U.S. Department of the Navy, Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, Texas and National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 797 (Authority decision, May 25, 1990)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority dismissed the union's arbitration exceptions as untimely under its filing rules. The arbitration award remains in place. Judicial review under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a) generally does not extend to an order involving an arbitral award unless the order involves an unfair labor practice under 5 U.S.C. § 7116.

Plain-English summary

NFFE Local 797 mailed exceptions to an arbitration award from Naval Air Station Corpus Christi. The envelope had no postmark, and the Authority received it on May 11, 1990. Even using the later award mailing date asserted by the union, the filing deadline was April 30. Under the Authority's rules, an unpostmarked mailing was presumed sent five days before receipt, making the exceptions late. The Authority dismissed them without considering the arbitration dispute.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Former 5 C.F.R. §§ 2425.1(b), 2429.21(b), 2429.22, and 2429.23(d).
• Outcome: Union exceptions dismissed as untimely.
• Key point: Without a postmark or other permitted proof of timely mailing, the filing was presumed sent five days before the Authority received it.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v35 p1161 ]
35:1161(128)AR

The decision of the Authority follows:

35 FLRA NO. 128

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

NAVAL AIR STATION

CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS

(Agency)

and

NATIONAL
FEDERATION OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

(LOCAL 797)

(Union)

0-AR-1924

ORDER DISMISSING EXCEPTIONS

May 25, 1990

The Union has filed exceptions to the award of
Arbitrator Raymond

L. Britton in the above-captioned case. The Union's exceptions

are untimely and must be dismissed.

The time limit for filing exceptions to an
arbitration award

is 30 days beginning on the date the award is served on the

filing party. 5 C.F.R. 2425.1(b). The date of service is the date

the arbitration award is deposited in the U.S. mail or is

delivered in person. 5 C.F.R. 2429.27(d). Absent evidence to the

contrary, the date of the arbitration award is presumed to be the

date of service of the award. See Oklahoma City Air Logistics

Center. Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma and American Federation

of Government Employees, Local No. 916, 32 FLRA 165, 167 (1988).

If the award is served by mail, 5 days are added to the period

for filing exceptions to the award. 5 C.F.R. 2429.22. The time

limit may not be extended or waived by the Authority. 5 C.F.R.

2429.23(d). All documents filed with the Authority must be filed

in the Authority's Docket Room, 500 C Street, SW., Washington,

D.C. 20424. 5 C.F.R. 2429.24(a).

The Arbitrator's award is dated March 17, 1990.
Presuming

that the award was deposited in the U.S. mail on that date, an

exception to the award had to be either postmarked by the U.S.

Postal Service or received in person at the Authority's

Docket Room no later than April 23, 1990, in order to be

considered timely filed. 5 C.F.R. 2425.1(b), 2429.21(b) and

2429.22. Even assuming, as the Union asserts, that the award was

deposited in the U.S. mail on March 24, 1990, an exception to the

award had to be either postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service or

received in person at the Authority's Docket Room no later than

April 30, 1990, in order to be considered timely filed.

Although the Union's exceptions were mailed to the

Authority, the envelope in which the exceptions were mailed has

no postmark. The exceptions were received by the Authority on May

11, 1990. Because there is no postmark date on the envelope

containing the Union's exceptions, it is presumed that the

exceptions were mailed May 6, 1990--5 days prior to receipt by

the Authority. 5 C.F.R. 2429.21(b). See Veterans Administration,

Veterans Administration Medical Center, Muskogee, Oklahoma, 29

FLRA 51 (1987).

Accordingly, as the Union's exceptions were not
filed in the

Authority's Docket Room within the prescribed time limit, */
the

Union's exceptions are dismissed as untimely filed.

For the Authority.

Alicia N. Columna

Director, Case Control Office

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

Footnote */ If the Union had sent its exceptions by
certified

mail, the Authority would have given the Union an opportunity

to submit a postmarked certified mail receipt to show that its

exceptions were filed timely. See United States Marine Corps,

Marine Corps Base, Camp Smedley D. Butler, Okinawa, Japan, 29

FLRA 1068, 1068 at n.1 (1987).