Yellow Freight System v. Martin

Yellow Freight (plaintiff/petitioner) suspended and eventually fired truck driver Moyer after a series of incidents, including his testifying for a coworker at a grievance hearing. Moyer filed a Department of Labor complaint alleging retaliatory discharge for refusing to drive after an injury, in violation of section 405(b) of the Surface Transportation Assistance Act. OSHA investigated only the section 405(b) theory and found no violation. At the ensuing hearing, Moyer testified he might also have been fired for his grievance-hearing testimony — a distinct section 405(a) retaliation theory — but Yellow Freight, notified only of the section 405(b) issue, never litigated section 405(a) at the hearing. The Secretary of Labor ultimately found no section 405(b) violation but ruled, for the first time, that Yellow Freight had violated section 405(a).

Whether procedural due process is satisfied if a party charged in an administrative proceeding does not receive notice and an opportunity to be heard regarding the conduct at issue.