American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2004 and New Cumberland Army Depot (Authority decision, December 19, 1986)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority dismisses the Army depot's exceptions to an arbitration award because they reached its national office one day after the filing deadline. Section 7123(a)(1) excludes Authority orders involving arbitration awards from its ordinary 60-day judicial-review provision unless the order involves an unfair labor practice under § 7118; this decision does not decide one.

Plain-English summary

New Cumberland Army Depot filed exceptions to an arbitration award dated October 22, 1986. The Authority calculated that the exceptions had to reach its national office by November 25. They arrived November 26. The Authority dismissed the exceptions as untimely without addressing the arbitration award's merits.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Arbitration exceptions deadline under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(b) and 5 C.F.R. § 2425.1.
• Outcome: Exceptions dismissed as untimely.
• Key point: Filing occurred when the national office received the exceptions, one day after the deadline.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v24 p680 ]

24:0680(70)AR

The decision of the Authority follows:

24 FLRA No. 70

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, AFL-CIO, LOCAL 2004
Union

and

NEW CUMBERLAND ARMY DEPOT
Activity

Case No. 0-AR-1270

ORDER DISMISSING EXCEPTIONS

This case is before the Authority on exceptions to the award of Arbitrator Walter J. Gershenfeld filed by the Activity pursuant to section 7122(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute and section 2425.1 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations. For the reason stated below, it has been determined that the exceptions must be dismissed as untimely filed.

The Arbitrator's award is dated October 22, 1986, and, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, appears to have been served on the parties by mail on the same day.

Under section 7122(b) of the Statute, as amended, /1/ and section 2425.1 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, as amended, /2/ which amendments are applicable to exceptions pending or filed with the Authority on or after March 2, 1984, and under sections 2429.21 and 2429.22 of the Rules and Regulations, which are also applicable to computation of the time limit here involved, any exceptions to the Arbitrator's award in this case had to be filed, that is, received in the national office of the Authority not later than the close of business on November 25, 1986. However, the exceptions were not filed with the Authority at its national office in Washington, D.C., until November 26, 1986.

Accordingly, as the Activity's exceptions were untimely filed, they are hereby dismissed.

For the Authority.

Issued, Washington, D.C., December 19, 1986.
/s/ Harold D. Kessler
Director of Case Management

--------------- FOOTNOTES$ ---------------

(1) Section 7122(b) of the Statute was amended by the Civil Service Miscellaneous Amendments Act of 1983 (Pub. L. No. 98-224, Section 4, 98 Stat. 47, 48 (1984)) to provide that the 30-day period for filing exceptions to an arbitrator's award begins on the date the award is served on the filing party.

(2) 49 Fed. Reg. 22623 (1984).