Social Security Administration and American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO (Authority decision, December 7, 1984)

Final FLRA decision. This is a final order of the Federal Labor Relations Authority dismissing exceptions to an arbitration award. The order concerns an arbitration award under 5 U.S.C. § 7122. Section 7123(a)(1) generally excludes such orders from judicial review unless they involve an unfair labor practice under § 7118.

Plain-English summary

AFGE challenged an arbitration award involving the Social Security Administration. The award was dated and apparently mailed to the parties on October 18, 1984. The Authority calculated that exceptions had to be filed by November 21, but the union filed them on November 27. It dismissed the exceptions as untimely without reaching the award's merits.

Decision snapshot

• Authority: Arbitration exception deadline under 5 U.S.C. § 7122(b) and 5 C.F.R. § 2425.1.
• Outcome: Union's exceptions dismissed as untimely.
• Key point: The union filed six days after the deadline calculated from service of the award.

Full text (FLRA public release)

[ v16 p747 ]

16:0747(104)AR

The decision of the Authority follows:

16 FLRA No. 104

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
Activity

and

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, AFL-CIO
Union

Case No. O-AR-883

ORDER DISMISSING EXCEPTIONS

This case is before the Authority on exceptions to the award of Arbitrator John C. Manson filed by the Union 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 exceptions must be dismissed as untimely filed.

The Arbitrator's award is dated October 18, 1984, and appears to have been served on the parties by mail on the same day.

Under section 7122(b) of the Statute, as amended, /1/ and section 2425.1 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, as amended, /2/ which amendments are applicable to exceptions pending or filed with the Authority on or after March 2, 1984, and under sections 2429.21 and 2429.22 of the Rules and Regulations, which are also applicable to computation of the time limit here involved, any exceptions to the Arbitrator's award in this case had to be filed with the Authority not later than the close of business on November 21, 1984. However, the exceptions were not filed until November 27, 1984. Therefore, the exceptions were untimely filed.

Accordingly, as the Union's exceptions were untimely filed, they are hereby dismissed. For the Authority. Issued, Washington, D.C., December 7, 1984 Jan K. Bohren Executive Director/Administrator

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

/1/ Section 7122(b) of the Statute was amended by the Civil Service Miscellaneous Amendments Act of 1983 (Pub. L. No. 98-224, Sec. 4, 98 Stat. 47, 48 (1984)) to provide that the 30-day period for filing exceptions to an arbitrator's award begins on the date the award is served on the filing party.

/2/ 49 Fed.Reg. 22623 (1984).