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55 FLRA No. 180
U.S. Department of Defense Dependents Schools And Federal Education Association (Feldman, Arbitrator), 0-AR-3146 (Decided November 30, 1999)
The Arbitrator found that the Agency violated a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the parties when it revised its regulations without properly notifying the Union that changes were being made to existing policy. The Arbitrator declared the Agency's revised regulations to be "for naught." The Authority denied the Agency's exceptions.
Preliminarily, the Authority found that the Arbitrator did not err in finding that the grievance was timely. The Authority noted that an arbitrator's determination regarding the timeliness of a grievance constitutes a determination regarding the procedural arbitrability of that grievance. The Authority explained that an arbitrator's determination as to procedural arbitrability may be found deficient only on grounds that do not challenge the determination of procedural arbitrability itself. Such grounds include bias or the fact that the arbitrator exceeded her or his authority. Here, the Authority concluded that the Agency's arguments did not provide a basis for finding the award deficient. Likewise, the Authority rejected the allegations that the Arbitrator denied the Agency a fair hearing, that the award was based on a nonfat, or that it was ambiguous.
As to the allegation that the award was contrary to section 7114(b)(5), which provides the obligation to negotiate with a sincere resolve to reach a collective bargaining agreement, the Authority concluded that the Agency did not demonstrate that the award was deficient.