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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Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Panama Area Exchange, and Panama DOD Employees Coalition
Panama Area Exchange representation election directed
A coalition of three unions sought to represent employees at the Panama Area Exchange, and the National Maritime Union intervened. The Authority allowed the coalition to replace the original petitioner and required a new notice posting so employees would know its identity. It found an employee unit…
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
Untied safety belts on a beam 10 feet up, citation vacated because no reasonable person in steel erection would see a hazard
An OSHA compliance officer inspecting a large structural steel job in New York City saw two Bethlehem employees bolting up an H beam. They straddled the beam facing each other, 10 feet above a floor of tightly laid resilient wooden planks. Both wore safety belts and lanyards. Neither lanyard was…
AFGE Local 1482 and Marine Corps Logistics Base Barstow
Motorcycle licensing negotiability appeal dismissed as moot
AFGE Local 1482 sought review of the Marine Corps Logistics Base's allegation that a motorcycle-licensing proposal was nonnegotiable. The agency later withdrew that allegation. The Authority found that no dispute remained over the duty to bargain and dismissed the appeal as moot. It did not decide…
Secretary of Labor v. A. H. Smith Stone
Penalty for cutting an unpurged oil drum
At A. H. Smith Stone's Culpeper plant, a worker used a torch on an oil drum that had not been purged of combustible residue. The drum exploded, and the worker later died of his injuries. Judge George A. Koutras found that the company violated the rule requiring containers that held flammable…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Ricky Ray Ferrell v. R & E Coal Company
Discrimination complaint denied
The Secretary of Labor claimed that R & E Coal Company discharged miner Ricky Ray Ferrell after he complained about dust while helping drill coal at its No. 11 Mine. Judge Richard C. Steffey found that asking for a respirator and refusing unsafe work were protected activities. He also found that…
Consolidation Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Citation for work under raised car vacated
Consolidation Coal's master mechanic at the Franklin Highwall No. 65 Mine worked under a raised personal car without adequate blocking. The sling supporting the car broke, and he later died of his injuries. Judge John F. Cook found that the car was not securely blocked, but held that the cited…
Commonwealth Mining Co., Inc.
Four tipple citations resolved for $67
Commonwealth Mining contested four citations at its newly built coal crushing and loading facility. Judge Richard C. Steffey rejected the company's argument that the Mine Act did not apply before the plant had sold coal, because the operation could affect commerce. He upheld citations for…
Martiki Coal Corporation
Loader lighting citation upheld; two others dismissed
Judge Richard G. Steffey decided three citations involving Martiki Coal Corporation's surface mine. He upheld a lighting citation because a loader used at night had a broken upper lamp that supplied useful illumination, and he assessed a $50 penalty. He dismissed a drinking fountain citation…
Nicholas Ramirez v. W-P Coal Company
Safety interference complaint dismissed
Roof bolter Nicholas Ramirez challenged W-P Coal Company's response to his concerns about roof conditions at its No. 21 Mine. He had questioned short roof bolts and gave a mine inspector his safety opinion, then learned that a manager had asked whether there were grounds to discharge him. Judge…
Kaiser Steel Corporation v. Secretary of Labor
Truck citation upheld, roof control citation vacated
Kaiser Steel contested two citations from separate mine sites. Judge Virgil E. Vail upheld a citation for continued use of a pickup truck with a bent steering stabilizer that made it shake at speed. He also upheld the inspector's unwarrantable failure and significant and substantial findings for…
Secretary of Labor v. Absolute Coal Corporation
Mine owner liable for two contractor violations
Absolute Coal Corporation stipulated that two violations occurred at its No. 1 Mine and that $2,000 was a reasonable penalty for each. It argued that Apple Mountain Coal Company, which mined coal under a contract, should bear responsibility for the violations. Judge Richard C. Steffey held that…
The Quapaw Company
Loader noise exposure citation upheld
An MSHA inspector measured an eight hour noise exposure above the permitted level for a loader operator at The Quapaw Company's Badger Mine. Judge Forrest E. Stewart found that the reading proved a violation even after allowing for the meter's margin of error. He found that the Secretary had not…
Daniel Construction Co., Boise Cascade Project
Scaffold-access item affirmed; electrical items split
The Commission reviewed five items from a paper-mill construction project. It vacated an exposed-wire item because the Secretary did not prove Daniel knew or should have known the wire was energized, affirmed vacation of a hoist-inspection item and an electrical-booth access item, and found a…
Long Beach VA Medical Center and Physicians National Housestaff Association
VA medical trainees found eligible for representation vote
The Physicians National Housestaff Association sought an election among Long Beach VA medical interns, residents, and fellows. The VA argued that the doctors were students rather than employees and that the proposed unit was inappropriate. The Authority found that trainees assigned to the center…
United States Customs Service and NTEU
Customs ordered to reimburse national bargaining travel
NTEU negotiators received official time while bargaining a national master agreement, but Customs refused to pay their travel and per diem. On a stipulated record, Customs acknowledged the refusal and asked the Authority to reverse its established interpretation of the statute. The Authority…
Bureau of the Mint and AFGE
Mint ordered to reimburse union negotiators' travel
On a stipulated record, the Bureau of the Mint acknowledged that it had refused travel and per diem reimbursement for employees negotiating a national agreement on official time. It argued that the Authority's existing interpretation of the statute should be reversed. The Authority rejected that…
New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs and Civilian Technicians Council
New York agency ordered to pay union negotiators' expenses
On a stipulated record, the New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs refused requested travel and per diem for union negotiators on official time. The agency urged the Authority to reverse its existing interpretation of section 7131(a), but the Authority found no new basis to do so. It held…
Hanscom Air Force Base and NFFE Local 975
Counseling-program labor complaint dismissed as late
NFFE Local 975 challenged Hanscom Air Force Base's discontinuation of an employee counseling program. The administrative law judge found the unfair labor practice charge untimely and recommended dismissal. With no exceptions filed, the Authority adopted the judge's findings and dismissed the…
Marine Corps Central Design and Programming Activity and AFGE Local 2904
Arbitration exceptions dismissed one day late
AFGE Local 2904 filed exceptions to an arbitrator's award dated September 30, 1981. Under the Authority's filing rule, the exceptions were due October 29 but were filed October 30. The Authority said it could not extend or waive that deadline and dismissed the exceptions. It made no ruling on the…
BASF Wyandotte Corporation
Pentane-backflow general duty citation vacated
Pentane twice backed into nitrogen piping at BASF's chemical plant after a manual valve was left open. OSHA cited BASF under the general duty clause for lacking posted operating and emergency instructions and check valves or another backflow safeguard. Although BASF recognized pentane's fire and…
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and NTEU
Bargaining refusal complaint dismissed after agency contact
NTEU asked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms to bargain over contract provisions affected by the new labor statute. The agency called NTEU promptly, but the receptionist could not identify the responsible union representative, and NTEU did not follow up before filing a charge nearly six…
AFGE Local 51 and U.S. Assay Office
Fitness-examination grievance award upheld
The U.S. Assay Office ordered 28 employees to take fitness-for-duty examinations, and AFGE Local 51 argued that the office had introduced a new practice without bargaining. The arbitrator found that examinations were an ongoing practice and dismissed the grievances. The Authority rejected the…
AFGE Local 1501 and McChord Air Force Base
Interim arbitrability ruling upheld
An employee at McChord Air Force Base grieved her nonselection for a higher-grade vacancy. The arbitrator issued an interim opinion finding the grievance arbitrable. The agency argued that an earlier oral ruling made the arbitrator unable to reverse himself, but the Authority found no proof of a…
Richard M. Atkinson, doing business as Somis Sand & Rock Co.
Five citations settled for $300
The Secretary sought penalties for five alleged violations at Richard Atkinson's sand and rock operation. The allegations concerned an opening in a work deck, exposed electrical leads, conveyor guarding, junction box wiring, and mine records. The operator disputed aspects of each allegation, and…
C F & I Steel Corporation v. Secretary of Labor
Methane withdrawal order upheld, violations vacated
Inspectors found methane concentrations above 1.5 percent near a working face at C F & I Steel Corporation's Allen Mine and issued an imminent danger withdrawal order. Judge Jon D. Boltz upheld the order, finding that the newly discovered accumulation posed a danger before ventilation work began…
Williams Enterprises, Inc.
Three nonserious items vacated for want of employer knowledge, cluttered trailer item affirmed
Williams was the steel erection subcontractor on a multi-story building in Richmond, Virginia. By the time OSHA inspected, the structural steel was done and the exterior was nearly enclosed. Administrative Law Judge Joseph Chodes found seven nonserious violations. Williams sought review of five…
AFGE New York-New Jersey Council and Social Security Administration
Union official-time interpretation upheld
An arbitrator interpreted a Social Security agreement on official time for grievance vice presidents. The agency excepted to rulings that management ordinarily had to grant the amount the union assessed unless it proved the purpose or amount was improper, and that detailed justification generally…
AFGE Local 1815 and U.S. Army Safety Center
Overtime claim for Korea travel rejected
An Army Safety Center employee sought overtime for travel to Korea to investigate an aircraft accident. The arbitrator denied the grievance after finding the travel was administratively scheduled and controlled and was not unusually arduous. The union argued that the accident itself could not be…
Social Security Southeastern Program Service Center and AFGE Local 2206
Performance-appraisal grievance award upheld
A Social Security employee challenged his performance appraisal, alleging inaccurate ratings and manager bias. The arbitrator found the ratings reasonably reflected his performance and found no evidence that bias affected the appraisal. The union's exception disputed those factual findings and the…
Consolidation Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Case returned to judge after court opinion
The Commission returned Consolidation Coal Company's three consolidated dockets to an administrative law judge. It directed further proceedings consistent with an October 13, 1981 opinion of the Fourth Circuit. This brief order does not describe the court's reasoning, decide the underlying…
Secretary of Labor v. Maben Energy Corporation
Impoundment citations affirmed
Six citations concerned Maben Energy Corporation's duties for a dam and retention pond. The Commission had already ruled in a related case that Maben operated or controlled the facility. It rejected Maben's argument that the judge acted prematurely while the related ruling was on appeal, explaining…
Mathies Coal Company and Consolidation Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
Rail car coupling citations upheld
Mathies Coal Company and Consolidation Coal Company contested citations concerning the coupling systems on supply rail cars at two mines. Judge Gary Melick found that Mathies's chains and rings did not couple automatically on impact and could require miners to work between the car ends, especially…
Matter of Jimenez
Dominican mutual-consent divorce upheld
The Board reconsidered a visa petition filed by a mother for her daughter, whose Dominican divorce had been obtained without either Dominican spouse appearing personally in court. The Board held that Dominican spouses, whether living in the Dominican Republic or abroad, may use a proxy for the…
Marlene Finn v. Brown Badgett, Inc.
Discrimination complaint dismissed after nonappearance
Marlene Finn's discrimination complaint against Brown Badgett, Inc. was scheduled for a hearing on December 11, 1981. Finn did not appear at the scheduled time or during the next two hours. Judge William Fauver held her in default and dismissed the complaint for want of prosecution. The order does…
Penn Allegh Coal Company
Dust control citation and withdrawal order affirmed
Penn Allegh contested a citation and withdrawal order after an inspector measured the water pressure on a continuous mining machine below the level required by its dust control plan. The Commission upheld the judge's finding that the plan required 150 psi measured while water flowed. MSHA had…
New Jersey Department of Defense and National Army-Air Technicians Association
National Guard technician unit petition dismissed
A technicians union sought to include everyone in a shared McGuire Air Force Base work area in its bargaining unit. The Authority found that employees' military assignments, rather than the shared workplace, had historically determined which of two unions represented them. It found that the…
AFGE Local 3790 and Bureau of Land Management
Flexitime negotiability appeal dismissed as late
AFGE Local 3790 appealed the Bureau of Land Management's refusal to bargain over flexitime. The Authority found that a February 6 memorandum signed by both parties already contained the requested written nonnegotiability allegation. The agency's April 22 letter merely repeated that allegation in…
AFGE Local 3385 and Federal Home Loan Bank Board
Employee-rating proposal rejected; loan proposal negotiable
AFGE Local 3385 appealed two Federal Home Loan Bank Board negotiability allegations. The Authority rejected the agency's timeliness objection because an earlier unrequested statement had not started the appeal clock. On the merits, it held that a proposal barring unit employees from rating…
Danville VA Hospital and AFGE Local 1963
Arbitration exceptions dismissed after filing deadline
AFGE Local 1963 filed exceptions to an arbitrator's October 6, 1981 award. The Authority calculated a November 4 deadline, but the exceptions arrived November 16. It said it could not extend or waive the deadline and dismissed the exceptions. The decision did not address the award's merits.
Fort Hood Exchange and AFGE Local 1920
Removal-award exceptions dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
A union sought Authority review of an arbitrator's refusal to overturn an employee's removal at the Fort Hood Exchange. The Authority held that removals are covered by the adverse-action provisions referenced in section 7121(f), so section 7122(a) did not permit exceptions to the Authority. It…
Ladish Company
Fatal wheelabrator guarding violation affirmed
A wheelabrator helper was fatally crushed between a descending loader arm and a conveyor while working from a platform behind the loader. Employees regularly used that platform to free stuck forgings, could not hear the loader in the noisy area, and were outside the operator's view. The Commission…
Martin & Martin Foundation Drilling Contractors, Inc.
Subpart S tunnel and shaft standards do not reach a drilled pier hole, and the bell-bottom casing standard does not either
Martin drills foundations for bridges and other large structures. Near Edinburg, Texas, its crew drilled a pier hole 50 feet deep and 30 inches in diameter for a highway overpass and set steel casing to a depth of 31 to 32 feet. A laborer, Paul Elliott, was lowered into the hole standing on…
Penn Allegh Coal Co., Inc.
Seven citations settled for $1,400
The Secretary asked Judge Joseph B. Kennedy to approve a $1,400 settlement covering seven citations against Penn Allegh Coal Co., Inc. That amount was 48 percent of the penalties originally assessed. The Secretary pointed to Penn Allegh's reliance on an earlier judge's decision that the cited…
Long Beach Naval Shipyard and three employee unions
Administrative leave proposal held negotiable
Three unions proposed administrative leave for Long Beach Naval Shipyard employees who would not work during a planned Christmas and New Year curtailment. The shipyard argued that government-wide rules required those employees to use annual leave. The Authority found no conflict with those rules…
Beckley Coal Mining Co.
Ventilation citations settled for $660
Beckley Coal Mining Co. faced two ventilation citations at its Beckley Mine, one concerning a line curtain and the other a methane check before electric face equipment was energized. In an attached interim decision, Judge Joseph B. Kennedy approved a $160 settlement for the line curtain citation…
Pennsylvania Civilian Technicians Council and Pennsylvania Adjutant General
National Guard agreement provisions receive split ruling
The National Guard Bureau disapproved several provisions in a local Pennsylvania technicians agreement, and the union appealed. The Authority held the agency-head disapproval was reviewable and rejected the agency's ripeness objection. It found provisions on emergency rules and wage-survey work…
Lone Star Steel Company
Toxic-exposure citations remain vacated without review
The judge vacated citations alleging excessive coal tar pitch volatile exposure and storage or consumption of food in areas exposed to toxic materials. Neither party sought Commission review, so the majority affirmed the judge's decision without reviewing it and gave it only the precedential value…
New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs and Civilian Technicians Council
Judge's dismissal of bargaining complaints adopted
The Civilian Technicians Council accused the New York Division of Military and Naval Affairs of bad-faith bargaining in two consolidated unfair labor practice cases. The administrative law judge found the alleged violations unproved and recommended dismissal. The General Counsel filed exceptions…
Federal Correctional Institution and AFGE Local 1286
Suspension award returned to arbitrator for clarification
An arbitrator reduced a correctional employee's 21-day suspension to seven days after finding misconduct in five of eight alleged incidents. The union argued that antiunion motive tainted the discipline, and a court of appeals returned the matter to the Authority for review of that legal claim. The…
U.S. Customs Service Region VII and NTEU
Promotion-list grievance award upheld
A Customs employee challenged her omission from a best-qualified promotion list. The arbitrator denied the grievance after finding that the union had not proved a procedural error in the evaluation. The union argued that the arbitrator used the wrong standard, but the Authority found that the award…
Elbert Baugh Excavating, Inc.
Berm citation upheld for one pit road
An inspector cited Elbert Baugh Excavating for missing berms along two roads at its gravel pit. Judge Charles C. Moore, Jr. found that the north-south route stayed about 60 feet from the pit edge and did not need a berm there. The east-west road ran close to a drop-off and was sometimes used for…
Southwestern Portland Cement Company
$200 payment accepted and case dismissed
Southwestern Portland Cement Company paid the full proposed $200 civil penalty and withdrew its contest. The Secretary asked to withdraw the penalty proposal and dismiss the case. Judge Charles C. Moore, Jr. treated the arrangement as a settlement subject to Commission settlement standards despite…
AFGE Local 916 and Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker detail and loan provisions receive split ruling
AFGE Local 916 challenged the Air Force's rejection of several local agreement provisions. The Authority allowed bargaining on a roster of qualified candidates for higher-grade details but rejected a rule requiring detail selections in strict roster order. It also rejected restrictions on assigning…
AFGE Local 3407 and Defense Mapping Agency
Paid-parking appeal dismissed after program ended
AFGE Local 3407 appealed the Defense Mapping Agency's refusal to bargain over proposals concerning paid parking. While the appeal was pending, the agency discontinued the paid-parking program at the worksite. The Authority concluded that the particular proposals no longer presented a live…
NTEU Chapter 61 and IRS Albany District
Desk-search procedure held negotiable
The IRS planned after-hours checks of unlocked desks and file cabinets for protected tax material. NTEU proposed securing unlocked storage immediately but delaying any search until the employee was present, as well as delaying implementation during bargaining. The agency claimed this conflicted…
Navy Supervisor of Shipbuilding Newport News and NAGE Local R4-2
Arbitration exceptions dismissed one day late
NAGE Local R4-2 filed exceptions to a July 21, 1981 arbitration award. The Authority calculated an August 19 filing deadline, but the exceptions arrived August 20. It said the deadline could not be extended or waived and dismissed the filing without ruling on the award's merits.
Penn Allegh Coal Co., Inc.
Post-remand penalty settled for $25
After a Commission remand, Penn Allegh Coal Co., Inc. and the Secretary asked Judge Joseph B. Kennedy to settle a civil penalty case. They proposed reducing the penalty from $106 to $25. The judge questioned the scope of the Commission's earlier review of a diminution of safety defense but found no…
Local Union 2250, District 12, UMWA v. Old Ben Coal Company
Local Union 2250 v. Old Ben Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 82-1-C): Miners awarded lost shift pay after mine fire
A fire at Old Ben Coal Company's No. 25 mine idled 74 miners on the morning shift, and an inspector issued a withdrawal order. The miners had already been withdrawn before the order was written, but Judge Joseph B. Kennedy found that the fire caused both the lost work and the order. He granted the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Johnny Chacon v. Phelps Dodge Corporation
Reconsideration denied
The Secretary asked the Commission to reconsider its earlier decision in Johnny Chacon's discrimination case against Phelps Dodge Corporation. The Secretary argued that the Commission had resolved factual issues outside the scope of its direction for review. The Commission explained that the…
Federal Union of Scientists and Engineers and Naval Underwater Systems Center
Contracting-out appeal dismissed for lack of proposal text
The Federal Union of Scientists and Engineers sought review of whether an appeal process for contracting-out decisions was negotiable. It had not supplied specific proposed language. The Authority said it could not assess consistency with law or regulation without a sufficiently defined proposal…
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.