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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American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2911 and Army and Air Force Exchange Service, South Texas Area Exchange
Lackland exchange pay (FLRA O-NG-265): Bargaining-obligation dispute dismissed
AFGE Local 2911 sought to bargain over Sunday premium pay and grade and pay retention after the Army and Air Force Exchange Service revised a regulation. The agency said the revision did not substantively change existing policy, while the union said implementation changed past practice and working…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1263 and Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center
NFFE Local 1263 and Defense Language Institute (FLRA O-NG-249): teacher time limits nonnegotiable
NFFE Local 1263 proposed specific time limits and allocations for language teachers' instruction, preparation, grading, tutoring, meetings, and related duties at the Defense Language Institute. The union argued these were negotiable procedures. The Authority found that each proposal prescribed time…
United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and Fire Fighters Local F-88
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (FLRA 5-CA-376): official time claim for another unit's bargaining rejected
Two Wright-Patterson firefighters who worked for the 2750th Air Base Wing represented their union in negotiations with the separate Defense Electronics Supply Center. Their own employer refused to grant official time for those negotiations, and a complaint alleged that refusal violated federal…
Logan-Mohawk Coal Company, Inc.
Payment order amended to $250 per respondent
Chief Judge Paul Merlin amended an earlier payment order in a civil penalty case naming Logan-Mohawk Coal Company, Inc. and H.M.N. & S. Coal Company, Inc. The amended direction requires each respondent to pay $250 within 30 days of the January 21, 1982 decision. The amendment gives no further…
Matter of M/V "Solemn Judge"
Carrier liable for immigrant fines
The Board reviewed $190,000 in administrative fines imposed on the captain and owner of the M/V “Solemn Judge” after the vessel brought 190 undocumented Cuban nationals to Key West during the 1980 Freedom Flotilla. The Board held that the carrier became liable under section 273 of the Immigration…
Kaiser Cement Corporation
Errata removes $100 penalty
Judge Forrest E. Stewart corrected the payment order in Kaiser Cement Corporation's two consolidated civil penalty proceedings. The earlier decision had dismissed Citation No. 172311 for inadequate proof but mistakenly included a $100 assessment for it in the penalty list. This errata deleted that…
Southern Ohio Coal Company
Walkaround-pay citations vacated
MSHA cited Southern Ohio Coal Company for initially withholding pay from two miner representatives who accompanied inspectors during haulage inspections at the Martinka No. 1 Mine. The company later paid the representatives but contested the citations and two proposed $114 penalties. Judge Forrest…
Potash Company of America, Division of Ideal Basic Industries, Inc.
Potash Company of America (FMSHRC CENT 81-210-M): Hoist outage reporting citation vacated
MSHA cited Potash Company of America after a powerhouse fire interrupted power to hoists at its underground potash mine. Judge Forrest E. Stewart vacated the citation for failure to report an accident immediately, finding that the transmission-line outage caused no physical damage to the hoisting…
Consolidation Coal Company
Withdrawal order converted to citation
Consolidation Coal Company contested a withdrawal order for improper grounding of an electric pump at its Renton Mine. Judge Gary Melick found that the earlier citation needed to support the withdrawal order was no longer available and that a settled order could not be rewritten to replace it. He…
Picatinny Arsenal, U.S. Army Armament Research and Development Command and NFFE Local 1437
Picatinny Arsenal repromotion grievance (FLRA O-AR-178): Backpay remedy replaced
A GS-12 engineer at Picatinny Arsenal challenged repeated nonselection for GS-13 positions despite eligibility for repromotion. The arbitrator found that the Army had denied him the special consideration and reasons required by the parties' agreement, and awarded restoration to GS-13 with backpay…
Federal Employees Metal Trades Council and Department of the Navy, Mare Island Naval Shipyard
Mare Island shipyard shutdown (FLRA O-NG-495): Leave proposal appeal dismissed as moot
A union proposed administrative leave during a planned shutdown of Mare Island Naval Shipyard, and the Navy initially alleged the proposal was nonnegotiable. The Navy later reported that the parties had reached an agreement on shutdown leave in an administrative notice. The union did not dispute…
International Association of Tool Craftsmen, Local 1 and U.S. Department of the Army, Rock Island Arsenal
Rock Island Arsenal negotiability petition (FLRA O-NG-241): Filing requirements missed
The tool craftsmen's union sought review of the Army's allegation that a bargaining proposal was nonnegotiable. Authority rules required the union to request a written allegation and file its petition within 15 days after service. The union did not request the allegation and filed several months…
FLRA interpretation and guidance on official time for local supplemental agreements
Official time for local bargaining (FLRA O-MC-7): Automatic entitlement does not cover supplemental agreements
The Authority interpreted whether employees negotiating a local supplement to a national or master labor agreement receive official time automatically under 5 U.S.C. § 7131(a). It concluded they do not, because local supplemental bargaining is voluntary under the national parties' agreement rather…
AFGE San Francisco Region and Social Security Administration, San Francisco Region
Social Security career-ladder promotion (FLRA O-AR-249): Retroactive pay award upheld
A Social Security claims technician's manager approved her career-ladder promotion to GS-7 for November 2, 1980, but paperwork failed to reach the regional personnel office and the promotion took effect in January 1981. An arbitrator ordered a retroactive promotion with backpay, finding that only…
AFGE Local 2811 and Social Security Administration, St. Paul District Office
St. Paul Social Security promotion grievance (FLRA O-AR-107): Backpay award removed
A Social Security employee challenged denial of a career-ladder promotion to GS-10. The arbitrator found that management had failed to develop promotion criteria and hold required progress reviews, then presumed the employee qualified and awarded a retroactive promotion with backpay. The Authority…
Veterans Administration Regional Office, Denver and AFGE Local 1557
Denver VA promotion panel records (FLRA 7-CA-406): Employee names ordered disclosed
AFGE Local 1557 asked the Denver VA office for names matching the coded identifiers used by a merit promotion panel. An administrative law judge found that the office's refusal to supply the names was an unfair labor practice. With no exceptions filed, the Authority adopted the judge's findings and…
Food Safety and Quality Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture and AFGE Local 2490
USDA meat grading equipment storage (FLRA 5-CA-329): Contract dispute did not establish unfair labor practice
AFGE Local 2490 challenged USDA's refusal to honor a local understanding that Chicago meat graders could continue storing equipment in their cars. The agency said the local supervisor lacked authority under the national agreement to make that commitment and required central storage. The…
Warner Robins Air Logistics Center and AFGE Local 987
Warner Robins grievance remarks (FLRA 4-CA-566): Complaint dismissed
An AFGE steward and an employee alleged that a Warner Robins supervisor made remarks undermining a grievance while they reviewed the employee's personnel notes. The administrative law judge found the evidence did not establish that the supervisor knew they were present and meant the remarks to be…
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center and AFGE
Patuxent wildlife researchers (FLRA 3-RO-44): Bargaining unit set for an election
AFGE sought an election among professional employees at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. The Authority excluded researchers who consistently exercised independent judgment in hiring and directing assistants, finding them to be supervisors. It included three biologists whom the agency called…
U.S. Department of Labor and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 12
Department of Labor dues deductions (FLRA 3-CA-506): Unilateral revocations found unlawful
AFGE Local 12 charged the Department of Labor with changing its negotiated dues checkoff arrangement and honoring employee revocation requests contrary to the statutory dues rules. An administrative law judge found unfair labor practices, and the Authority adopted the judge's findings and order…
IFPTE Local No. 3 and Naval Sea Support Center, Atlantic Detachment
Naval Sea Support Center unit petition (FLRA 2-RO-41): Separate training unit rejected
IFPTE Local No. 3 sought an election for 42 employees in the Naval Sea Support Center's training systems department. The Authority found that they shared job classifications, personnel policies, and substantial work assignments with employees in other departments. A separate 42-person unit within…
Internal Revenue Service, Buffalo District and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 58
IRS Buffalo taxpayer records request (FLRA 1-CA-254): Information complaint dismissed
NTEU Chapter 58 sought taxpayer case records to pursue a grievance for a Buffalo revenue officer who alleged disrespect and changed work practices. The IRS refused to provide the records. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that the requested material was not necessary and relevant to the…
Logan-Mohawk Coal Company, Inc.
Roof-control settlement approved at $500
MSHA proposed a $10,000 penalty for an alleged roof-control violation at the Deep Ford No. 1 Mine. The citation followed a roof fall in December 1979 that killed foreman Lewis M. Craddock while he was installing roof bolts without temporary supports. The Secretary argued that the foreman's conduct…
Hayward Ready Mix Company, Inc.
Three citation case settled for $90
MSHA proposed three $90 penalties against Hayward Ready Mix Company, Inc. under the same electrical standard at its Stress Pit. At the hearing, testimony did not resolve which equipment two of the citations concerned. The parties agreed to withdraw those two citations and pay the full $90…
Eastern Associated Coal Corp.
Late review petition dismissed
A petition filed for Carroll D. Tenney on January 5, 1982 sought Commission review of a judge's November 27, 1981 decision in his case against Eastern Associated Coal Corp. The Commission dismissed the petition as untimely under the cited review provisions. The one-paragraph order did not address…
Mullin Creek Coal Company, Inc.
Back-pay calculations ordered for nine miners
After finding that Mullin Creek Coal Company had unlawfully discharged nine miners, Judge Richard C. Steffey addressed how to calculate their back pay. He considered delays in obtaining wage information and set periods of eligibility for individual miners, including an exclusion for a mine shutdown…
Gerald D. Boone v. Rebel Coal Company
Back pay and costs awarded after unlawful discharge
Judge Gary Melick set the remedy for Rebel Coal Company's unlawful discharge of miner Gerald Boone. He awarded Boone $3,670 in back pay for the period from May 28 through July 22, 1980, and found that Boone had given up back pay for the period from August 20, 1980 through October 8, 1981. For the…
Colorado Westmoreland, Inc.
Settlement resolves eleven mine penalty dockets
The Secretary of Labor sought penalties against Colorado Westmoreland for alleged violations at its Orchard Valley Mine across eleven dockets. At the hearing, the parties proposed a negotiated settlement that included withdrawing contests, changing some citations, and vacating six citations or…
Oliver M. Elam, Jr., Company
Commercial coal dock outside Mine Act coverage
Oliver M. Elam, Jr., Company operated a commercial Ohio River dock that loaded coal and other materials onto barges. Its workers sometimes broke large pieces of coal, and a crusher made coal easier to convey and fit onto barges. The Commission affirmed the judge's ruling that this facility was…
AFGE Local 2494 and Strategic Weapons Facility Pacific, Bremerton
Bremerton promotion certificate (FLRA O-NG-38): Required selection pool rejected
AFGE Local 2494 proposed that management select a promotion candidate from a certificate listing at least three highly qualified employees. The Authority held that the proposal would prevent the agency from expanding its search once that number appeared on the certificate. That restriction…
Internal Revenue Service and National Treasury Employees Union
IRS contract-reopener proposal (FLRA O-NG-296): Negotiability appeal premature
NTEU petitioned for a negotiability ruling on a proposal after the IRS and union had agreed not to reopen that subject until March 1982. The Authority held that the agreed reopener date had not arrived, so there was no current negotiability dispute for it to decide. A merits ruling would have been…
AFGE Local 2849 and Office of Personnel Management, New York Regional Office
OPM performance standards (FLRA O-NG-258): Bargaining allowed on some procedures
AFGE Local 2849 proposed rules for developing performance elements and standards at OPM's New York office. The Authority rejected terms that would require bargaining over the substance of critical elements and performance standards because they restricted management's rights to direct employees and…
AFGE Local 32 and Office of Personnel Management
OPM bargaining waiver dispute (FLRA O-NG-257): Negotiability appeal dismissed
AFGE Local 32 petitioned over proposals the Office of Personnel Management declined to bargain. OPM had not alleged the proposals were nonnegotiable under the statute; it argued that the union had waived bargaining through the parties' contract. The Authority held that this was a contract or…
Association of Civilian Technicians, Rhode Island Chapter and Office of the Adjutant General, Rhode Island
Rhode Island technicians appeal (FLRA O-NG-220): Petition filed too late
The Rhode Island civilian technicians' union petitioned the Authority to review an agency allegation that a proposal was not negotiable. Under the Authority's rules, the union had to request the allegation in writing and file within 15 days of service. It had not requested the allegation and filed…
AFSCME Locals 2477 and 2910 and other unions v. Library of Congress
Library of Congress relocation (FLRA O-NG-211): Workspace proposals partly negotiable
Several unions proposed working-condition measures for employees moving to a new Library of Congress building. The Authority dismissed seven proposals without prejudice because the dispute was whether the Library had to bargain midcontract, a question for unfair labor practice procedures. It found…
NFFE Local 1505 and National Park Service, Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Site
Roosevelt-Vanderbilt contract appeal (FLRA O-NG-143): Filing missed deadline
NFFE Local 1505 appealed an agency-head disapproval of part of a negotiated agreement at the Roosevelt-Vanderbilt National Historic Site. The disapproval was served July 10, 1979, making July 25 the deadline for a negotiability petition under the Authority's 15-day rule. The union filed August 6…
NFFE Local 1332 and Army Materiel Development and Readiness Command Headquarters
Army repromotion consideration (FLRA O-AR-93): Arbitration remedy upheld
An Army employee sought special consideration for repromotion to a position with a GS-8 entry grade and a GS-9 target grade. An arbitrator found that the Army had denied her that consideration and offered corrective alternatives, including consideration for a later vacancy or rerunning the…
General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board and NLRB Union
NLRB promotion arbitration (FLRA O-AR-33): Seniority selection award set aside
Two NLRB employees grieved a competitive promotion. An arbitrator found one grievant equally qualified as the employee selected and ordered the agency to rerun the selection, awarding the promotion to the candidate with greater agency seniority. The Authority held that this remedy improperly…
Ozark Lead Company
Loose ground citation vacated; other penalties settled
At Ozark Lead Company's Frank R. Milliken Mine, an inspector found loose material above a heading and cited a standard requiring loose ground to be removed or supported before other work was done. Judge Gary Melick found that the dangerous material existed, but the Secretary had not shown that…
Internal Revenue Service, North Atlantic Service Center and NTEU Local 69
IRS Andover cafeteria leaflets (FLRA 1-CA-269): Removal violated employee rights
Employees at the IRS North Atlantic Service Center left union literature in the cafeteria during nonwork time, and a management official removed it. The Authority adopted the judge's finding that employees had a protected right to distribute union material in a nonwork area on nonwork time, making…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Bobby Gooslin v. Kentucky Carbon Corporation
Monetary relief claim remanded
An administrative law judge found that Kentucky Carbon Corporation unlawfully discharged miner Bobby Gooslin and ordered reinstatement, but denied back pay and other monetary relief because Gooslin had not presented supporting evidence. The Commission held that an unlawful discharge creates a…
Lopez Redi Mix Company
Loose material above pit wall violated safety rule
Lopez Redi Mix Company operated a small sand and gravel pit and concrete business on Lopez Island, Washington. An inspector saw loose material and trees hanging above an approximately 80 foot pit wall where a loader had worked. Judge Virgil E. Vail rejected the operator's claim that its local sales…
Secretary of Labor v. Roy Glenn, Agent of Climax Molybdenum Company
Secretary of Labor v. Roy Glenn (FMSHRC WEST 80-158-M): Supervisor held personally liable for missing fall protection
Roy Glenn supervised workers at Climax Molybdenum Company's mill and crusher. Two workers crossed an elevated girder without securing safety belts before starting work on an oxygen line. Judge John J. Morris found that Glenn had reason to anticipate the unsafe route and should have told the workers…
Veterans Administration, Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital and AFGE Local 3511
San Antonio veterans hospital settlement (FLRA 6-CA-465): Official-time and laundry changes resolved
The San Antonio veterans hospital, AFGE Local 3511, and the FLRA General Counsel entered a formal settlement of three unfair labor practice cases. The Authority approved the stipulation and entered a consent order. The hospital had to rescind a daily limit on union representatives' official time…
Immigration and Naturalization Service and AFGE Local 1656
INS San Antonio safety grievance (FLRA O-AR-81): Wrong local could not arbitrate
AFGE Local 1656 filed a safety grievance for employees in the INS San Antonio district. An arbitrator held that the national agreement recognized Local 1243, not Local 1656, to file district grievances and dismissed the case without prejudice. Local 1656 argued that the ruling interfered with union…
Social Security Administration and AFGE Local 1923
Social Security light-duty appraisal (FLRA O-AR-66): Higher quantity rating upheld
A Social Security employee on light duty challenged a performance appraisal that gave him C ratings for work quantity and quality. The arbitrator found that a practice of capping light-duty employees at C was inconsistent with the agreement and ordered a D quantity rating based on the employee's…
Defense Language Institute, Foreign Language Center and NFFE Local 1263
Defense Language Institute teaching hours (FLRA O-AR-135): Grievance dismissal upheld
The Defense Language Institute increased instructors' classroom hours from four to five per day and from 20 to 25 per week. An arbitrator dismissed the union's grievance because the agreement did not fix the earlier schedule and the record did not show that the 20-hour practice rested on mutual…
San Antonio Air Force Logistics Center, Kelly Air Force Base and AFGE Local 1617
Kelly Air Force Base steward assignments (FLRA O-AR-108): Arbitration award upheld
AFGE Local 1617 designated 58 stewards to represent work areas outside their own, and Kelly Air Force Base objected under a contract term saying stewards would normally come from the area represented. The arbitrator held that the agency could question unexplained departures from that term and…
Federal agencies' request for guidance on management officials
General guidance request denied because an earlier decision addressed the question
Several federal agencies asked the Authority to explain how the words 'influence' and 'policies' apply in the statute's definition of a management official. The Authority observed that it had already interpreted the definition and applied it to a specific case in an earlier Navy decision. Because…
NFFE Local 29 and U.S. Army Engineer District, Kansas City
Army performance-standard appeal dismissed as moot
NFFE Local 29 appealed the Army Engineer District's allegation that a performance-standards proposal interfered with management rights. After the appeal was filed, the agency withdrew its allegation that the proposal was nonnegotiable. The Authority found no remaining dispute over the duty to…
AFGE Local 2 and U.S. Army Audio Visual Center
Bargaining over appraisal standards rejected
AFGE Local 2 proposed that the Army Audio Visual Center let the union participate in setting performance standards for bargaining-unit employees. Both parties understood the proposal to require bargaining over the establishment and content of those standards. The Authority held that this would…
AFGE Local 2151 and General Services Administration, National Capital Region
Parking-fee proposals moot; reserved-space proposals rejected
AFGE Local 2151 challenged GSA's refusal to bargain over nine federal-employee parking proposals. Because the parking-fee program was not then in effect, the Authority dismissed proposals 1, 2, 4, 5, and 8 as moot without prejudice to renewal if fee collection resumed. It separately ruled that…
Secretary of Labor v. Royalty Smokeless Coal Company
Voluntary dismissal granted
The Secretary of Labor asked to dismiss the proceeding against Royalty Smokeless Coal Company voluntarily. The motion was unopposed, and the Commission granted it. The one sentence order gives no reason for the dismissal and assesses no penalty.
Kaiser Cement Corporation
Contractor violations lead to penalties, with one citation dismissed
The Secretary sought penalties against Kaiser Cement Corporation for four alleged safety violations involving independent contractors at its Longhorn Cement Plant. Judge Forrest E. Stewart held that the mine owner could be liable for contractors' violations even though its agreements required the…
Navy Keyport Station and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard guard-sergeant units
Guard sergeants excluded at Keyport and included at Puget Sound
Two Navy activities asked the Authority to clarify whether guard sergeants belonged in existing bargaining units with firefighters. The Authority held that the statutory preponderance-of-time test applies only to firefighters and nurses, not to guard sergeants merely because their units included…
TRG Drilling Corporation (Mid-Continent Division)
Citation vacated for untimely complaint
The Secretary filed his complaint thirty-nine days late, did not seek an extension, did not explain the delay, and did not respond to TRG Drilling's motion to dismiss. The judge treated this unexplained procedural noncompliance as grounds to vacate the citation and dismiss the complaint. The…
Mahone Grain Corporation
Respirator-program violation reclassified as serious
Employees cleaning a long-unused grain elevator worked in thick dust with too few respirators, shared and improperly maintained equipment, and no respiratory protection program. Five employees later became ill, several requiring hospitalization, and the Commission concluded they had contracted…
Army 193rd Infantry Brigade Panama and Panama DOD Employees Coalition
): Panama Army unit elections directed and reconsideration denied
Several unions petitioned for representation of civilian employees at the 193rd Infantry Brigade and tenant activities in Panama. The Authority allowed the three-union coalition to seek an overall unit, withdrew three petitions, and found five separate activity units also appropriate. It directed…
Air Force Panama units and Panama DOD Employees Coalition
Panama Air Force employee elections directed
The Authority reviewed representation petitions for Air Force employees in Panama. It accepted a three-union coalition as the petitioner in 6-RO-52 and granted withdrawal of the overlapping 6-RO-56 petition. It found an appropriated-fund unit potentially appropriate and directed separate votes for…
U.S. Naval Station Panama and Panama DOD Employees Coalition
Panama Naval Station employee elections directed
The Authority considered two petitions concerning civilian employees at the U.S. Naval Station in Panama. It approved withdrawal of 6-RO-51 and allowed a three-union coalition to proceed in 6-RO-62. It found a proposed unit appropriate subject to a professional-employee vote, included several…
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.