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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Department of Justice, Office of Management and Finance and Community Relations Service; AFSCME Capital Area Council of Federal Employees No. 26; and American Federation of Government Employees
Elections directed for two Justice Department offices (FLRA 22-09043(RO))
AFSCME sought an election for employees of the Justice Department's Office of Management and Finance, and AFGE sought one for its Community Relations Service. DOJ argued that only a broader unit of its offices, boards, and divisions would be appropriate. The Authority found that each petitioned…
Matter of Astorga
Washington invalidity declaration cleared a possible prior marriage
The Board reviewed a visa petition filed by a United States citizen for a beneficiary who had married the petitioner in Washington after a possible prior marriage in Mexico. A Washington court had declared the prior marriage invalid from its inception, and the Board considered whether that…
Veterans Administration, Washington, D.C. and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1631
VA nurse's reprimand complaint dismissed (FLRA 63-8020(CA))
The president of a nurses' union at the Amarillo Veterans Administration hospital sent patient names and diagnoses to the union's national office while raising concerns about patient care. The VA issued her a letter of intent to reprimand for disclosing patient information. The union alleged that…
Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Social Security Administration, Dayton Office, Dayton, Ohio and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3448
Social Security office union-time complaint dismissed (FLRA 53-10584(CA))
A union representative at the Social Security Administration's Dayton office complained about her supervisor's statements concerning time away from work for union meetings and the timing of a committee meeting. The judge found no interference, restraint, or coercion: the supervisor had asked her to…
Department of Army and Air Force, Division of Military Affairs, State of New York and Association of Civilian Technicians, New York Council
New York Guard ordered to arbitrate and provide union information (FLRA 35-04756(CA))
The Association of Civilian Technicians sought bargaining over National Guard technicians' uniform requirements after a labor council ruling. When the New York Guard disputed its contract duty, the union requested arbitration, but the Guard refused to select an arbitrator. The Guard also gave the…
U.S. Customs Service and Houston Region, U.S. Customs Service
Customs Service information ruling left in place (FLRA No. 78A-160)
The National Treasury Employees Union asked the Customs Service for material relevant to disciplinary notices issued to represented employees. The Assistant Secretary found that withholding information needed to decide whether to pursue grievances violated Executive Order 11491. The Customs Service…
American Federation of Government Employees, Council of Prison Locals and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons
Prison staff temporary-promotion provisions held negotiable (FLRA No. 78A-122)
The Bureau of Prisons disapproved negotiated merit-promotion provisions covering competitive procedures for temporary promotions over 60 days and temporary promotions for employees detailed to higher grades. It argued that the provisions conflicted with management rights, pay laws, or personnel…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of John Koerner v. Arch Mineral Coal Company
Arch Mineral Coal Company (FMSHRC DENV 78-564): Settlement and end of temporary reinstatement upheld
John Koerner had been temporarily reinstated to his job at Arch Mineral while a discrimination case proceeded. After the parties negotiated a settlement, the Secretary asked a judge to vacate the reinstatement order, but the record did not show whether Koerner agreed. The Commission requested a…
Structural Metals, Inc.
Noise citation vacatur left in place
OSHA cited Structural Metals under the occupational noise standard. The judge vacated the citation after the Secretary repeatedly failed to file a timely complaint, explain missed deadlines, respond to show-cause orders, or oppose dismissal. A Commissioner initially granted review after treating…
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Southwest Region and National Treasury Employees Union, Chapter 91
IRS ordered to bargain over evaluation changes, with narrower remedy (FLRA 64-3896(CA))
The IRS Southwest Region changed how appeals officers' work was selected and observed for performance evaluations without giving their union a chance to bargain over the procedures and effects. The judge found a failure to meet and confer under Executive Order 11491 and recommended bargaining and…
Social Security Administration, Tulsa District Office, Tulsa, Oklahoma and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2387
Tulsa Social Security office coffee-break complaint dismissed (FLRA 63-8417(CA))
The Social Security Administration's Tulsa office issued a memo reminding employees to take coffee breaks generally between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. The union claimed the memo changed working conditions and the collective bargaining agreement without negotiation. The judge found that the time limits were…
Department of Defense, United States Army, Fort Sam Houston, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2154
Fort Sam Houston leave-form complaint dismissed (FLRA 63-7885(CA))
The Army's supply division at Fort Sam Houston began requiring written requests to reschedule annual leave, although workers there had commonly made requests orally. The union alleged that imposing a form without bargaining violated Executive Order 11491. The judge found that the written-request…
Defense Industrial Plant and Equipment Center, Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis decertification election objections rejected (FLRA 41-5904(DR))
After an election at the Defense Industrial Plant and Equipment Center in Memphis, the incumbent union objected to the election date, activity at the polls, a supervisor's presence, and the ballot tally. The Regional Administrator rejected the objections, and the Assistant Secretary declined…
Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Engraving and Printing and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 121
Bureau of Engraving union-representation complaint dismissed (FLRA 22-9031(CA))
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing met with an electrician to give him notice of a 30-day suspension without allowing union representation at the meeting. His union alleged an unfair labor practice under Executive Order 11491. The judge found that the meeting concerned only that employee's…
Service Employees' International Union, Local 556 and Department of the Army, U.S. Army Support Command, Fort Shafter, Hawaii
Army agency-shop proposal held outside duty to bargain (FLRA 0-NG-2)
A union at the Army's Fort Shafter support command proposed requiring dues-equivalent deductions from the pay of all employees in the bargaining unit, including nonmembers. The Army said the proposal was outside its duty to bargain because federal employees have the right to refrain from assisting…
U.S. Department of Commerce, Maritime Administration, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2116
Merchant Marine Academy dean's secretary excluded from unit (FLRA 30-08598(CU))
The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy asked whether the academic dean's secretary should remain in the nonprofessional employee unit represented by AFGE Local 2116. The dean handled labor policy, contract negotiations, grievances, and personnel actions, while the secretary prepared related documents and…
Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Social Security Administration, Northeastern Program Service Center and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1760
Social Security center ordered to bargain over flextime (FLRA 30-08062(CA))
The Social Security Administration's Northeastern Program Service Center surveyed employees about flextime and changed work hours without obtaining the union's consent to the survey or bargaining over the change. The judge found both actions violated Executive Order 11491. The Authority adopted…
U.S. Department of the Treasury, Bureau of Government Financial Operations and National Treasury Employees Union
Treasury disbursing-center unit approved for an election (FLRA 22-09106(RO))
The National Treasury Employees Union sought an election among nonprofessional employees in seven Bureau of Government Financial Operations disbursing centers, with the possibility of adding them to its existing headquarters unit. The Treasury Bureau favored smaller center-based units. The…
Pennsylvania Army National Guard and Association of Civilian Technicians
Pennsylvania Guard promotion-interview union comments barred (FLRA 20-06675(CA))
During interviews for a mechanic foreman position, a Pennsylvania Army National Guard official referred to applicants' union membership and the presence of a shop steward. The Association of Civilian Technicians alleged that the comments and questions about uniform wear violated Executive Order…
American Federation of Government Employees, National Immigration and Naturalization Service Council and U.S. Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service
Immigration Service negotiability appeal dismissed for missing service statement (FLRA 0-NG-52)
The AFGE National Immigration and Naturalization Service Council sought review of a negotiability dispute with the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The Authority told the union that its petition lacked a required statement showing service on the agency head. It gave the union until June 1…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1776 and Williams Air Force Base, Arizona
Williams Air Force Base negotiability appeal dismissed for missing filing (FLRA 0-NG-42)
AFGE Local 1776 sought review of a negotiability dispute with Williams Air Force Base. The Authority identified deficiencies in the union's petition under the federal labor relations statute and its procedural rules. It gave the union until May 16, 1979, to file additional material and warned that…
National Treasury Employees Union and U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Nuclear Regulatory Commission negotiability appeal dismissed for missing filing (FLRA 0-NG-28)
The National Treasury Employees Union petitioned for review of a negotiability dispute with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Authority identified filing and service deficiencies and gave the union until May 4, 1979, to submit the required material. It warned that missing the deadline would…
Matter of Ceballos
Prior Colombian religious marriage bars visa petition
A United States citizen sought immediate relative status for her husband. A District Director denied the visa petition because the husband had previously married in a religious ceremony in Colombia and had not shown that marriage was dissolved. The petitioner argued that the Colombian ceremony was…
Matter of Robinson
Suspended sentence counts as a conviction for relief eligibility
A woman from Panama conceded that she had overstayed her visitor admission and appealed the denial of suspension of deportation and voluntary departure. She had pleaded guilty to misapplying savings and loan funds; the federal court found her guilty but suspended the sentence and imposed probation…
Keppel's Incorporated
Late contest rejected for unamended citation items
OSHA issued Keppel's Incorporated two citations containing 12 alleged violations, then amended some items after informal conferences. Keppel's written contest was timely for the amended items but late for the original, unamended items. The Commission found that the company had not orally contested…
Veterans Administration, Washington, D.C. and National Office, American Federation of Government Employees
VA nationwide consolidation elections directed (FLRA 22-08518(UC))
AFGE sought to consolidate 236 existing bargaining units it represented across the Veterans Administration. The VA objected that its facilities and bargaining history were too decentralized for a single nationwide unit. The Authority found shared mission, supervision, and labor relations policies…
Air Force Logistics Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio and American Federation of Government Employees
Air Force bargaining-procedures complaint dismissal left in place (FLRA 53-10541(CA))
After AFGE was certified for a consolidated Air Force Logistics Command unit, the command issued a memo on procedures for negotiating changes in working conditions. The union alleged that the memo unilaterally established bargaining procedures. The Regional Administrator dismissed the complaint…
Illinois Air National Guard, 182nd Tactical Air Support Group and Illinois Air Chapter, Association of Civilian Technicians
Illinois Guard seasonal-clothing complaint dismissed (FLRA 50-17054(CA))
The Illinois Air National Guard announced that technicians could not wear seasonal military clothing with their civilian uniforms, then rescinded that instruction after the Association of Civilian Technicians objected. The union alleged that the announcement was an unlawful unilateral change. The…
U.S. Army DARCOM Materiel Readiness Support Activity, Lexington, Kentucky and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 894
Army test-equipment staff kept in AFGE unit after reorganization (FLRA 41-6316(CU/AC))
An Army reorganization separated a test-equipment division from the Lexington Materiel Readiness Support Activity into its own tenant activity. The Army asked to remove those employees from AFGE Local 894's unit and update the certification to the activity's new name. The Authority found that the…
Social Security Administration, Cincinnati, Ohio and Covington, Kentucky and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 75
Social Security two-region unit consolidation denied (FLRA 0-AS-4)
NFFE Local 75 sought to combine two Social Security employee units in the Cincinnati and Covington areas, which fell under different agency regions. The Regional Administrator found the combined unit inappropriate because employees lacked common field supervision and uniform personnel and labor…
Social Security Administration, Bureau of Hearings and Appeals, San Juan, Puerto Rico and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3534
San Juan union-rating complaint dismissal upheld (FLRA 0-AS-1)
AFGE Local 3534 alleged that a Social Security employee's performance rating was lowered because she was a union steward. After a remand for a factual finding, the judge found that the rating official had not said union activity motivated the change. The Assistant Secretary dismissed the complaint…
Secretary of Labor (MSHA) v. B B & W Coal Company, Inc.
B B & W Coal Company (FMSHRC PIKE 77-89-P): Default reversed after response was overlooked
MESA sought $905 for 20 alleged violations, and B B & W Coal's president filed an answer without a lawyer. After a judge issued a prehearing order, the president mailed letters explaining the contest and rejecting a proposed stipulation. The first judge later recused himself, and a second judge…
Veterans Administration Hospital, Shreveport, Louisiana and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2000
Shreveport VA hospital ordered to stop coercive union comments (FLRA 64-4038(CA))
At a Shreveport VA hospital staff meeting about work hours, a supervisor criticized unions and suggested that employees could blame a union for the rule against working outside scheduled hours. The judge found that the remarks, in context, interfered with employees' right to join and assist a union…
U.S. Customs Service, Region I, Boston and National Treasury Employees Union
Customs shift-trading violation upheld; grooming claim dismissed (FLRA 31-11459(CA))
The Customs Service's Boston region restricted employees' ability to trade shifts and issued new grooming standards. The administrative law judge found that the shift-trading restriction changed working conditions without bargaining, but dismissed the grooming allegation. The Authority adopted both…
FMC Corporation
The in-use exception is the employer's to prove and never reaches hoses, and four citations in nine months make a violation repeated
FMC was building the Chevron Oregon, a 35,000-ton oil tanker, at its Swan Island yard in Portland, Oregon. An OSHA compliance officer inspected the ship on January 10, 1975 and cited FMC for a repeated nonserious violation of the shipyard housekeeping standard: hoses, welding leads, electric cords…
Navy Public Works Center and Louis T. Faison
Navy parking-lot petition complaint dismissed (FLRA 22-8568(CA))
Louis Faison solicited signatures at a Navy Public Works Center parking lot for an election to replace the incumbent union. A Navy official challenged his right to solicit there, but Faison continued collecting signatures and was not ordered to leave. The judge found that the encounter had not been…
Matter of Favela
Loss of residency and trafficking ground support exclusion
A Mexican citizen who had entered the United States as a child with lawful permanent resident status appealed an exclusion order after trying to reenter as an adult. The Board found that both parents had abandoned their resident status when they returned to Mexico while he was under their custody…
Matter of Davis
Strict liability drug offense cannot support deportation charge
An Australian visitor challenged a deportation order based on his conviction for selling Indian hemp under a New South Wales statute. The Board read the charged immigration ground as requiring an illicit sale and found that the Australian provision could impose liability without guilty knowledge…
Boston Gear, A Division of Murray Company of Texas, Inc.
A judge loses power over his own order once he files it, so the Commission corrects the clerical penalty figure itself under Rule 60(a)
The Secretary of Labor and Boston Gear settled. Boston Gear agreed to withdraw its notice of contest and pay a penalty of 25 dollars. On October 27, 1978, Administrative Law Judge Ben D. Worcester approved that settlement. His order then assessed a penalty of 800 dollars, which was the figure the…
Matter of Perez
Chihuahua adoption supports daughter’s visa petition
A lawful permanent resident sought daughter preference status for her niece, whom she and her husband had adopted in Chihuahua, Mexico. A District Director first denied the petition on the view that parents who already had a child could not adopt there, then approved it after a remand. Reviewing…
Public Health Service, Navajo Area Indian Health Service, Tuba City, Arizona
Tuba City health-educator ballot ruling left in place (FLRA No. 78A-183)
In a Tuba City Indian Health Service runoff election, the union challenged a community health educator's ballot on the ground that she was a professional employee outside the nonprofessional voting unit. The Assistant Secretary agreed after examining her independent duties and specialized training…
Everglades Sugar Refinery, Inc.
Unauthorized payloader repair violation affirmed
Two Everglades Sugar Refinery employees attempted to repair a payloader with a defective throttle linkage, and one employee was fatally injured when its raised bucket fell. The Commission held that the powered-industrial-truck maintenance rule applied because the hazard arose from allowing…
Tidewater Virginia Federal Employees Metal Trades Council and Louis T. Faison
Incumbent union ordered to stop interfering with election petition (FLRA 22-08567(CO))
Louis Faison gathered signatures for a petition to challenge the Tidewater Metal Trades Council's status as the bargaining representative at a Navy facility. A council official took Faison's clipboard and petitions during the solicitation and returned them later. The judge found that the seizure…
Matter of DeJong
Union cannot seek reconsideration as amicus
In an earlier decision, the Board had terminated exclusion proceedings against the master and crew of the Dosina after finding that the immigration judge lacked jurisdiction over these crewmen's temporary landing requests. The Seafarers International Union had filed a brief as a friend of the Board…
Matter of Alonzo
U.S. citizen child weighed heavily in waiver approval
The Commissioner reviewed waiver applications from a Mexican husband and wife who had obtained visas through fraud and had a child who was a United States citizen. The Commissioner held that the birth of a United States citizen child is a favorable factor that must receive considerable weight in a…
Matter of Mazard
Remand Haitian adoption petition after correcting age rule
A U.S. citizen petitioned for immediate relative status for a Haitian child he said he adopted in 1973 when she was 12. The Board withdrew its earlier decision, which had affirmed denial of the petition based on an incorrect understanding of Haitian adoption law. The Board held that both the 1966…
Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation
Flagman penalty reduced to $25
A Niagara Mohawk mechanic directed traffic near a roadside gas-line job without wearing the required red or orange warning garment. The Commission upheld the judge's credibility findings that he was acting as a flagman and that the foreman knew or should have known about the missing vest. It…
United States Air Force and National Federation of Federal Employees
Air Force reorganization consultation complaint dismissal left in place (FLRA No. 78A-184)
NFFE claimed national consultation rights over an Air Training Command reorganization and alleged that the Air Force had withheld information and failed to give advance notice. The judge found that the subordinate command made the reorganization decision on its own, so the department-level…
Naval Plant Representative Office, Dallas, Texas and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3548
Navy arbitration award partly stayed while review proceeds (FLRA No. 78A-157)
An arbitrator rejected a Navy employee's challenge to a promotion selection but found that the Navy violated the agreement when it removed him for statements in his grievance. Both the Navy and the union sought review. The Authority accepted the Navy's exception to the award's expungement remedy…
Jacksonville Shipyards, Inc.
Incomplete settlement order vacated
Jacksonville Shipyards and the Secretary reached a partial settlement after OSHA issued four citations, but two nonserious items had remained disputed at the hearing. Their later written stipulation claimed to resolve all outstanding issues without specifically addressing those two items. The judge…
Internal Revenue Service, Jacksonville District and National Treasury Employees Union
Jacksonville IRS ordered to provide grievance records (FLRA 42-4382(CA))
The National Treasury Employees Union requested records needed to process a grievance about selection for a Jacksonville IRS group clerk position. The district refused access to materials the judge found necessary and relevant to the union's representation duties. The Authority adopted the judge's…
Federal Aviation Administration, Greater Pittsburgh Tower and Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization, Local 245
Pittsburgh tower supervisor incident complaint dismissed (FLRA 21-05970(CA))
At the Greater Pittsburgh air traffic control tower, a supervisor struck a controller's shoulder with a telephone receiver and shouted during a dispute about flight-plan clearances. The controllers' union alleged unfair labor practices under Executive Order 11491. The judge found the conduct…
Secretary of Labor (MSHA) v. Kaiser Steel Corporation
Kaiser Steel Corporation (FMSHRC DENV 77-13-P): Owner liability for contractor's fall-protection violation affirmed
A worker employed by a drilling contractor fell from a rig at Kaiser's mine and was fatally injured; the rig lacked a lifeline, and he was not wearing a safety belt. Kaiser argued that the contractor, rather than the mine owner, should be responsible for the violation. The Commission held that a…
Matter of Weaver
Divorce validity requires review under Bahamian law
A U.S. citizen petitioned for an immigrant visa for his wife. The district director denied the petition because he found her earlier Dominican Republic divorce invalid under Connecticut law. The Board held that the divorce should first be assessed under the law of the Bahamas, where the wife and…
Potlatch Corporation
Tractor-trailer hazard citation remained vacated
OSHA cited Potlatch Corporation under the general duty clause after an employee drove a tractor and pole trailer with inoperable trailer brakes. The judge found that driving without the trailer brakes was hazardous but that the evidence showed the industry considered it less hazardous than leaving…
American Hose Corporation
Settlement penalty corrected to $2,900
American Hose Corporation settled three OSHA citations covering alleged serious, willful, and nonserious violations at its Winchester, Indiana workplace. The settlement deleted one willful item, reduced penalties, extended two abatement dates, and withdrew the company's contest. The judge approved…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 695 and U.S. Mint, Denver, Colorado
Denver Mint negotiability appeal dismissed as moot (FLRA 0-NG-26)
AFGE Local 695 appealed a U.S. Mint decision that its proposals were nonnegotiable under Executive Order 11491. By the time of the appeal, the new federal labor relations statute had taken effect and governed negotiability disputes. Neither side's submission addressed how that statute applied to…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923 and Social Security Administration, Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore Social Security arbitration appeal dismissed for missing filing (FLRA 0-AR-16)
AFGE Local 1923 sought review of an arbitration award involving Social Security Administration offices in Baltimore. The Authority identified deficiencies in the union's petition under the arbitration-review rules. It gave the union until April 30, 1979, to file missing material and document…
Internal Revenue Service, Jacksonville District and National Treasury Employees Union
Jacksonville IRS ordered to provide probationer's records (FLRA 42-4117(CA))
The Jacksonville IRS district withheld performance information that the National Treasury Employees Union requested while representing a probationary employee facing termination. The judge found the information necessary and relevant to the union's representation duties and held the refusal…
Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
Social Security reassignment complaint dismissed (FLRA 22-08844(CA))
AFGE Local 1923 alleged that the Social Security Administration failed to reassign an employee to a flextime position as the parties had discussed during a disciplinary appeal. The judge found that the pre-complaint charge did not cover separate claims about an unwritten reassignment policy, 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.