American Federation of Government Employees, General Committee and Department of Health and Human Services, Social Security Administration (Authority decision, May 25, 1988)

FLRA interlocutory decision. The Authority denies the union's request to stay an arbitration hearing while a separate arbitrator-jurisdiction issue is resolved. The underlying arbitration remains pending, so this decision does not present the judicial-review provisions or arbitration exclusion in 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a) as finally determined.

Plain-English summary

AFGE challenged Arbitrator Charles J. Morris's refusal to postpone an arbitration hearing while a jurisdiction issue involving another arbitrator was resolved. The Social Security Administration opposed the request, arguing that it was premature and unrelated to that other case. The Authority said its rules ordinarily prevent review of an arbitrator's preliminary ruling before a final award. It found no extraordinary circumstances and denied the request to stay the hearing. The order does not resolve the underlying arbitration.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Interlocutory review under 5 C.F.R. § 2429.11.
• Outcome: Hearing stay denied; arbitration continues.
• Key point: The union had not shown extraordinary circumstances for immediate review of the preliminary ruling.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v32 p173 ]
32:0173(27)AR

The decision of the Authority follows:

32 FLRA No. 27

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

BEFORE THE

FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT

EMPLOYEES, GENERAL COMMITTEE

Union

and

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

Agency

Case No. 0-AR-1518

ORDER

On March 9, 1988, the Union filed an exception to Arbitrator Charles J. Morris' decision to deny the Union's request to stay the arbitration hearing in this case. The Union asserts that the arbitration hearing should be stayed until the issue concerning the jurisdiction of Arbitrator Justin C. Smith is resolved pursuant to the Authority's Order in Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, 29 FLRA 1568 (1987), reconsideration denied, 30 FLRA 371 (1987). The Agency opposes the Union's request. The Agency asserts that the request should be denied because it (1) is interlocutory, (2) presents no grounds for Authority review under section 7122(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, and (3) is factually incorrect because the issue to be resolved in this case is not related to the issues involved in Social Security Administration.

The Union requests permission to file an interlocutory appeal. An interlocutory appeal concerns a ruling which is preliminary to final disposition of a matter. Section 2429.11 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations provides that the Authority "ordinarily will not consider interlocutory appeals." In an arbitration case, this means that the Authority ordinarily will not consider an appeal of an Arbitrator's ruling until the Arbitrator has issued a final decision.

The Union has not shown that there are extraordinary circumstances which warrant a departure from our normal practice. Therefore, we deny the Union's request that the Arbitration hearing be stayed.

Issued, Washington, D.C.,

__________
Jerry L. Calhoun,
Chairman
Jean McKee, Member

FOOTNOTES:
(If blank, the decision does not
have footnotes.)