Date:  July 18, 1995
Case No. 95-STA-31

In the Matter of

GREGORY C. WIDMER,
     Complainant

 v.

UNITED PARCEL SERVICE, INC.,
     Respondent

       ORDER APPROVING SETTLEMENT AND DISMISSING COMPLAINT

     I have reviewed the proposed settlement in this matter and,
with the limitations noted below, I approve it as being fair,
adequate and reasonable. 

     1.  The settlement purports to release the parties from
claims arising under authorities other than the Surface Transpor-
tation Assistance Act ("STAA").  (Pars. 1, 2, 4, 6, 7).  The
Department of Labor's jurisdiction here extends only to Mr.
Widmer's STAA claim and to remedies for violations of the STAA. 
Review of the settlement is therefore confined to a determination
of whether the terms of the agreement within the scope of the
Secretary's authority are fair, adequate, and reasonable.  To the
extent that such other provisions regarding release of liability
constitute a private agreement among the parties, they would have
to be enforced contractually under state law in the appropriate
court, rather than by the Department of Labor.  See
Brodeur v. Westinghouse Hanford Co., 92-SWD-3 (Sec'y Oct.
16, 1992); Poulos v. Ambassador Fuel Oil Co., Inc., 86-
CAA-1 (Sec'y Nov. 2, 1987).  
     2.  The settlement also includes a confidentiality provision
at paragraph 5.  Such a provision, which appears to be a broad
prohibition of disclosure under all circumstances, will be inter-
preted by the Secretary as not restricting disclosure of the
terms of the agreement where required by law.
Rondinelli v. Consolidated Edison Co. of New York,
Inc., 91-CAA-3, slip op. at 2. (Sec'y Apr. 10, 1992). The
parties are advised that the Department of Labor is subject to
the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 552, and
may therefore be required to disclose the settlement if so
requested.  Once a settlement agreement has 
[PAGE 2]
been submitted for approval, as here, it becomes a part of the
agency record in the case.  The FOIA requires federal agencies,
if requested, to disclose documents which are part of agency
records unless they are exempt from disclosure under one of the
specific exemptions in the Act.     

     Under the Department of Labor regulations implementing the
FOIA at 29 CFR Part 70, the parties may receive pre-disclosure
notification of documents requested under the FOIA in the case of
any specific information in the settlement agreement that they
designate as confidential commercial information pursuant to 20
C.F.R. §70.26.  If an FOIA request for such information is
received, the parties will be notified promptly, given a reason-
able period of time to present objections to disclosure, and
given notification of the decision to disclose or of any lawsuit
filed against the Department on a decision not to disclose.   
See, e.g., Porter v. Brown & Root, Inc., 91-
ERA-4 (Sec'y Feb. 25, 1994);  Richter v. Baldwin
Associates, 84-ERA-9 (Sec'y Feb. 22, 1994; DeBose v.
Carolina Power & Light Co., 92-ERA-14 (Sec'y Feb. 7, 1994);
McCuistion v. Tennessee Valley Authority, 90-ERA-44 (Sec'y
Aug. 31, 1992).  

                                   ORDER

     The settlement in this case is hereby approved, with the
exceptions noted above, and the case is dismissed with prejudice.

     
                              
                              ________________________________
                              EDITH BARNETT
                              Administrative Law judge

5708
EB: bdw
Washington, D.C.