American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1917 (Union) and United States, Department of Homeland Security, United States, Customs and Border Patrol, Jamaica, New York (Agency) (Authority decision, January 14, 2005)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority denies the union's exception to an arbitration award. 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 address an unfair labor practice.

Plain-English summary

AFGE Local 1917 challenged an arbitration award involving a Customs and Border Patrol office in Jamaica, New York. The Authority's short decision does not describe the underlying grievance or the arbitrator's ruling. It found no basis to set aside the award under the union's exception and denied it. The Authority cited its rule that an award is not deficient as based on a nonfact when the challenged fact was disputed at arbitration or the exception does not show a clearly erroneous central fact that would change the result.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a).
• Outcome: Union's exception denied; arbitration award left in place.
• Key point: The Authority found the union's challenge insufficient under the statutory grounds for setting aside an award.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v60
p571 ]

60 FLRA No. 113

AMERICAN FEDERATION

OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

LOCAL 1917

(Union)

and

UNITED STATES

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY, UNITED STATES

CUSTOMS AND BORDER PATROL

JAMAICA, NEW YORK

(Agency)

0-AR-3906

_____

DECISION

January 14, 2005

_____

Before the Authority: Dale Cabaniss, Chairman, and

Carol Waller Pope and Tony Armendariz, Members

This matter is before the Authority on an exception to an award of Arbitrator John M. Donoghue filed by the Union under § 7122(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (the Statute) and part 2425 of the Authority's Regulations. The Agency filed an opposition to the Union's exception.

Under § 7122(a) of the Statute, an award is deficient if it is contrary to any law, rule, or regulation; or it is deficient on other grounds similar to those applied by federal courts in private sector labor-management relations. Upon careful consideration of the entire record in this case, and Authority precedent, the Authority concludes that the award is not deficient on the grounds raised in the exception and set forth in § 7122(a). See United States Dep't of the Air Force, Lowry Air Force Base, Denver, Colo., 48 FLRA 589, 593-94 (1993) (award not deficient as based on a nonfact where excepting party either challenges a factual matter that the parties disputed at arbitration or fails to demonstrate that the central fact underlying the award is clearly erroneous, but for which a different result would have been reached by the arbitrator).

Accordingly, the Union's exception is denied.