U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters and American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3313 (Authority decision, January 28, 1983)

Final FLRA representation decision. The Authority directly decided an appropriate-unit petition. This unit determination is excluded from the 60-day judicial-review provision by 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a)(2).

Plain-English summary

AFGE Local 3313 asked whether Coast Guard electronics engineer John Carros remained in its bargaining unit. The Coast Guard called him a supervisor or management official. The Authority found that he led technical projects but had no employees directly assigned to him and did not exercise supervisory authority. His work also implemented, rather than shaped, agency policy. It ordered him included in the unit. The Authority decided the original petition directly, so there was no regional director ruling to affirm or reverse.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Representation and unit criteria under 5 U.S.C. § 7111(b)(2).
• Outcome: John Carros included in the bargaining unit.
• Key point: Technical project leadership did not itself make an employee a supervisor or management official.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v11 p186 ]

11:0186(41)CU

The decision of the Authority follows:

11 FLRA No. 41

U.S. COAST GUARD HEADQUARTERS
Activity

and

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, LOCAL 3313, AFL-CIO /1/
Petitioner

Case No. 3-CU-90

DECISION AND ORDER CLARIFYING UNIT

Upon a petition duly filed with the Federal Labor Relations Authority under section 7111(b)(2) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (the Statute), a hearing was held before a hearing officer of the Authority. The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.

Upon careful consideration of the entire record, including the parties' contentions, the Authority finds: The American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3313, AFL-CIO (AFGE) was certified on July 11, 1972, as the exclusive bargaining representative for a unit of all nonsupervisory professional and nonprofessional general schedule and wage grade employees of the United States Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, D.C. Essentially, AFGE's petition seeks to clarify the unit status of John Carros, Electronics Engineer, GS-855-14, who the Activity contends should be excluded from the bargaining unit on the ground that he is a supervisor, management official or both.

The Authority finds, in agreement with AFGE, that Carros is not a supervisor since the record clearly establishes that Carros does not exercise any of the indicia of supervisory authority set forth in section 7103(a)(10) of the Statute. /2/ Rather, the record establishes that Carros, as a project team leader, has technical responsibility for his project, but does not have any employees directly assigned to him.

The Authority further finds that Carros is not a management official within the meaning of section 7103(a)(11) of the Statute. /3/ In the lead case of Department of the Navy, Automatic Data Processing Selection Office, 7 FLRA No. 24 (1981), the Authority interpreted the statutory definition of "management official" to include those individuals who: (1) create, establish or prescribe general principles, plans or courses of action for an agency; (2) decide upon or settle upon general principles, plans or courses of action for an agency; or (3) bring about or obtain a result as to the adoption of general principles, plans or courses of action for an agency. Applying these criteria to the specific facts of the instant case, the Authority finds that Carros is not a management official. The record establishes that Carros is a highly trained professional whose actions assist in implementing, as opposed to shaping the Activity's policies, plans or courses of action. Thus, Carros does not exercise any duties or responsibilities which require or authorize him to formulate, determine, or influence the policies of the Activity within the meaning of section 7103(a)(11) of the Statute. /4/

Accordingly, as the Authority has found that the incumbent is neither a supervisor nor a management official, it is ordered that the unit sought to be clarified herein be, and it hereby is, clarified by including in said unit John Carros, Electronics Engineer, GS-855-14. Issued, Washington, D.C., January 28, 1983 Ronald W. Haughton, Chairman Henry B. Frazier III, Member Leon B. Applewhaite, Member FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

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

/1/ The name of the Petitioner appears as amended at the hearing.

/2/ Section 7103(a)(10) defines a "supervisor" as:

. . . an individual employed by an agency having authority in the interest of the agency to hire, direct, assign, promote, reward, transfer, furlough, layoff, recall, suspend, discipline, or remove employees, to adjust their grievances or to effectively recommend such action, if the exercise of the authority is not merely routine or clerical in nature but requires the consistent exercise of independent judgment . . . .

/3/ Section 7103(a)(11) defines a "management official" as:

. . . an individual employed by an agency in a position the duties and responsibilities of which require or authorize the individual to formulate, determine, or influence the policies of the agency . . . .

/4/ Compare U.S. Coast Guard, Headquarters, Washington, D.C., 7 FLRA No. 119 (1982) wherein the Authority found the incumbent of the job classification of Electronics Engineer, GS-855-13, Job Number 62-3008 was a management official within the division in which he worked in that he brought about or obtained a result as to the adoption of plans or courses of action for the Activity with respect to remote sensing programs and technology.