[ v16 p350 ]
16:0350(53)AR
The decision of the Authority follows:
16 FLRA No. 53 GRIEVANCE OF JAY EDELSON, AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES, LOCAL 12 Union and U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Agency Case No. O-AR-757 ORDER DISMISSING EXCEPTIONS This case is before the Authority on exceptions to the award of Arbitrator Edward D. Friedman filed by the Union pursuant to section 7112(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute and section 2425.1 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations. For the reasons stated below, the Union's exceptions must be dismissed as untimely filed. It is undisputed that the Arbitrator's undated award was received by the Agency and the Union's representative of record on March 26, 1984. Under section 7122(b) of the Statute, as amended, /1/ and section 2425.1(b) of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, as amended, /2/ which amendments are applicable to exceptions pending or filed with the Authority on or after March 2, 1984, and under sections 2429.21 and 2429.27 of the Rules and Regulations, which are also applicable to computation of the time limit here involved, any exceptions to the Arbitrator's award in this case had to be filed with the Authority no later than the close of business on April 24, 1984. The Union's representative of record however, appears to argue that the exceptions should be accepted as timely. In support of this position, the Union's representative of record argues that the arbitrator's award was never in fact served on the grievant or Local 12. Rather, the Union's representative of record provided the grievant with the arbitrator's award on March 27, 1984. Thus, the time limit for filing the exceptions should begin to run from that date. Contrary to the Union's arguments, since in the circumstances of this case Local 12 existed through its representative of record, for purposes of service, service of the award on the Union's representative of record constituted service on Local 12. Thus, since it is undisputed the Union's representative of record received the award on March 26, 1984, and filed the exceptions with the Authority on behalf of Local 12 on April 25, 1984, one day late, it immediately and clearly becomes apparent that the exceptions are untimely and must be dismissed on that basis. If the exceptions were in fact filed by the Union's representative of record on behalf of the grievant, even though the grievant did not receive the arbitrator's award until March 27, 1984, the grievant did not participate as a "party" at the arbitration proceeding. See Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Department of the Navy, Bremerton, Washington and Bremerton Metal Trades Council, 14 FLRA No. 30 (1984). Consequently, the grievant is not entitled to file exceptions to the arbitrator's award, and any exceptions filed on behalf of the grievant would be dismissed pursuant to section 2425.1(a) of the Authority's Regulations. Accordingly, as the Union's exceptions were untimely filed, they are hereby dismissed. For the Authority. Issued, Washington, D.C., October 31, 1984 Jan K. Bohren Executive Director/Administrator --------------- FOOTNOTES$ --------------- /1/ Section 7122(b) of the Statute was amended by the Civil Service Miscellaneous Amendments Act of 1983 (Pub. L. No. 98-224, Sec. 4, 98 Stat. 47, 48 (1984)) to provide that the 30-day period for filing exceptions to an arbitrator's award begins on the date the award is served on the filing party. /2/ 49 Fed.Reg. 22623 (1984).