghamton employees to the Syracuse unit because they now shared its command and…
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.