FLRA Offers Opportunity to Comment on Prospective Advice and Training

FLRA is offering parties an opportunity to provide input to both its prospective Guide to Negotiability and negotiability training materials. The author suggests that Agencies review these materials and provide input as training dollars are scarce and field activities and offices may rely on the information provided. Act quickly, the offer expires May 7, 2013.

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Agency representatives should consider taking FLRA up on its offer to give it input on its upcoming Guide to Negotiability Under the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute and an accompanying slide presentation.  For more information, see the press release.

I had an opportunity to meet the FLRA official who is heading up this effort at the recent Society of Federal Labor and Employee Relations Society Annual Conference in Arlington, VA.  His name is David Eddy and he was genuinely interested in what participants had to say about this material.  The FLRA was going to limit participation to input at the conference but it may have opened up its solicitation due to the lack of Agency staff in attendance this year.  The Society conference was certainly affected by sequestration and Agency funding tightness for conference attendance.

Agencies should review these materials and provide input as training dollars are scarce and field activities and offices may rely on the information provided.  Act quickly, as the offer expires May 7, 2013. (Somehow that sounds like an ad for some unmentionable product on a bad cable channel.)

Some Things to Think About Telling FLRA

For what it’s worth, you may want the guidance and training material to consider some or all of the following:

  1. Cases listed in the guidance should indicate whether they are currently on appeal to the courts.
  2. If the cases were decided by the current FLRA and changed or modified prior FLRA case law, it should mention that.
  3. If the decision is conditional, of limited scope or an appropriate arrangement applicable to certain parties, that should be noted in the guidance.
  4. If the FLRA decision, as was done recently, elects to depart from a circuit court opinion, it should be noted.
  5. If FLRA, as it sometimes does, notes the failure of a party to make an argument, the Guide should say so.

Agency negotiators, Counsel and those involved in Agency Head review should pay attention to this opportunity.

If you think there’s an opinion stated above, it is my sole responsibility.

© 2024 Bob Gilson. All rights reserved. This article may not be reproduced without express written consent from Bob Gilson.

About the Author

Bob Gilson is a consultant with a specialty in working with and training Federal agencies to resolve employee problems at all levels. A retired agency labor and employee relations director, Bob has authored or co-authored a number of books dealing with Federal issues and also conducts training seminars.

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