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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Ronald H. McCracken v. Valley Camp Coal Company
Request for new hearing denied
Ronald McCracken sought a new hearing after Judge Gary Melick dismissed his mine safety discrimination complaint against Valley Camp Coal Company. The Commission had remanded the case for the judge to consider McCracken's claim that newly discovered testimony contradicted Valley Camp's witnesses…
Consolidation Coal Company
Escapeway citation upheld, belt examination citation vacated
MSHA sought penalties against Consolidation Coal Company for 12 citations at its Renton Mine. Judge Paul Merlin approved settlements on 10 citations. The parties proposed $1,635 instead of $2,300, and the judge recorded an agreed increase for one citation. He also upheld a citation for an…
Peabody Coal Company
$2,500 settlement for coal accumulation approved
MSHA cited Peabody Coal Company for an accumulation of loose coal and coal dust along a conveyor belt at its Eagle No. 2 Mine. The Commission vacated Judge Joseph B. Kennedy's earlier proposed $1,000 settlement and sent the case back for a hearing on the depth of the accumulation. After hearing…
Matter of Holani
Incomplete hearing record required remand
An immigration judge ordered an applicant excluded and deported from the United States based on one of three charges. The record sent to the Board contained a handwritten hearing worksheet and memorandum instead of a transcript of the oral decision. The Board held that the immigration judge was…
Army and Air Force Exchange Service Base Exchange, Fort Carson, Colorado (Activity-Petitioner) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local No. 1345, AFL-CIO (Labor Organization)
Fort Carson exchange unit excludes four supervisors (FLRA 7-CU-10)
An Army and Air Force Exchange Service petition sought to exclude disputed employees from an AFGE unit as supervisors. The Authority examined their actual duties and found four employees exercised the independent judgment needed for supervisory status. It clarified the unit by excluding those four…
Fort Bragg Schools System, Fort Bragg, North Carolina (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1770, AFL-CIO (Petitioner)
Fort Bragg school representation petition dismissed (FLRA 4-RO-30)
A union sought to represent employees of the Fort Bragg schools fund. The Authority found that the fund was a private organization, not an agency or Army nonappropriated fund instrumentality covered by the federal labor statute. It dismissed the representation petition for lack of jurisdiction…
Veterans Administration Medical Center (Canandaigua, NY) (Respondent) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3306, AFL-CIO (Charging Party)
Canandaigua VA labor complaints settled (FLRA 1-CA-47)
A Veterans Administration medical center and an AFGE local submitted a formal settlement of six unfair labor practice cases. The Authority approved the stipulation and entered an order requiring the center to comply with its terms. The order resolved the consolidated proceedings without a contested…
Decision on Request for General Statement Of Policy or Guidance
Union request for arbitration enforcement guidance denied (FLRA 0-PS-13)
The National Treasury Employees Union asked the Authority for a general policy statement about enforcing binding arbitration awards. The Authority decided the request did not meet its standards for issuing broad policy guidance. It denied the request without resolving a particular arbitration…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2578, AFL-CIO (Union) and General Services Administration, National Archives and Records Service, Washington, DC (Activity)
Archives equal opportunity recruitment goal negotiable (FLRA 0-NG-166)
An Archives union proposed goals for women and minority representation in an agency recruitment plan. The agency claimed the proposal conflicted with personnel regulations and management selection rights. The Authority found the agency had discretion to set its recruitment goals and that the…
National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1332 (Union) and Headquarters, U.S. Army Materiel Development and Readiness Command, Alexandria, Virginia (Activity)
Army staffing freeze proposal outside bargaining duty (FLRA 0-NG-155)
A union proposed bargaining over a hiring freeze during a workforce realignment and a joint board to approve exceptions. The Authority found the proposal concerned the numbers and types of employees assigned to organizational subdivisions. The Army had declined to bargain, and that subject was…
U.S. Department of Commerce, National Bureau of Standards, Washington, DC (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2186, Boulder, Colorado (Union)
Standards Bureau promotion award narrowed (FLRA 0-AR-6)
An arbitrator found that the National Bureau of Standards had violated its agreement in a promotion selection and ordered an employee assigned to the position. The Authority found that the ordered assignment conflicted with applicable merit selection rules. It struck the award’s second and third…
American Federation of Government Employees, Social Security Local #1760 (Union) and Social Security Administration, Northeastern Program Service Center, Flushing, New York (Activity)
Social Security arbitration exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA 0-AR-115)
An AFGE local filed exceptions to a Social Security arbitration award after the filing deadline. The Authority applied its arbitration filing rule and found the exceptions untimely. It dismissed them without reviewing the award’s merits.
American Federation of Government Employees, Local No. 1122, AFL-CIO (Union) and Western Program Service Center, Social Security Administration, Department of Health, Education and Welfare (Activity)
Social Security union exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA 0-AR-112)
An AFGE local sought review of an arbitration award involving a Social Security service center. The Authority found that the union filed its exceptions after the applicable deadline. It dismissed the exceptions without reaching the substance of the award.
Secretary of Labor (MSHA) v. Island Creek Coal Company
Island Creek Coal Company (FMSHRC BARB 76-297-P): $5,000 penalty affirmed
A mechanic at Island Creek Coal Company's underground mine was fatally injured when a raised loading machine boom fell on him. The inspector cited the company for work beneath equipment that had not been securely blocked. MESA first agreed to a $78 penalty because its assessment staff did not know…
The Anaconda Company
Settlement amount corrected by one dollar
Judge John J. Morris issued an errata sheet for his June 13, 1980 decision involving Anaconda's Weed Concentrator. It corrects the proposed settlement amount on page 3, line 11, from $661 to $662. The sheet states no other correction.
Clinchfield Coal Company
Citation vacated after government witness failed to appear
MSHA sought a civil penalty against Clinchfield Coal Company over a citation at its McClure No. 1 Mine. The inspector who issued the citation could not attend the February 1980 hearing because of bad weather, and the case was continued. At the rescheduled hearing, he refused to appear, leaving the…
Missouri Gravel Company
Five guarding allegations dismissed on summary decision
MSHA alleged that five moving machinery parts at Missouri Gravel Company's Barry Plant No. 8 lacked the guards required by 30 C.F.R. § 56.14-1. Judge Joseph B. Kennedy found no genuine dispute about the physical conditions and concluded that an evidentiary hearing was unnecessary. He held that the…
Matter of Bosuego
Deportation proceedings terminated after materiality was not proven
The Board reconsidered deportation proceedings against a Philippine respondent who had admitted making false statements when obtaining a nonimmigrant visa. The Board held that the Service had not shown that the concealed facts about her education and family ties would probably have led to denial of…
New York State Department of Transportation
Three pit-safety citations upheld, one vacated
MSHA cited the New York State Department of Transportation for four conditions at its Underwood and Botsford sand pits. Judge James A. Laurenson found that both pits were subject to MSHA oversight because Underwood's sand was used for its abrasive quality and Botsford's screening process sized the…
Windsor Power House Coal Company
Coal accumulation order narrowed, loose-rib order upheld
Windsor Power House Coal Company contested two MSHA withdrawal orders at its Beech Bottom Mine. Judge Gary Melick found that Windsor filed too late to contest the special findings in the citation underlying both orders, although the parties' agreement allowed him to consider whether the cited…
Old Ben Coal Company
Later withdrawal order affirmed after underlying order upheld
Old Ben Coal Company sought review of a December 1974 mine withdrawal order. It limited its challenge to the claim that an earlier notice and withdrawal order were unlawful and could not support the later order. The parties submitted the matter on their pleadings without an evidentiary hearing…
Solar Fuel Company
Two electrical equipment citations vacated on summary decision
MSHA cited Solar Fuel Company after an inspector found a mining machine and a roof bolting machine that were not in permissible electrical condition at its Solar No. 9 Mine. Both machines were outby the last open crosscut, although Solar intended to use them inby it. Judge James A. Laurenson held…
Matter of Tinajero
Service policy prompted expungement remand
The Board reviewed a Mexican citizen's appeal after an immigration judge found him deportable for a California burglary conviction and denied voluntary departure. The Board agreed that the burglary was a crime involving moral turpitude and that the deportability finding was supported. The Service…
U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Engineering Center, Lakehurst, New Jersey (Activity/Petitioner) and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 23/284 (Petitioner) and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, AFL-CIO, Local 2581 (Intervenor); U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Engineering Center, Lakehurst, New Jersey (Respondent) and International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Local 2581, AFL-CIO (Complainant)
Navy recognition withdrawal unlawful; election objection rejected (FLRA 32-05035(RA))
After a reorganization at a Navy engineering center, the agency withdrew recognition from a union and stopped honoring its agreement while a representation case was pending. The judge found no unfair labor practice and rejected a related objection to a runoff election. The Authority reversed the…
Secretary of Labor (MSHA) v. New Jersey Pulverizing Company
New Jersey Pulverizing Company (FMSHRC YORK 79-94-M): Penalty order vacated and remanded
An ALJ ordered New Jersey Pulverizing Company to pay penalties for six alleged violations, while calling his decision merely proposed and offering reconsideration on request. The Secretary sought review, arguing that the judge had set penalties without first giving the Secretary an opportunity to…
Day Mines, Inc.
Four citations resolved, detonator citation vacated
MSHA brought five citations against Day Mines at the Sherman Tunnel Mine. Judge Charles C. Moore, Jr. approved settlements of $84 for one misfire citation and $60 for one loose-ground citation. He upheld a second loose-ground citation because miners used the area beyond a sump pump and the roof…
Borsberry Construction Company, Inc.
Five citations upheld, $730 assessed
MSHA cited Borsberry Construction Company for five conditions at its El Paso rock crushing operation, and the company disputed the proposed penalty amounts. Judge Jon D. Boltz upheld a citation for an unblocked pickup carrying dynamite on an incline. He also upheld two citations for loaders with…
C. F. & I. Steel Corporation
Miner’s discrimination complaint dismissed
The Secretary of Labor alleged that C. F. & I. Steel suspended coal miner Alfred A. Santistevan for complaining about a continuous miner and a heavy roof support beam. The company said his three-day suspension followed alleged insubordination and his 30-day suspension followed alleged involvement…
Peabody Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor (MSHA)
Peabody Coal Company (FMSHRC BARB 76-117): Unsafe hoist penalty affirmed
An overhead chain hoist fell at Peabody Coal Company's Ken Strip Mine, killing a welder. An examination found a bent flange that had allowed the hoist rollers to lose contact with the beam. The ALJ found a violation of the rule requiring equipment to be kept in safe operating condition and assessed…
Bushwick Commission Co., Inc.
Abatement-extension request did not contest the citation
Bushwick asked OSHA for 30 additional days to install machine guards. The judge treated the request as a notice contesting the affected citation items and later vacated those items when the Secretary did not plead them. The Commission held that the letter unambiguously sought only more abatement…
H. B. Zachry Co. International
Backing alarm and shear-guard citations affirmed
A leased dump truck with an obstructed rear view had no reverse alarm or observer and struck and killed a person while backing. The Commission found that Zachry employees and employees of other contractors had access to the truck's path, so it affirmed a serious vehicle citation. It also affirmed a…
Secretary of Labor (MSHA) on behalf of Walter W. Karnstein v. Allis-Chalmers Corporation
Walter W. Karnstein v. Allis-Chalmers (FMSHRC LAKE 80-242-DM): Temporary reinstatement proceeding dismissed
An ALJ had temporarily reinstated Walter W. Karnstein in a proceeding involving Allis-Chalmers Corporation. The Commission had directed review of that order. On the parties' joint motion, the Commission dissolved the temporary reinstatement order, vacated its direction for review, and dismissed the…
Matter of Rivers
Legitimated father's presumed shared custody supported visa petition
A lawful permanent resident petitioned for visa-preference status for his daughter, who was born out of wedlock and later legitimated under Virgin Islands law. The District Director denied the petition because the father was not shown to have legal custody when the child was legitimated. The Board…
Federal Employees Metal Trades Council (Union) and Mare Island Naval Shipyard (Activity)
Mare Island career appointment award set aside (FLRA FLRC No. 78A-42)
An arbitrator found that Mare Island Naval Shipyard had improperly denied a former employee a career appointment because of union activity and ordered conversion with lost pay. The Authority relied on personnel rules and OPM’s interpretation, finding that the arbitrator could not order the…
Circle T. Drilling Co., Inc.
Discovery dismissal reversed absent prejudice or defiance
The Secretary missed a deadline for answering interrogatories after the assigned attorney took emergency leave because of illness and two deaths in his family. The judge dismissed the case and vacated the citations and proposed penalties as a discovery sanction. The Commission found no deliberate…
J. L. Foti Construction Company, Inc.
Scaffold and repeated-classification issues remanded
Employees worked on three levels of a tubular-frame scaffold without standard guardrails and toeboards. The judge found a serious violation but rejected repeated classification because the earlier citation involved a different scaffold standard. The Commission remanded for reconsideration of…
Texaco, Inc.
Explosion-proof lamp citation remanded for fuller analysis
A mechanic used an unapproved portable lamp and drop cord in a truck-maintenance bay containing a classified hazardous area near the floor. The judge vacated the citation because the Secretary did not prove that the lamp itself entered that eighteen-inch zone. The Secretary offered additional…
Henry C. Beck Company
Potlatch settled the repeat test after the judge had already ruled, so the repeat finding goes back for a fresh look
Administrative Law Judge Dee C. Blythe affirmed a citation against Henry C. Beck Company classified as serious and repeated. The charge was noncompliance with 29 C.F.R. § 1926.28(a), the construction personal protective equipment standard, because the company did not require employees working on…
National Industrial Constructors, Inc.
Sixty-foot fall-hazard items remanded under current precedent
Four employees installing metal decking faced potential 60-foot falls from a floor edge and through an unguarded wall opening. The judge vacated the safety-net and personal-protective-equipment allegations but affirmed the wall-opening item. Intervening Commission decisions changed or clarified the…
Kenneth P. Thompson Co., Inc.
Fire and fall items mostly affirmed, roof-storage item vacated
The masonry subcontractor faced several citations at a motel construction project. The Commission affirmed fire-extinguisher requirements for a gasoline refueling area and an LP-gas storage location, an uncovered floor-hole item, and serious wall-opening items. It reduced the storage-trailer access…
American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO, Local 331 (Union) and Veterans Administration Hospital, Perry Point, Maryland (Activity)
Perry Point VA request to clarify hiring proposal ruling denied (FLRA 0-NG-17)
The Veterans Administration asked the Authority to clarify its earlier decision finding an AFGE Local 331 promotion proposal negotiable at the Perry Point hospital. The proposal required consideration of bargaining unit employees before a wider search for applicants, while allowing management to…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2578, AFL-CIO (Union) and General Services Administration, National Archives and Records Service, Washington, DC (Activity)
Archives recruitment plan appeal dismissed as vague (FLRA 0-NG-164)
An Archives union proposed treating other contract terms as the agency’s equal opportunity recruitment plan. Those other terms were not before the Authority, so it could not assess whether the proposal complied with law. It dismissed the negotiability appeal because the proposal lacked the…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2532, AFL-CIO (Union) and United States Small Business Administration, Central Office (Activity)
SBA promotion arbitration award sustained (FLRA 0-AR-64)
A Small Business Administration employee sought automatic promotion after the agency missed a contractual deadline to answer a grievance. The arbitrator found that the agreement did not override federal merit promotion rules or require the requested remedy. The union challenged the award, but the…
American Federation of Government Employees, National Border Patrol Council (Union) and U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, Southern Region, Dallas, Texas (Activity)
Border Patrol consultation award sustained (FLRA 0-AR-49)
A Border Patrol union grieved the agency’s decision to end a regional consultation meeting after two days. The arbitrator read the agreement’s three day provision as a maximum, not a guaranteed duration, and denied the grievance. The Authority rejected the union’s exceptions and sustained the award.
Veterans Administration Medical Center (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1985 (Union)
VA arbitration award sustained (FLRA 0-AR-46)
A VA medical center union challenged an arbitrator’s award. The Authority found that the union’s exception did not establish a ground for setting aside the award under the governing rules. It sustained the award.
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 987, AFL-CIO (Union) and Warner Robins Air Logistics Center, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia (Activity)
Air Force procurement arbitration award stands (FLRA 0-AR-22)
An Air Force logistics center challenged an arbitration award about qualification standards used to fill procurement vacancies. The agency argued that the award rested on an erroneous central fact. The Authority found no basis to accept the petition for review and denied a stay. The award remained…
Federal Aviation Science and Technological Association, Local No. 291, Fort Worth, Texas (Union) and Federal Aviation Administration, Fort Worth Air Route Traffic Control Center, Airway Facilities Sector, Southwest Region, Fort Worth, Texas (Activity)
FAA rotating shift arbitration award stands (FLRA 0-AR-13)
An FAA union disputed an arbitrator’s interpretation of workweek provisions for rotating shift employees at a Fort Worth facility. The arbitrator denied the grievance. The Authority found that the union’s exceptions did not establish a recognized defect in the award and denied review. The award…
Noto Excavating, Inc.
Noto Excavating (FMSHRC YORK 79-104-M): Three admitted violations draw reduced penalties
Noto Excavating admitted three safety violations at its mine but disputed MSHA's proposed penalties totaling $222. The violations involved an uncovered opening beside a ladder, a shattered front-end loader windshield, and an unbermed haul road. Judge Gary Melick found that the hazards could cause…
Kanawha Coal Company and Beckley Coal Mining Company
Kanawha Coal and Beckley Coal Mining (FMSHRC WEVA 80-154 and WEVA 80-150): Dust violations upheld
MSHA charged Kanawha Coal Company and Beckley Coal Mining Company with exceeding the two milligram respirable dust limit at their coal mines. The operators accepted the measured concentrations of 3.0 and 2.1 milligrams per cubic meter but argued that the sampling evidence could not support…
King Knob Coal Company, Inc.
King Knob Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 79-360): Pickup backup alarm violation upheld
MSHA cited King Knob Coal Company because a pickup truck at its strip mine lacked an automatic backup alarm. A miner died when the truck backed into him. The company argued that MSHA had told it pickup trucks were exempt when the driver's rear view was unobstructed. Judge Gary Melick held that the…
J. P. Burroughs & Son, Inc.
J. P. Burroughs & Son (FMSHRC LAKE 80-223-M): Penalty contest dismissed as late
MSHA proposed penalties for four citations issued to J. P. Burroughs & Son's Holly Sand and Gravel Plant. After a conference about penalty reductions, the operator received a second proposed assessment on January 14, 1980. It mailed its contest on February 13, the 30th day, and MSHA received it on…
Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center, Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma (Respondent) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 916, AFL-CIO (Complainant)
Tinker Air Force Base complaint dismissal upheld (FLRA 6-CA-62)
A union complained that Tinker Air Force Base had committed an unfair labor practice. The administrative law judge recommended dismissal. The Authority adopted that result and rejected an additional bypass theory because it had not been properly raised and fully litigated at the hearing. The…
National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Center, Miami, Florida (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local Union 2875, AFL-CIO (Petitioner)
Fisheries service representation petition dismissed (FLRA 4-RO-16)
An AFGE local sought a separate bargaining unit for employees at the National Marine Fisheries Service Southeast Fisheries Center. The Authority found the proposed unit did not satisfy the statutory criteria for an appropriate unit. It dismissed the petition without directing an election. The…
Decision on Request for General Statement of Policy or Guidance
Official time travel policy request denied (FLRA 0-PS-16)
The National Treasury Employees Union asked for general guidance on travel and per diem payments for employees using negotiated official time. The Authority concluded the question arose from a negotiable subject and could be addressed through the statute’s negotiability procedures. It denied the…
American Federation of Government Employees, National Council of EEOC Locals, No. 216, AFL-CIO (Union) and Equal Employment Opportunity, Washington, DC (Agency)
EEOC supervisor evaluation proposal rejected (FLRA 0-NG-197)
An EEOC union proposed terms about evaluating and training supervisors before discipline could be imposed. The Authority held that these matters concerned supervisory employees rather than bargaining unit employees’ conditions of employment. It sustained the agency’s nonnegotiability allegation.
National Labor Relations Board Union (Labor Organization) and National Labor Relations Board, Washington, D.C. (Activity)
NLRB employee lodging proposal negotiable (FLRA 0-NG-147)
A National Labor Relations Board union proposed limiting dual lodging costs for employees on temporary details, consistent with operating needs. The Authority found the proposal was a negotiable procedure and did not prevent management from assigning employees or work. It set aside the agency’s…
American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO, Council of Federal Grain Inspection Locals (Union) and United States Department of Agriculture, Federal Grain Inspection Service, Washington, DC (Activity)
Grain inspectors Sunday overtime proposal rejected (FLRA 0-NG-126)
A union proposed double base pay for Sunday work beyond 40 hours a week at the Federal Grain Inspection Service. The Authority held that federal statute specifically governed overtime pay and removed that subject from mandatory bargaining under the labor statute. It sustained the agency’s…
Department of the Air Force (Activity) and American Federation of Government Employees, Local No. 2840 (Union)
Air Force arbitration exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA 0-AR-98)
The Air Force filed exceptions to an arbitration award and requested a stay; OPM also sought to file a brief. The Authority found the exceptions untimely under its filing rule. It dismissed them without reaching the award’s merits.
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2221, AFL-CIO (Union) and Newark Air Force Station (Activity)
Newark Air Force arbitration exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA 0-AR-80)
An AFGE local filed exceptions to an arbitration award involving Newark Air Force Station. The Authority found the filing untimely under its arbitration rule. It dismissed the exceptions without reviewing the award’s merits.
Community Services Administration (Agency) and National Council of CSA Locals, American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO (Union)
Community Services arbitration exceptions dismissed as late (FLRA 0-AR-106)
The Community Services Administration filed exceptions to an arbitration award and requested a stay. The Authority found the exceptions were filed after its deadline and could not be accepted for review. It dismissed the exceptions without deciding their merits.
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.