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55 FLRA No. 174
American Federation of Government Employees, Local 3369 and Social Security Administration, New York Region, New York, New York (Ilivicky, Arbitrator), 0- AR-3153 (Decided November 15, 1999)
The Arbitrator denied a grievance which sought to overturn a 2-day suspension. The Authority denied the Union's exceptions. The Authority rejected the allegation that the Arbitrator failed to conduct a fair hearing. The Authority noted that it will find an award deficient when it determines that an arbitrator failed to conduct a fair hearing by refusing to hear or consider pertinent and material evidence or by other actions which prejudice a party and affect the fairness of the proceeding as a whole. Here, the Authority found that the Union failed to demonstrate that the Arbitrator prejudiced the Union or affected the fairness of the proceedings as a whole. The allegations that the award was based on a nonfact and that it failed to draw its essence from the agreement were rejected as well.
Concerning the allegation that the award was contrary to 5 U.S.C. § 7503(a), which provides that an employee may be suspended for 14 days or less for discourteous conduct to the public confirmed by an immediate supervisor's report of four such instances within any one-year period or any other pattern of discourteous conduct, the Authority noted that the Union failed to establish its claim. The Authority noted that the grievant was not suspended for discourteous conduct. Rather, he was suspended for the "misuse of the authority of his position by attempting to force the client to repay her overpayment without affording her full and appropriate appeal rights." Under such circumstance, the Authority found that the Union failed to establish that the award was contrary to 5 U.S.C. § 7503(a).