American Federation of Government Employees, Local 2437 (Union) and United States Department of Veterans Affairs, North Texas Health Care System, Medical Center, Dallas, Texas (Agency) (Authority decision, August 20, 2010)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority denies the union's exceptions 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 identify an unfair labor practice issue.

Plain-English summary

AFGE Local 2437 challenged an arbitration award involving the Dallas VA Medical Center. The Authority denied the exceptions because the union did not establish a permissible basis to overturn the arbitrator's procedural arbitrability ruling and did not identify the law its contrary-to-law claim relied on. The brief decision does not describe the underlying grievance, the procedural deadline or rule, or the arbitrator's remedy. The award remains in place.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: 5 U.S.C. § 7122(a)
• Outcome: Union exceptions denied; arbitration award remains in place.
• Key point: A procedural arbitrability ruling was not overturned by a direct challenge or an unspecified legal claim.

Full text (FLRA public release)

65 FLRA No. 1

FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

_____

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

LOCAL 2437

(Union)

and

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

NORTH TEXAS HEALTH CARE SYSTEM

MEDICAL CENTER

DALLAS, TEXAS

(Agency)

0-AR-4664

_____

DECISION

August 20, 2010

_____

Before the Authority: Carol Waller Pope, Chairman, and

Thomas M. Beck and Ernest DuBester, Members

This matter is before the Authority on exceptions to an award of Arbitrator Barry E. Shapiro 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 exceptions.

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 exceptions and set forth in § 7122(a). See AFGE, Local 2921, 50 FLRA 184, 185-86 (1995) (arbitrator’s determination of the procedural arbitrability of a grievance is subject to challenge only on grounds other than those that directly challenge the procedural arbitrability determination); AFGE, Local 1840, 45 FLRA 497, 499 (1992) (award not deficient as contrary to law where excepting party fails to specify law on which the party relies).

Accordingly, the Union’s exceptions are denied.