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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Bob Reed v. Ken Lick Coal Company, Incorporated and Kentucky Central Insurance Company
Reed v. Ken Lick Coal (BRB 22-0009): Black Lung benefits award affirmed
Bob Reed sought Black Lung benefits after 16.54 years of qualifying coal mine work. The judge found him totally disabled and applied the statutory presumption that pneumoconiosis caused his disability. Ken Lick Coal challenged its designation as responsible operator, despite having stipulated to…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Tallahassee Processing & Distribution Center, Tallahassee, FL
Board accepts postal forklift incident and returns injury claim for review (ECAB 23-0290)
A postal mail handler said driving a forklift over cracks and bumps at work jarred his lower back. OWCP denied the claim because it viewed the accounts of the event as inconsistent. The Board found that later details about picking up cardboard while driving the forklift did not contradict the…
M.F. and U.S. Postal Service, East Northport Post Office, East Northport, NY
Board upholds $8,328.09 retirement offset overpayment (ECAB 23-0028)
A postal carrier received FECA wage loss payments and Social Security retirement benefits attributable in part to federal service during the same period. OWCP calculated an $8,328.09 overpayment and found that she was not at fault. The Board upheld the calculation based on Social Security's benefit…
E.T. and U.S. Postal Service, Bloomfield Hills Post Office, Bloomfield Hills, MI
Board returns postal carrier's shoulder surgery request for explained decision (ECAB 23-0001)
A postal carrier sought wage loss for one day and authorization for more left shoulder surgery after an accepted injury. The Board found no medical report establishing disability or treatment on the claimed day, so it upheld that denial. OWCP's surgery denial, however, lacked findings and reasons…
C.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Italy Post Office, Italy, TX
Board orders further medical review of postal carrier's neck surgery request (ECAB 22-1315)
A postal carrier requested authorization for cervical fusion after a work vehicle collision. Her physician and an OWCP medical adviser disagreed about the surgery. OWCP referred the conflict to an impartial examiner, but his report did not address whether cervical fusion was necessary and connected…
C.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Onaga Post Office, Onaga, KS
Board upholds denial of postal carrier's back condition claim (ECAB 22-0806)
A postal rural carrier attributed back and hip symptoms to repeated lifting, bending, and twisting at work. OWCP accepted those work activities but denied her occupational disease claim. The Board found that physicians identified spinal conditions and asserted a work connection without explaining…
K.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Huffman Post Office, Anchorage, AK
Board upholds end of postal manager's wage loss and medical benefits (ECAB 20-0572)
A postal station manager received benefits after fracturing her right tibial plateau and great toe in a fall at work. OWCP later ended wage loss and medical benefits based on an impartial examiner's opinion that both accepted fractures had healed. The Board found that opinion well supported by the…
Secretary of Labor v. CSI Sands NE, Ltd.
Unusual disruptions supported reopening
CSI Sands filed its penalty contest 12 days late while rebuilding its facility and dealing with an employee injury, a natural gas supply failure, and a management change. The proposed assessment had been delivered to the mine supervisor, who then accepted another job. CSI said the reconstruction…
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0148): Truck-safety settlement approved
The settlement covered five citations, including unsafe-condition and inadequate pre-operational-inspection violations involving two mine trucks. One truck had seven listed defects, and another had nineteen, while the related inspection records omitted most or all of those conditions. The parties…
Secretary of Labor v. Eagle Rock, Inc.
Deadline mistake supported partial reopening
Eagle Rock received a proposed assessment covering 14 citations but mistakenly believed its contest deadline was two days later than the actual deadline. After MSHA told the operator the contest was late, Eagle followed up when promised correspondence did not arrive. It paid the penalties for ten…
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Electrical Services
New assistant's error supported reopening
Vulcan Electrical Services missed the deadline to contest a proposed penalty assessment after a new administrative assistant received it but did not understand the 30-day deadline. The assistant did not forward the assessment to the safety director until after it had become a final order. Vulcan…
Secretary of Labor v. Highway Materials, Inc.
Conference timing mistake supported reopening
Highway Materials requested an MSHA conference on three citations and later received a proposed penalty assessment while waiting for the conference results. The operator mistakenly believed it had 30 days after the results letter to contest the penalties, rather than 30 days after receiving the…
T.W. and Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Clarksburg, WV
Board upholds end of Dronabinol coverage for FBI worker (ECAB 23-0504)
An FBI employee received Dronabinol for nausea associated with an accepted injury. OWCP's pharmacy manager notified her that the drug was outside its formulary and that her physician could request an exception through a prior authorization form. OWCP also gave a final notice and time to seek the…
D.P. and Department of the Interior, U.S. Park Police, Washington, DC
Board upholds Park Police officer's injury and reconsideration denials (ECAB 23-0370)
A U.S. Park Police officer reported elbow and wrist pain after tripping while working. OWCP accepted the incident but denied the injury claim because the submitted records did not establish a diagnosis from an identifiable qualified physician. The Board agreed that a physician assistant's note…
J.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Martinsburg VA Medical Center, Martinsburg, WV
Board orders combined review of VA nurse's related injury claims (ECAB 23-0311)
A VA nurse attributed neck, shoulder, and arm symptoms to patient care duties that she said worsened an earlier injury. Her older traumatic injury claim involved the same areas, but OWCP had kept the files separate and described the earlier claim inconsistently in its decisions. The Board held that…
L.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Old Chelsea Post Office, New York, NY
Board upholds denial of postal worker's late hearing requests (ECAB 23-0206)
A postal carrier requested oral hearings after OWCP decided her injury claim. Both requests came more than 30 days after the September 2021 claim decision. The Board found that she had no hearing right after that deadline and that OWCP reasonably declined a discretionary hearing because she could…
E.R. and U.S. Postal Service, Eden Prairie Post Office, Eden Prairie, MN
Board orders OWCP to review omitted shoulder reports (ECAB 23-0164)
A postal rural carrier attributed a shoulder condition to repetitive work, reaching, and lifting. She submitted several orthopedic reports and work notes with her reconsideration request. OWCP's denial addressed one narrative report but did not consider or discuss the other submitted reports. The…
D.M. and Department of Veterans Affairs, West Roxbury VA Medical Center, West Roxbury, MA
Board upholds late filing denial of VA nurse's continuation of pay (ECAB 23-0108)
A VA nurse reported contracting COVID-19 at work on January 4, 2022 and stopped work that day. She filed her injury claim form on February 8. The Board used January 4 as the date of last exposure under OWCP's COVID-19 guidance. Because the form was filed more than 30 days later, the Board affirmed…
P.C. and U.S. Postal Service, Mahwah Carrier Annex, Mahwah, NJ
Board reverses termination of postal carrier's benefits amid medical conflict (ECAB 22-1320)
A postal carrier had received wage loss and medical benefits after accepted spine injuries. OWCP ended them based on a referral physician's view that the accepted conditions had resolved. The worker's treating physician, however, reported continuing findings and attributed them to an accepted…
Teddy C. Tooley v. Hopkins County Coal, LLC
Tooley v. Hopkins County Coal (BRB 22-0280): Disability finding returned for review of exercise test
Teddy Tooley sought Black Lung benefits after 37 years of underground coal mine work. The judge denied his claim, finding no complicated pneumoconiosis or totally disabling respiratory impairment. The Board upheld the complicated pneumoconiosis finding but found a gap in the judge's review of…
M.B. and Department of Justice, Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Penitentiary McCreary, Pine Knot, KY
Board upholds denial of correctional officer's lower extremity claim (ECAB 23-0367)
A correctional officer reported foot and Achilles tendon symptoms after responding to a staff assistance call at a prison. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his injury claim. The Board found that an orthopedic surgeon diagnosed a left heel condition without explaining its…
M.V. and Department of the Air Force, Global Strike Command, Kirtland Air Force Base, NM
Board orders further review of firefighter's shoulder injury claim (ECAB 23-0198)
An Air Force firefighter said he injured his right shoulder while lifting a box from a truck during a safety inspection. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his claim, finding no diagnosis from a physician. The Board found that an orthopedic surgeon's report diagnosed a right…
K.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Nashville, TN
Board upholds denial of postal carrier's left knee injury claim (ECAB 23-0125)
A rural mail carrier said her left knee popped while she walked to close a postal vehicle's back door. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied the injury claim. The Board found that reports describing knee pain and work restrictions did not provide a reasoned medical explanation linking…
D.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Pittsford Post Office, Pittsford, NY
Board upholds disability denial and untimely review ruling for postal worker (ECAB 23-0053)
A postal city carrier injured her right knee when she fell on a sidewalk during work. OWCP accepted the knee injury and paid wage loss compensation through May 6, 2022, but denied additional periods except June 8 and 9. The Board found that her physician's reports did not address the specific…
R.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Portland, ME
Board upholds denial of postal carrier's right leg injury claim (ECAB 23-0052)
A postal letter carrier said that weeks of long shifts and walking more than 12 miles per day caused a right leg condition. OWCP accepted the work factors and a diagnosed condition but denied the claim for lack of medical evidence connecting them. The Board found that reports countersigned by a…
S.P. and U.S. Postal Service, Southwest Post Office, Washington, DC
Board accepts postal carrier's finger contusions and laceration, rejects fracture claim (ECAB 23-0036)
A postal carrier slammed her right hand in a van door while working. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied her injury claim because it found no established diagnosis. The Board held that visible finger contusions and a laceration could be accepted without a physician's report under…
B.L. and U.S. Postal Service, Middleville Post Office, Middleville, MI
Board upholds denial of postal worker's intermittent disability claim (ECAB 22-0998)
A postal carrier associate sustained an accepted right shoulder injury while moving a mail tray in her vehicle. She sought compensation for intermittent time away from work between May 2015 and March 2017. The Board found that her physicians did not adequately explain how the accepted injury caused…
Secretary of Labor v. Nufac Mining Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Nufac Mining Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0149): Five-citation settlement approved with installment plan
The parties settled five citations issued to Nufac Mining's No. 57 Mine. Three penalties were reduced by roughly half, while two remained unchanged, lowering the table total from $19,574 to $11,684. The judge noted substantial older unpaid penalties and prior noncompliance with an installment plan…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0141): Continuance granted and settlement question certified
Consol Mining asked to continue a scheduled hearing because of witness and discovery issues and pending disputes over a proposed partial settlement. The judge granted the continuance and deferred the Secretary's request to separate the unsettled citations from those proposed for settlement. He…
I.B. and Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Eagle Pass, TX
Board reverses termination of border officer's COVID benefits (ECAB 23-0559)
A Customs and Border Protection officer received benefits for an accepted COVID-19 injury after hospitalization for respiratory failure. OWCP ended wage loss and medical benefits based on a second opinion stating that the infection had resolved. The Board found that the physician acknowledged…
E.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Sioux Falls, SD
Board upholds denial of postal clerk's toe infection claim (ECAB 23-0373)
A postal mail processing clerk said that friction from required work shoes during long shifts caused a blister and infection in her right big toe. OWCP accepted the described work activities but denied the claim. The only clinical reports submitted were from a nurse practitioner, who described toe…
L.M. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Nashville, TN
Board upholds denial of postal worker's claimed heat injury (ECAB 23-0266)
A postal delivery worker reported becoming ill while delivering mail outdoors in the heat. OWCP accepted that the work incident occurred but denied her injury claim. The Board found that the physician's after visit summary diagnosed only chest pain, which is a symptom rather than a compensable…
W.R. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Medical Center, Lake City, FL
Board orders combined review of VA police officer's foot injury files (ECAB 23-0253)
A VA police officer claimed that years of walking, running, and carrying protective gear aggravated his left foot condition. OWCP denied the claim after reviewing it separately from two earlier foot and ankle injury claims. The Board held that the related files must be combined so all relevant…
P.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Los Angeles Post Office, Los Angeles, CA
Board upholds $7,271.45 benefit overpayment and recovery schedule (ECAB 23-0203)
A retired postal letter carrier received FECA wage loss compensation and Social Security retirement benefits attributable to federal service during the same period without the required offset. The Board upheld OWCP's calculation of a $7,271.45 overpayment from February 2021 through September 2022…
R.S. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Chicago, IL
Board orders medical review of postal carrier's back claim (ECAB 22-1333)
A postal carrier claimed a disc protrusion and radiculopathy after lifting, twisting, and walking through heavy snow at work. OWCP accepted the work factors but denied the claim for insufficient evidence of medical causation. The Board found that an orthopedic surgeon's report explained a possible…
P.M. and U.S. Post Office, Bedford Park Post Office, Bedford Park, IL
Board upholds denial of wage loss claim for postal clerk's finger injury (ECAB 22-1157)
A postal mail processing clerk injured her right ring finger in a mail sorting machine. OWCP accepted a finger contusion, and she sought compensation for time away from work beginning in August 2021. Her orthopedist reported that she could not work, but the Board found that he had not given a…
Secretary of Labor obo Victor Torres v. W. G. Yates & Sons Construction Company
Secretary of Labor obo Victor Torres v. W. G. Yates & Sons Construction (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0256): Reinstatement granted but tolled
Victor Torres exercised stop-work authority because he believed using a manlift to lower pipe was unsafe, documented the work with photographs, and was laid off three days later. The judge found a nonfrivolous issue as to whether the safety activity played a role in the layoff, so he granted the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC; Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2021-0163): Commission requested briefing on reinstatement finality
The Commission had granted cross-petitions for review in three consolidated proceedings involving Vulcan Construction Materials and miner Jason Hargis. After the parties filed their briefs, the Commission identified an issue they had not addressed. Mine Act section 105(c)(2) refers to a 30-day…
J.L. and U.S. Postal Service, San Francisco Processing and Distribution Center, San Francisco, CA
Board dismisses postal worker's appeal filed five years late (ECAB 23-0794)
A postal worker appealed an OWCP decision issued February 5, 2018. She filed with the Board on May 1, 2023, nearly five years after the 180-day filing deadline. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances explaining the delay. It dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction without…
T.J. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Jacksonville, FL
Board dismisses postal worker's late appeal (ECAB 23-0781)
A postal worker appealed an OWCP decision issued January 18, 2022. He filed with the Board on May 11, 2023, well after the 180-day appeal period. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances explaining the delay. It dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction without reviewing the…
M.A. and U.S. Postal Service, Detroit Processing & Distribution Center, Detroit, MI
Board upholds suspension of postal worker's wage loss benefits (ECAB 23-0297)
A postal worker received wage loss compensation for an accepted shoulder injury. OWCP sent her an EN-1032 form requesting information about earnings and work activity, then warned that failure to return it within 30 days would suspend benefits. The Board found that OWCP mailed the warning to her…
J.F. and Department of Defense, Defense Agencies, U.S. Army Reserve Command, Commissary, Millington, TN
Board orders explanation of Army worker's additional schedule award (ECAB 23-0280)
An Army commissary worker with an accepted right knee injury and replacement surgery sought an additional schedule award. OWCP awarded 25.92 weeks of compensation but did not state the degree of additional permanent impairment. The Board found that omission prevented the worker from understanding…
R.W. and U.S. Postal Service, Charleston Processing & Distribution Center, North Charleston, SC
Board orders specialist review of postal clerk's arthritis claim (ECAB 22-1385)
A postal bulk mail clerk said that years of standing, walking, lifting, and operating equipment worsened arthritis in his hips and knees and a lower back condition. OWCP accepted his work activities but denied the claim for lack of sufficient medical causation evidence. The Board found that a…
J.A. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA
Board upholds denial of late reconsideration in VA worker's injury claim (ECAB 21-0655)
A VA radiology technologist sought compensation for injuries he attributed to assisting a patient during a seizure. OWCP denied the injury claim, and he later asked OWCP to reconsider. His request arrived more than one year after the last merits decision. The Board found that his statement and an…
P.T. and Department of the Army, McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, McAlester, OK
Board upholds denial of Army worker's back injury claim (ECAB 21-0553)
An Army ammunition plant worker reported back pain after repeatedly lifting boxes during an overnight shift. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his injury claim. The worker supplied statements from himself and coworkers describing the shift, but no medical report. The Board held…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1858 and United States Department of the Army, U.S. Army Contracting Command-Redstone, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama
AFGE Local 1858 and Army Contracting Command-Redstone (FLRA 0-AR-5871): Authority dismisses unrecognized exceptions
AFGE Local 1858 filed exceptions to an arbitration award involving Army Contracting Command-Redstone, and the agency opposed them. The Authority selected the matter for an expedited, abbreviated decision. It found that the union's filing did not raise a recognized ground for review under the…
N.M. and U.S. Postal Service, AMC Finance Unit Post Office, Cleveland, OH
Board dismisses late appeal from postal worker's OWCP decision (ECAB 23-0849)
A postal worker appealed an OWCP decision issued July 21, 2022. She filed with the Board on June 5, 2023, after the 180-day appeal period ended in January 2023. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances explaining the delay. It dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction without…
E.W. and U.S. Postal Service, North Houston Processing and Distribution Center, Houston, TX
Board dismisses postal worker's untimely appeal (ECAB 23-0837)
A postal worker appealed an OWCP decision issued May 31, 2022. She filed with the Board on May 28, 2023, after the 180-day appeal period ended in November 2022. The Board found no documented compelling circumstances explaining the delay. It dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction without…
S.F. and Department of the Navy, Naval Yard, Washington, DC
Board upholds denial of Navy worker's shoulder and thumb claim (ECAB 23-0264)
A Navy operations research analyst said carrying work laptops during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic injured both shoulders and her left thumb. OWCP accepted the described activities but denied the claim. The Board found that two physicians diagnosed shoulder conditions without giving causation…
M.K. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Post Office, Dallas, GA
Board orders merits review of postal carrier's benefit termination challenge (ECAB 22-1328)
A postal carrier challenged OWCP's termination of her wage loss and medical benefits after a vehicle accident injury. OWCP refused to reopen her case, calling her arguments repetitive. The Board found that she had made a new and relevant argument about whether the second opinion adequately…
V.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Dallas Bulk Mail Center, Dallas, TX
Board dismisses postal worker's withdrawn appeal (ECAB 22-1253)
A postal worker timely appealed an OWCP decision issued June 16, 2022. She later sent the Board a letter requesting withdrawal. The Board granted that request and dismissed the appeal. The order does not decide the underlying compensation issue.
N.L. and Department of the Treasury, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, Washington, DC
Board upholds denial of intermittent disability claim for Treasury worker (ECAB 22-1001)
A Treasury technical assistant had accepted lumbar radiculopathy and disc displacement after lifting and packing at work. She claimed intermittent wage loss from June through December 2021. The Board found that her surgeon's reports did not give objective findings and a reasoned explanation for…
S.F. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Detroit, MI
Board confirms postal worker's overpayment but orders recalculation (ECAB 22-0740)
A postal clerk received compensation for 32 days of total disability while claiming only intermittent time away from work. The Board agreed that this created an overpayment, but found the record did not explain the number of paid leave and unpaid leave hours used to calculate $3,861.48. It directed…
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2092 and United States Department of Veterans Affairs
AFGE Local 2092 and Department of Veterans Affairs (FLRA 0-AR-5857): Authority upholds compressed-schedule change
The Department of Veterans Affairs rotated a surgical technician's regular day off within her compressed work schedule because of patient needs. An arbitrator found that the agency gave the union advance notice and an opportunity to bargain before the change took effect, satisfying the agreement…
Secretary of Labor v. Marshall County Coal Resources, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Marshall County Coal Resources (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0214): Three-citation settlement approved
The settlement resolved three citations involving a coal feeder whose emergency-stop cable did not work, debris obstructing track clearance in violation of a safeguard, and a missing preshift examination for the same area. The first two penalties were reduced by 43 percent without changing the…
L.H. and U.S. Postal Service, Post Office, Hapeville, GA
Board orders causation review of postal carrier's psychological injury claim (ECAB 23-0326)
A postal carrier reported an attempted armed robbery while working. OWCP accepted that the incident occurred but denied his injury claim, finding no medical diagnosis. The Board found that his psychiatrist had diagnosed major depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. It reversed the denial and…
G.S. and Department of Veterans Affairs, Buffalo VA Medical Center, Buffalo, NY
Board upholds denial of VA worker's recurrence claim (ECAB 23-0056)
A VA medical support assistant with accepted right carpal tunnel syndrome sought wage loss compensation for a later period when she said she could no longer work. OWCP had offered a limited duty screening assignment within her physician's restrictions. The Board found no evidence that the…
J.M. and Department of the Air Force, Maintenance Working Capital Fund, Robins Air Force Base, GA
Board orders review of Air Force worker's unexplained fall (ECAB 22-1387)
An Air Force analyst lost consciousness and fell while moving a box at work. OWCP denied her claim after focusing on whether workplace stress was a compensable factor. The Board found that the medical evidence did not establish a personal medical condition as the cause of the fall. It treated the…
S.P. and Department of the Air Force, Maryland Air National Guard, Andrews Air Force Base, MD
Board upholds denial of late prerecoupment hearing request (ECAB 22-1273)
An Air National Guard worker sought a hearing before OWCP recovered an alleged FECA overpayment. OWCP had mailed its preliminary determination on December 7, 2021, and his hearing request was dated February 18, 2022. The Board found the request untimely under the 30-day rule. It rejected the…
L.D. and U.S. Postal Service, Birmingham Post Office, Birmingham, AL
Board upholds lower extremity schedule award for postal worker (ECAB 22-0927)
A former postal mail handler sought a larger schedule award for impairment linked to an accepted lumbar injury. OWCP awarded an additional 8 percent right lower extremity impairment, bringing that side to 29 percent, but no increase for the left side, previously awarded at 21 percent. The Board…
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.