In addition, OPM's report on the status of labor-management partnership in the federal government finds that most agencies also have formed effective labor-management partnership councils and offered training in interest-based bargaining and alternative dispute resolution.

Last October, the President directed all federal agencies to report on their efforts to comply with Executive Order 12871 signed in 1993 on Labor-Management Partnerships and to identify specific improvements in organizational performance achieved through partnership. The President called on OPM to analyze the agency reports and evaluate how well labor-management partnerships are working and what kind of impact they are having on the performance of federal agencies.

In her letter to President Clinton that accompanies the report, OPM Director Janice R. Lachance stated: "While much work remains to be done, I am convinced that we are on the right track. The evidence shows a real shift toward labor-management cooperation and away from the adversarial approach so common in the past. I see a strong, consistent desire on both sides of the table to continue on the path toward collaborative labor-management relations and no interest in returning to the old ways of doing business."

In the report, OPM makes a number of recommendations to help sustain collaborative efforts between labor and management. Among them, OPM suggests agencies:

• continue a strong and continued commitment to training and education
• maintain continuity in the face of turnover
• place greater focus on labor-management strategic planning
• promote stronger, more visible leadership from both labor and management
• expand membership on the National Partnership Council
• establish closer ties between agency labor relations directors and union