United States Customs Service and National Treasury Employees Union (Authority decision, March 8, 1983)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority dismissed exceptions to an arbitration award as untimely. Judicial review of an arbitration order is generally excluded by 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a)(1) unless it involves an unfair labor practice under § 7118. This order does not address an unfair labor practice.

Plain-English summary

The Customs Service challenged an arbitration award dated January 24, 1983. Its exceptions reached the Authority on February 23, one day after the filing deadline. The Authority said its rules did not allow it to extend or waive that deadline. It dismissed the exceptions without reviewing the award's merits.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Arbitration exceptions filing deadline under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(b) and 5 C.F.R. §§ 2425.1, 2429.21, 2429.23(d).
• Outcome: Agency exceptions dismissed as untimely; award merits not reached.
• Key point: The Authority could not extend the deadline for filing exceptions to an arbitration award.

Full text (FLRA public release)

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11:0503(87)AR

The decision of the Authority follows:

11 FLRA NO. 87

UNITED STATES CUSTOMS SERVICE

(Agency)

and

NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION

(Union)

Case No. 0-AR-516

ORDER DISMISSING EXCEPTIONS

This case is before the Authority on exceptions to the award of Arbitrator Jerome S. Rubenstein filed by the Agency pursuant to section 7122(a) of the Federal Service Labor - Management Relations Statute and section 2425.1 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations. For the reasons stated below, it has been determined that the Agency's exceptions must be dismissed as untimely filed.

Under section 7122(b) of the Statute and section 2425.1 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, the time limit for filing an exception to an arbitration award is 30 days beginning on and including the date of the award. Additionally, under section 2429.21 of the Rules and Regulations, any such exception must be received by the Authority before the close of business on the last day of the prescribed time limit.

The arbitrator's award in this case, as included in the Agency's submission, is dated January 24, 1983. Therefore, under the Statute and the Authority's Rules and Regulations, the Agency's exceptions had to be filed, i.e., received in the National Office of the Authority, no later than the close of business on February 22, 1983. However, the exceptions were not filed until February 23, 1983. In that regard, and as provided in section 2429.23(d) of the Rules and Regulations, the time limit for filing exceptions to an arbitration award may not be extended or waived by the Authority. [ v11 p503 ]

Accordingly, as the Agency's exceptions were untimely filed, they are hereby dismissed.

For the Authority.

Issued, Washington, D.C., March 8, 1983

James J. Shepard, Executive Director

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