National Federation of Federal Employees, Local 1214 and U.S. Army Training Center, Fort Jackson, South Carolina (Authority decision, March 10, 1983)

Final FLRA decision. The Authority resolved the union's negotiability petition. An aggrieved person may seek judicial review of this final order in an appropriate United States court of appeals within 60 days after issuance under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a). A petition does not itself stay the order.

Plain-English summary

The Army planned to have instructors at Fort Jackson teach both typing and academic or clerical subjects. The union proposed making the change through attrition, leaving current instructors on their existing subjects and applying combined duties only to new hires. The Authority held that this would prevent management from changing current employees' assignments. It found the proposal outside the duty to bargain and dismissed the petition.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Management work assignment right under 5 U.S.C. § 7106(a)(2)(B).
• Outcome: Agency's nonnegotiability position sustained; petition dismissed.
• Key point: An attrition rule would bar reassignment of existing instructors.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v11 p580 ]
11:0580(95)NG

The decision of the Authority follows:

11 FLRA NO. 95

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF FEDERAL
EMPLOYEES, LOCAL 1214

Union

and

HEADQUARTERS, UNITED STATES ARMY
TRAINING CENTER, FORT JACKSON,
SOUTH CAROLINA

Agency

Case No. 0-NG-565

DECISION AND ORDER ON NEGOTIABILITY ISSUES

The petition for review in this case comes before the Authority pursuant to section 7105(a(2)(E) of the Federal Service Labor - Management Relations Statute (the Statute), and raises issues relating to the negotiability of the following Union proposal.

The Union proposes that this change be accomplished through attrition.

Upon careful consideration of the entire record, including the parties' contentions, the Authority makes the following determinations. The Union proposal was introduced during "impact bargaining" over a management plan to require training instructors who previously taught either typing or academic/clerical subjects to now teach both. Since the purpose of this proposal, as stated by the Union, is to permit currently employed instructors to continue to teach either typing or academic/clerical subjects and to require only newly hired personnel to teach both courses, the proposal would effectively bar management from revising the work assignments of currently employed instructors. In this respect, the instant proposal is in all respects materially to the same effect as the first paragraph of the proposal held to interfere directly with management's right under section 7106(2)(2)(B) of the Statute "to assign work" in Association of Civilian Technicians and State of Georgia National Guard, 2 FLRA 581 (1980). Based on Georgia National Guard and the reasons stated therein, it is concluded that the instant proposal is inconsistent with management's 7106(a)(2)(B) right "to assign work" and is outside the duty to bargain. [ v11 p580 ]

Accordingly, pursuant to section 2424.10 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, IT IS ORDERED that the Union's petition for review be, and it hereby is, dismissed.

Issued, Washington, D.C., March 10, 1983

Ronald W. Haughton, Chairman

Henry B. Frazier III, Member

Leon B. Applewhaite, Member

FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

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