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56 FLRA No. 27
AFGE, Local 3615 and Social Security Administration Office of Hearings and Appeals Falls Church, Virginia (Nagle, Arbitrator), 0-AR-3250 (Decided March 31, 2000)
Under section 7122(a) of the Statute, an award is deficient if it is contrary to any law, rule, or regulation; or it is deficient on other grounds similar to those applied by Federal courts in private sector labor-management relations. Here, the Authority concluded that the award was not deficient on the grounds raised in the exceptions and set forth in section 7122(a).
The Authority noted that arbitration awards are not precedential; therefore, a contention that an award conflicts with other arbitration awards provides no basis for finding an award deficient under the Statute. The Authority also rejected the allegations that the award was based on a nonfact, or that it failed to draw its essence from the parties' collective bargaining agreement.