that these are the bargaining sessions and that if we need more, we can agree mutually to have more; but I didnt want anybody to think that we were agreeing to just have two opening sessions . 13, 15. Mediation is, without a doubt, a form of bargaining. (c) In any like or related manner, interfering with, restraining, or coercing bargaining unit employees in the exercise of the rights assured them by the Statute. For all of the above reasons, the Agency failed to bargain in good faith and violated 7116(a)(1) and (5) of the Statute. While the NLRA governs labor relations for most private sector employers, it specifically excludes employers covered under the Railway Labor Act ("RLA") the earlier federal statute enacted to avoid interruptions to interstate commerce and transportation via rail or air. The Federal Labor Relations Authority has found that the National Labor Relations Board violated the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (the Statute), and has ordered us to post and abide by this notice: WE WILL NOT terminate bargaining over the relocation of our headquarters offices in Washington, D.C., prior to reaching an agreement or prior to reaching an impasse with the National Labor Relations Board Union (the Union). FLRA vs. NLRB. I believe that by deleting the word initial from the Unions draft language of paragraph 2, Jones intended to phrase the ground rules to suggest a fixed period for bargaining, but there is no evidence that this point was actually discussed by the parties during the negotiation of the ground rules. Jones responded to Durkins request on February 10, providing a timeline for the move and floor plans of the Franklin Court building. And hiring an attorney who dabbles can lead to bad outcomes. The judge and the Authority rejected this theory and held that while it might be desirable from the Unions viewpoint to be a participant in the, decision-making process at an earlier stage, it is difficult to envision an obligation on SSAs part . that the Agency had had the drawings for a month at that point in time. Tr. FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY OALJ 16-16 Office of Administrative Law Judges WASHINGTON, D.C. 20424. 418. 85-88; GC Ex. The Agency found significant problems with the architects early floor plans, which left the Agency with inadequate space to accommodate all of our requirements and forced the Agency to go back to GSA and obtain authorization to rent an additional 8,000 square feet of space at Half Street. When some alternative features were suggested, he said, no, weve tried that . Asked why the Agency rejected the Unions counterproposals, when those counterproposals largely accepted Agency positions, Jones stated: We werent going to start bargaining piecemeal, at least not at that point. Synopsis of Rule of Law. During this period, Agency officials were negotiating with the architects how much space each division of the Agency needed, how large the offices and cubicles could be, and other meaningful design issues. . encompassed in those proposals. Tr. 425. The list of these laws is long and growing. . Br. . The Board is supported by a General Counsel, who is also nominated by the President of the United States, with the advice and consent of the Senate, for a term of five years. Finally, a nationwide posting will emphasize to employees that the agency that enforces labor laws in the private sector must itself comply with labor laws in the public sector. GC Ex. However, Lennie indicated that the Agency would look into seeing whether they could find additional space for more stalls. 100-01, 230-31. What Is a Right-to-Work Law, and How Does It Work? The Federal Labor Relations Authority ( FLRA) is an independent agency of the United States government that governs labor relations between the federal government and its employees . 324. 104. full proposals. some of the areas [of] discussions that we had with the Union, such as the Unions suggestion to have a second nursing room. GC Ex. Br, (2) the Unions proposals were focused almost entirely on the maintenance of the size of current office space and configuration[,] the Agency rejected the Unions space proposals, the Union did not retreat from its position on maintaining current size and configuration of office space in its partial counter, and the Agency rejected the Unions counterproposals (. I certainly if we had agreed to stay late and continue the bargaining into Thursday evening and we had been making progress, if progress had been made on Thursday evening, I certainly had the authority to say to them book another night in your hotel; lets pick up on Friday; change your airline tickets to fly back on Saturday. GC Ex. 401. Durkin and Nixon asked more questions, most of them directed at Graham, regarding changes that could be made to the drawings. In accordance with directives from the General Services Administration (GSA), the Agency was authorized to lease no more than 155,000 rentable square feet of office space, nearly a 40% reduction from the 247,219 square feet it leased at Franklin Court. Employment Laws 2; Tr. An allegation of a procedural infirmity will not be heard outside of the statute of limitations period. She has conducted in-depth research on social and economic issues and has also revised and edited educational materials for the Greater Richmond area. GCExs. . 29, 30. 105. Daniel Liberto is a journalist with over 10 years of experience working with publications such as the Financial Times, The Independent, and Investors Chronicle. Jones, by contrast, testified that the parties reached impasse on April 24, [w]hen the Union got up and walked out. Tr. Monday, January 13, 2020. Some of the drawings were dated April 9 (GC Ex. . 236. On its 80th anniversary, celebrated in 2015, the NLRB reported that more than 90% of the cases it receives are dealt with by its regional offices without requiring the board to intervene with formal litigation. Larry Sutton, the GSA representative on the project, spoke next. 34. 53-54. This individual is appointed by the president for a four-year term and functions independently from the board. . . GC Ex. Jones replied that the design plans were the Agencys proposals. 409; This evidence shows that there was a significant period of time prior to April 14 in which the Agency was able to make meaningful changes in the size and configuration of the office space at Half Street. Effective Friday July 31, 2020, the agency now extends the prohibition on in-person filings indefinitely. A labor union is an organization that represents the collective interests of workers in negotiations with employers. 30 at 3 & 32 at 1-2. Tr. . They had just a few of the drawings. Tr. The Agency refused to continue bargaining not because the parties had reached impasse, but because the agency believed it had satisfied its duty to bargain, a position I have already rejected. . The document began, The Union has not had sufficient time to create a complete counterproposal to the Agencys counterproposal of 4/24/14. The court has distinguished three types of challenges on appeal. . A conference call discussing furniture issues was conducted on that date, although the Union told Jones it did not consider the discussion to satisfy the Agencys statutory duty to bargain. GC Ex. . In determining whether a party has fulfilled its bargaining responsibilities, the Authority considers the totality of the circumstances of the case. [W]hen a respondent claims as a defense to an alleged unfair labor practice that a specific provision of the parties collective bargaining agreement permitted its actions alleged to constitute an unfair labor practice, the Authority, including its administrative law judges, will determine the meaning of the parties collective bargaining agreement and will resolve the unfair labor practice complaint accordingly. The primary responsibilities of the FLRA are to: Resolve complaints of unfair labor practices (ULPs). The Union declined to stay beyond 6:30 p.m., and the Agency declared that negotiations were terminated. . Brief Fact Summary. Other labor laws of note are the Railway Labor Act (RLA), the Federal Labor Relations Act (FLRA), as well as state labor laws that govern bargaining rights of state employees. Also, Jones acknowledged that [t]here wasnt a deadline on furniture for May 9th. Tr. The Union caucused briefly to consider what to do next. The parties had only begun to discuss the many issues on the table, neither side had submitted a full range of counterproposals, and the Agency inexplicably refused even to attempt mediation. On May 19, 2014, the National Labor Relations Board Union (the Union or NLRBU) filed a ULP charge against the National Labor Relations Board (the Agency, NLRB or Respondent). for commenting on the design drawings for Half Street. 472. Bargaining on Thursday, April 24, began with Jones and other members of the Agency team giving their initial reactions to most of the Unions forty-one proposals. Ex. Tr. Tr. 11 at 1. . 13. The Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) is an independent agency of the United States government that governs labor relations between the federal government and its employees. 23. 25. . 24. In its opening statement at the hearing, Respondents counsel similarly asserted that it had no further bargaining obligations regarding the relocation after it bargained on April 23 and 24. And we expressed those things in our response back to him as to why we werent going to stay longer that night with [no] reasonable expectation of concluding all bargaining. Starting in January and continuing through (and beyond) April, Agency officials engaged in extensive discussions with GSA, the new landlord, and the architects regarding the amount of space it would occupy in the new building, and the configuration of that space, and the Agency consciously froze the Union out of this process entirely. The FLRA claimed that judicial review was barred by the sixty day statute of limitations. By specifying the dates on which negotiations would occur, and by eliminating language proposed by the Union that referred to the sessions as initial bargaining, this language suggests that these were the only two days on which bargaining was required, and that further bargaining would be scheduled only by mutual consent. Find historical decisions ofthe Assistant Secretary of Labor for Labor-Management Relations and the Federal Labor Relations Council, as well as Foreign Service Labor Relations Board decisions. With regard to the dates for bargaining, Durkin testified that the ground rules agreement went into detail concerning face-to-face bargaining, but not concerning other types of bargaining such as by email or teleconference. The Union team then met up with the remainder of the Agencys bargaining team. On February 5, Luther emailed Jones the Unions request to bargain over the relocation. In order to evaluate this defense, I consider the meaning of the ground rules agreement, using the standards and principles of interpreting agreements applied by arbitrators and the federal courts. . Issue. Labor Union: Definition, History, and Examples. 326-27. 36 at 1; On May 6, the Union submitted an information request asking for information about the size and type of workspace each employee had at Franklin Court, and the size of building space at Franklin Court not specifically assigned as personal workspace, among other things. The FLRA initially decided that disclosure was "prohibited by law" under 7114 (b) (4). The Union asked to submit its remaining counterproposals the following week, and to resume bargaining thereafter, since it had not had time to prepare a response on all issues. Finally, a petitioners contention that the challenged regulation should be amended or rescinded because it conflicts from the statute from which its authority derives is reviewable outside the statutory limitations period. to meet at reasonable times and to consult and bargain in a good-faith effort to reach agreement with respect to the conditions of employment . Tr. . As for who should sign the notice, the Authority typically directs the posting of a notice to be signed by the highest official of the activity responsible for the violation. Harry Jones, Assistant General Counsel for Labor and Employee Relations, represented management during the move. The FLRA's New and Improved eFiling System provides the federal-sector labor-management community with a convenient, user-friendlyway to electronically submit case filings. Tr. GC Ex. . Half Street. 6. These include the Agencys refusal to furnish necessary information to the Union prior to April 23 and delaying the start of bargaining until many of the most significant decisions affecting the size and configuration of the new headquarters offices had been made. The Union offered to submit a counterproposal on the remaining issues by April 30, and it requested that bargaining continue, using all technological means at the parties disposal, including telephone and videoconferences, in addition to face-to-face meetings. GSA approved the increase, and the architects revised their drawings accordingly. When the National Labor Relations Board announced that it would be moving its headquarters to a new building in a different part of the District of Columbia, the National Labor Relations Board Union asked to bargain over the relocation, and the parties ultimately signed a ground rules agreement providing for two days of bargaining. bargaining sessions on April 23 and 24, and it further provided that [b]y mutual agreement, the parties may agree to additional dates for face-to-face bargaining. GC Ex. 1(c). GC Ex. 39. In the proposed ground rules, the Union called for an initial bargaining session. Jones first stated that he still did not have the drawings, and he recommended that the bargaining sessions scheduled for the following week be postponed. Br. On December 23, Jones sent Woodcock an email, offering one additional bargaining session in January in an attempt to resolve all outstanding issues related to the headquarters relocation. GC Ex. 135, 429; GC Ex. The Authority has defined impasse as that point in negotiations at which the parties are unable to reach agreement.. The Union stands ready and willing to continue good faith bargaining regarding the HQ relocation at mutually agreeable future times and dates. 468-71; Upon receiving the Agencys counterproposals, the Union team caucused to prepare its own response. Additionally, the evidence conclusively demonstrates that the parties had not reached impasse. at 12, 14. 52. Were moving from [Franklin Court] to . . The architects finalized design intent drawings in August. The Respondent argues that its actions were justified, given the fact that it was under pressure to give the architects comments on the preliminary drawings by May 9. Similarly, the Respondent cannot blame GSA for its unlawful bargaining. Which Jobs and Sectors Are Not Protected by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)? Between April 29 and May 12, Union officials attempted to initiate mediation of the dispute with the FMCS. Ex. By mutual agreement, the parties may agree to additional dates for face-to-face bargaining. to be incorporated into the final Design Intent Drawings by May 9. In sum, the parties could have engaged in productive discussions over the Unions proposals after April 24. The boards job is to determine whether labor violations have occurred, while the general counsel acts as a supervisor and prosecutor. The Taft-Hartley Act is a 1947 federal law that limits the activities and power of labor unions. Jones added that the DID process should have started approximately three weeks ago. GC Ex. On May 19, the Union filed the ULP charge. Where they mainly differ is in the portion of the workforce they serve. . In response to an inquiry about the Unions recent information request, Jones told the Union team: Once again, I want to make our position clear that we have fulfilled our obligation to bargain over the effects of the headquarters relocation under both the Statute and the ground rules agreement. But the Agency would not defer bargaining about furniture to a later time, as that would be like buying a pig in a poke. Tr. Third, the Agency failed to respond in writing to all of the Unions proposals, including the Unions proposal on furniture (Proposal 36). We had bargained all day. Durkin (along with Nixon and later Luther) responded, [N]o, the Agency has to continue bargaining. Every Bundle includes the complete text from each of the titles below: PLUS: Hundreds of law school topic-related videos from The Authority has held on a number of occasions that after an agency has unilaterally implemented changes in conditions of employment, subsequent offers to bargain over the changes do not cure the statutory violation, and post-implementation actions are irrelevant. . Ex. 162, 250, 285-86, 349-52, 474, 477; GC Ex. Jones replied that same day, conceding that the process has fallen slightly behind schedule.. 105, 233. The parties discussed the number of stalls needed in the mens and womens restrooms (Union Proposal 31), and the Union team argued the Agencys floor plan was grossly inadequate. The NLRB covers most of the private sector. Nonetheless, their disagreement about the meaning of paragraph 2 of the ground rules agreement became evident almost immediately. This is just one of a series of examples of the kind of power that the NLRB possesses. Former President Barack Obama once claimed that this move saved baseball.. The FLRA is the federal public sector counterpart to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which governs labor relations between private sector employees and employers. 126. The Union asserted that its tentative agreement to the counterproposals does not limit or waive the Unions right to submit proposals and/or counterproposals, and to engage in bargaining regarding headquarters relocation. This is especially true for proposals calling for future bargaining over specific issues, such as furniture (Proposal 36), boxes for moving personal items (Proposal37), and commuting grace periods (Proposal 37).