Bureau of the Public Debt and National Treasury Employees Union Chapter 190 (Authority decision, May 13, 1985)

Final FLRA decision. This is a final order of the Federal Labor Relations Authority in an unfair labor practice case. An aggrieved person may seek judicial review by filing a petition in an appropriate United States court of appeals within 60 days after issuance under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a). Filing a petition does not stay the Authority's order unless the court orders a stay under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(c).

Plain-English summary

Union negotiators from the Bureau of the Public Debt's Parkersburg office used annual leave to travel to contract talks in Washington after the agency denied official time. The Authority found that required travel during duty hours was part of official time for representatives attending negotiations. It limited the April travel entitlement to the two union team positions allocated to Parkersburg, matching the statutory cap tied to the agency's team size. It ordered the agency to restore the covered leave and post a notice.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Official time for negotiations under 5 U.S.C. § 7131(a).
• Outcome: Travel-time violation sustained; covered annual leave restored.
• Key point: Required duty-hour travel to negotiations counted as official time within the representative limit.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v17 p1045 ]

17:1045(140)CA

The decision of the Authority follows:

17 FLRA No. 140

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
BUREAU OF THE PUBLIC DEBT
Respondent

and

NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES
UNION AND CHAPTER 190
Charging Party

Case No. 3-CA-20005

DECISION AND ORDER

This matter is before the Authority pursuant to the Regional Director's "Order Transferring Case to the Authority" in accordance with section 2429.1(a) of the Authority's Rules and Regulations.

Upon consideration of the entire record in this case, including the stipulation of facts, accompanying exhibits, and the parties' contentions, /1/ the Authority finds:

The complaint alleges that the Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Public Debt (the Respondent) violated section 7116(a)(1) and (8) of the Statute /2/ by failing to grant the Union's request for official time under section 7131(a) /3/ to its unit employees, for the time they spent in travel related to contract negotiations while they were representing the National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190 (the Union). The Respondent stipulates that it denied official time for such travel incident to the negotiations. In addition to the issue of entitlement to official time under section 7131(a) for travel incident to representing an exclusive representative in negotiations, this case also raises a question as to how many union representatives would be entitled to official time for such travel.

The Union is the exclusive representative of a unit of approximately 1,600 employees, approximately 700 of whom are located in Washington, D.C. and approximately 900 of whom work in Parkersburg, West Virginia. Chapter 190 represents the Parkersburg, West Virginia employees. On July 28, 1980 the parties agreed on ground rules for master contract negotiations to be held in Washington, D.C. with each negotiating team being composed of a chief negotiator and five other members, one of whom would be an alternate. Two members of the Respondent's team worked in Parkersburg. On April 23, 1981 the Union requested official time for four unit employees, Wanda Wiseman, Susan Wiggins, Dianna Meredith and Ed Bloomer, who worked in Parkersburg, for April 27, when they would travel to Washington for negotiations to be held the following day. The Respondent refused the request and these four employees took annual leave for the travel that day. On April 28, two of the four Parkersburg, West Virginia unit employees, Wiseman and Wiggins, participated in the negotiations on official time while Meredith and Bloomer took annual leave for the day. On April 29, Meredith and Bloomer participated as members of the Union negotiating team while Wiseman and Wiggins took annual leave.

On July 14, 1981 the Union requested reinstatement of annual leave taken by the four unit employees on April 27. Further, it requested official time for travel from Parkersburg, West Virginia to Washington, D.C. on July 6, 1981 and for return travel to Parkersburg on July 9, 1981 incurred by Bloomer and Wiseman who served as members of the negotiating team during sessions on July 7 and July 8, 1981. The Respondent denied the Union's request on July 15, 1981 and Bloomer and Wiseman took annual leave for the July 6 and July 9 travel time.

The Authority has held that when it is required that an employee travel to participate in activities for which the employee would be on official time under section 7131(a) of the Statute, during the time the employee would be in a duty status, such travel time is part of the official time. /4/ Thus, by refusing to grant official time to unit employees on April 27, 1981, July 6, 1981 and July 9, 1981 for travel in connection with contract negotiations while they were representing the Union and during which they would be on official time, the Respondent failed to comply with section 7131(a) of the Statute, in violation of section 7116(a)(1) and (8).

With respect to the amount of official time requested for the four Parkersburg employees to travel on April 27, 1981 to contract negotiating sessions, section 7131(a) limits official time granted under that section to the number of employees "not to exceed the number . . . representing the agency." Therefore, the number of union representatives who must be paid for their representation time is pegged to the number of agency representatives. Department of Health and Human Services, Region IV, Atlanta, Georgia, 9 FLRA 1065, 1066 n.2 (1982). The stipulated facts show that five employees were designated as participating union representatives at the April 28 and 29 negotiating sessions and were afforded official time in respect thereto, the same as the number of individuals on the management negotiating team who participated during those sessions. It is noted further that of the five positions on the Union negotiating team, two positions were allocated to the four Parkersburg employees and official time was concededly afforded to only two of these employees. The Authority concludes that, as travel time is included in official time and the same limits apply, the entitlement to official time for travel in this instance is an amount equivalent to that necessary for two employees representing the Union to travel from Parkersburg, West Virginia, to Washington, D.C.

ORDER

Pursuant to section 2423.29 of the Rules and Regulations of the Federal Labor Relations Authority and section 7118 of the Statute, the Authority hereby orders that the Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Public Debt shall:

1. Cease and desist from:

(a) Refusing to provide official time for travel on April 27, 1981 for two employees designated as representatives of the National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190, the employees' exclusive representative, in connection with contract negotiations, pursuant to section 7131(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, and for travel on July 6 and July 9, 1981 to employees Wanda Wiseman and Ed Bloomer as designated representatives of National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190 in connection with contract negotiations.

(b) In any like or related manner interfering with, restraining, or coercing employees in the exercise of their rights assured by the Statute.

2. Take the following affirmative action in order to effectuate the
   purposes and policies of the Statute:

(a) Grant official time to two employees designated by the National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190 for time spent on April 27, 1981 while in a travel status in connection with contract negotiations and restore an equivalent amount of annual leave used, and to employees Wanda Wiseman and Ed Bloomer for the time spent on July 6 and July 9, 1981 while in a travel status in connection with negotiations and make them whole for annual leave used.

(b) Post at all of its offices copies of the attached Notice on forms to be furnished by the Federal Labor Relations Authority. Upon receipt of such forms, they shall be signed by the Director of the Bureau of the Public Debt, or his designee, and shall be posted and maintained for 60 consecutive days thereafter, in conspicuous places, including all bulletin boards and other places where notices to employees are customarily posted. Reasonable steps shall be taken to ensure that said Notices are not altered, defaced, or covered by any other material.

(c) Pursuant to section 2423.30 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, notify the Regional Director, Region III, Federal Labor Relations Authority, in writing, within 30 days from the date of this Order, as to what steps have been taken to comply herewith.

Issued, Washington, D.C., May 13, 1985

Henry B. Frazier III, Acting
Chairman
William J. McGinnis, Jr., Member
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

NOTICE TO ALL EMPLOYEES

PURSUANT TO A DECISION AND ORDER OF THE FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY AND IN ORDER TO EFFECTUATE THE POLICIES OF CHAPTER 71 OF TITLE 5 OF THE UNITED STATES CODE FEDERAL SERVICE LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS WE HEREBY NOTIFY OUR EMPLOYEES THAT:

WE WILL NOT refuse to provide official time for travel on April 27, 1981 for two employees designated as representatives of the National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190, the employees' exclusive representative, in connection with contract negotiations, pursuant to section 7131(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, and for travel on July 6 and July 9, 1981 to employees Wanda Wiseman and Ed Bloomer as designated representatives of National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190 in connection with contract negotiations. WE WILL NOT in any like or related manner interfere with, restrain, or coerce our employees in the exercise of their rights assured by the Statute. WE WILL grant official time to two employees designated by the National Treasury Employees Union and Chapter 190 for time spent on April 27, 1981 while in a travel status in connection with contract negotiations and restore an equivalent amount of annual leave used, and to employees Wanda Wiseman and Ed Bloomer for time spent on July 6, and July 9, 1981 while in a travel status in connection with negotiations and make them whole for annual leave used. (Activity)

Dated: . . . By: (Signature) (Title) This Notice must remain posted for 60 consecutive days from the date of posting, and must not be altered, defaced, or covered by any other material. If employees have any questions concerning this Notice or compliance with its provisions, they may communicate directly with the Regional Director, Region III, Federal Labor Relations Authority, whose address is: 1111 18th Street, N.W., Room 700, P.O. Box 33758, Washington, D.C. 20033-0758 and whose telephone number is: (202) 653-8452.

--------------- FOOTNOTES$ ---------------

/1/ The Respondent's brief was untimely filed and therefore was not considered by the Authority.

/2/ Section 7116(a)(1) and (8) provides:

Sec. 7116. Unfair labor practices

(a) For the purpose of this chapter, it shall be an unfair labor practice for an agency--

(1) to interfere with, restrain, or coerce any employee in the exercise by the employee of any right under this chapter;

. . . .

(8) to otherwise fail or refuse to comply with any provision of this chapter.

/3/ Section 7131(a) of the Statute provides:

Sec. 7131. Official time

(a) Any employee representing an exclusive representative in the negotiation of a collective bargaining agreement under this chapter shall be authorized official time for such purposes, including attendance at impasse proceeding, during the time the employee otherwise would be in a duty status. The number of employees for whom official time is authorized under this subsection shall not exceed the number of individuals designated as representing the agency for such purposes.

/4/ Department of the Treasury, Bureau of the Public Debt, 14 FLRA 197 (1984). (197). See also Florida National Guard, 5 FLRA 365 (1980), reversed as to other matters sub nom. Florida National Guard v. Federal Labor Relations Authority, 699 F.2d 1082 (11th Cir. 1983).