Office of Hearings and Appeals, Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1760, AFL-CIO (Authority decision, September 15, 1987)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority denies the union's exception and leaves in place an arbitration award reducing a hearing assistant's suspension from five days to one day. Under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a)(1), an order involving an arbitral award is generally excluded from judicial review unless it involves an unfair labor practice under 5 U.S.C. § 7116. This decision does not decide an unfair labor practice.

Plain-English summary

A Social Security hearing assistant refused to accept a reprimand notice and another document without a union representative present. The agency suspended her for five days. The arbitrator found insubordination but no abusive or disruptive conduct, and reduced the suspension to one day. AFGE Local 1760 challenged the legal standard and the award's reading of the agreement. The Authority found no established legal defect or other basis to set aside the award and denied the exception.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Arbitration exceptions under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a).
• Outcome: Union's exception denied; one-day suspension award left in place.
• Key point: The union's disagreement with the arbitrator's standard, findings, and remedy did not establish a deficient award.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v28 p967 ]
28:0967(125)AR

The decision of the Authority follows:

28 FLRA NO. 125

OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS
SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

Activity

and

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, LOCAL 1760, AFL-CIO

Union

Case No. 0-AR-1399

DECISION

I. Statement of the Case

This matter is before the Authority on an exception to the award of Arbitrator Leonard Irsay filed by the Union under section 7122(a) of the Federal Service Labor - Management Relations Statute (the Statute) and part 2425 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations. The Social Security Administration filed an opposition. For the reasons stated below, the Union's exception is denied.

II. Background and Arbitrator's Award

The grievant is a hearing assistant in the Office of Hearings and Appeals of the Social Security Administration. She was suspended for 5 days for unacceptable behavior and insubordination after refusing to accept a reprimand notice and another document without her union representative present. The Arbitrator framed the issue before him as whether the grievant's suspension was for just cause and if not, what should be the remedy.

The Arbitrator found that the grievant was insubordinate in refusing to comply with the supervisor's clear and proper order. The Arbitrator also found, however, that there was no evidence that the grievant was either abusive or disruptive. After consideration of the evidence and the arguments, the Arbitrator concluded that the Agency had just cause to discipline the grievant, but he reduced the suspension from 5 days to 1 day.

III. Discussion

As its exception, the Union contends that the award violates law, regulation or contract, and that it fails to draw its essence from the parties' collective bargaining agreement. The Union argues, among other things, that the Arbitrator used an improper standard in determining whether to sustain the grievance. The Agency contends that the exception merely argues with the Arbitrator's reasoning.

We conclude that the Union has failed to establish that the Arbitrator's award is deficient on any of the grounds set forth in section 7122(a) of the Statute; that is, that the award is contrary to any law, rule, or regulation or that the award is deficient on other grounds similar to those applied by Federal courts in private sector labor relations cases. See, for example, Bureau of Indian Affairs and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 243, 25 FLRA No. 74 (1987) (unless a specific standard of proof is required, an arbitrator may establish whatever standard the arbitrator considers appropriate); Air Force Space Division, Los Angeles Air Force Station, California and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL - CIO, Local 2429, 24 FLRA No. 58 (1986) (the exception disagreed with the arbitrator's formulation of the issues submitted and with the arbitrator's fashioning of a remedy and provided no basis for finding the award deficient); and Federal Correctional Institution, Petersburg, Virginia and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2052, Petersburg, Virginia, 13 FLRA 108 (1983) (exceptions, which merely attempt to relitigate the merits of the case before the Authority and constitute nothing more than disagreement with the arbitrator's findings of fact, his reasoning and conclusions, and his interpretation and application of the parties' agreement, provide no basis for finding the award deficient).

Accordingly, the Union's exception is denied.

Issued, Washington, D.C., September 15, 1987.

Jerry L. Calhoun, Chairman

Henry B. Frazier III, Member

Jean McKee, Member

FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY