[ v27 p650 ]
27:0650(75)CA
The decision of the Authority follows:
27 FLRA No. 75
DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE
HANSCOM AIR FORCE BASE
BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS
Respondent
and
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, LOCAL R1-8
Charging Party
Case No. 1-CA-60282
DECISION AND ORDER
The Administrative Law Judge issued the attached decision in the
above entitled proceedings finding that the Respondent had engaged in
the unfair labor practices alleged in the complaint, and recommending
that the Respondent be ordered to take appropriate remedial action. The
Respondent filed exceptions to the Judge's decision. The General
Counsel filed a response to the exceptions.
Pursuant to section 2423.29 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations
and section 7118 of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations
Statute (the Statute), we have reviewed the rulings of the Judge made at
the hearing and find that no prejudicial error was committed. The
rulings are hereby affirmed. Upon consideration of the Judge's
decision, the exceptions, and the entire record, we adopt the Judge's
findings, conclusions and recommended Order.
ORDER
Pursuant to section 2423.29 of the Authority's Rules and Regulations
and section 7118 of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations
Statute, the Department of the Air Force, Hanscom Air Force Base shall:
1. Cease and desist from:
(a) Refusing to furnish, upon request of the National
Association of Government Employees, Local R1-8, the exclusive
representative of a bargaining unit of its employees, the names
and home addresses of all employees in the unit.
(b) In any like or related manner, interfering with,
restraining, or coercing its employees in the exercise of the
rights assured them by the Statute.
2. Take the following affirmative action in order to effectuate the
purposes and policies of the Statute:
(a) Furnish the National Association of Government Employees,
Local R1-8, the exclusive representative of a bargaining unit of
its employees, the names and home addresses of all employees in
the unit.
(b) Post at its facilities at the Hanscom Air Force Base,
copies of the attached Notice on forms to be furnished by the
Federal Labor Relations Authority. Upon receipt of such forms,
they shall be signed by the Commander, Hanscom Air Force Base, and
shall be posted and maintained for 60 consecutive days thereafter,
in conspicuous places, including all bulletin boards and places
were notices to employees are customarily posted. Reasonable
steps shall be taken to ensure that such notices are not altered,
defaced, or covered by any other material.
(c) Pursuant to section 2423.30 of the Authority's Rules and
Regulations, notify the Regional Director, Region I, Federal Labor
Relations Authority, in writing, within 30 days from the date of
this Order as to what steps have been taken to comply herewith.
Issued, Washington, D.C., June 24, 1987.
/s/ Jerry L. Calhoun, Chairman
/s/ Henry B. Frazier III, Member
/s/ Jean McKee, Member
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY
NOTICE TO ALL EMPLOYEES
PURSUANT TO A DECISION AND ORDER OF THE FEDERAL LABOR
RELATIONS
AUTHORITY AND IN ORDER TO EFFECTUATE THE POLICIES OF CHAPTER 71
OF TITLE
5 OF THE UNITED STATES CODE
FEDERAL SERVICE LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS
WE HEREBY NOTIFY OUR EMPLOYEES THAT:
WE WILL NOT refuse or fail to furnish, upon request, of the National
Association of Government Employees, Local R1-8, the exclusive
representative of a bargaining unit of our employees, the names and home
addresses of all bargaining unit employees.
WE WILL NOT in any like or related manner, interfere with, restrain,
or coerce our employees in the exercise of their rights assured them by
the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute.
WE WILL furnish the National Association of Government Employees,
Local R1-8, the exclusive representative of a bargaining unit of our
employees, the names and home addresses of all employees in the unit.
(Activity)
Dated: . . . By: (Signature) (Title)
This Notice must remain posted for 60 consecutive days from the date
of posting, and must not be altered, defaced, or covered by any other
material.
If employees have any questions concerning this Notice or compliance
with its provisions, they may communicate directly with the Regional
Director, Region I, Federal Labor Relations Authority, whose address is:
10 Causeway Street, Room 1017, Boston, Massachusetts 02222-1046, and
whose telephone number is: (617) 565-7280.
-------------------- ALJ$ DECISION FOLLOWS --------------------
Case No. 1-CA-60282
DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE, HANSCOM AIR
FORCE BASE (BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS)
Respondent
and
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, LOCAL R-1-8
Charging Party
Major Steven E. Sherwood
Lorraine B. Iovanni
For the Respondent
Richard Martino
For the Charging Party
Marilyn H. Zuckerman, Esq.
For the General Counsel, FLRA
Before: SAMUEL A. CHAITOVITZ,
Administrative Law Judge
DECISION
Statement of the Case
This is a proceeding under the Federal Service Labor-Management
Relations Statute, Chapter 71 of Title 5 of the U.S. Code, 5 USC Section
7101, et seq., 92 Stat. 1191 (hereinafter referred to as the Statute)
and the Rules and Regulations of the Federal Labor Relations Authority
(FLRA), 5 C.F.R. Chapter XIV, Section 2410, et seq.
Pursuant to a charge filed on May 27, 1986 by the National
Association of Government Employees, Local R-1-8, hereinafter called the
Union, and a first amended charge filed on July 18, 1986 against the
Department of the Air Force, Hanscom Air Force Base, hereinafter called
the Respondent, the General Counsel of the FLRA, by the Regional
Director of Region I, issued a Complaint and Notice of Hearing on July
24, 1986, alleging that the Respondent violated Section 7116(a)(1), (5)
and (8) of the Statute by failing to furnish to the Union, upon request,
the names and home addresses for all bargaining unit employees at
Hanscom Air Force Base.
A hearing was conducted before the undersigned in Boston,
Massachusetts on December 18, 1986. The Respondent, the Union and the
General Counsel of the FLRA were represented and afforded full
opportunity to be heard, to examine and cross-examine witnesses, to
introduce evidence and to argue orally. Post-hearing briefs, including
proposed findings and conclusions, were filed and have been fully
considered.
Based on the entire record in this matter I make the following:
Findings of Fact
At all times material herein, the Union has been and is now the
exclusive collective bargaining representative of an appropriate unit of
employees consisting of:
All non-supervisory Wage Grade employees (WG and WL); all
non-supervisory, non-professional General Schedule employees;
non-supervisory General Schedule firefighters assigned to the New
Boston Air Force Station; all of which are serviced by the
Central Civilian Personnel Office, Hanscom Air Force Base, MA.
Excluded from the aforementioned units are all professional
employees, supervisors and management officials, guards,
confidential employees, employees engaged in Federal personnel
work other than in a purely clerical capacity, all General
Schedule employees of their Air Force Geophysics Laboratory and
the Deputy for Electronics Technology, Operating Location -- AL,
Rome Air Development Center (RADC) and all non-supervisory
employees of the Fire Protection Branch of the Base Civil
Engineering Division, Hanscom Air Force Base, MA.
By letter dated April 14, 1986, the Union requested names and home
addresses of all bargaining unit employees. Respondent replied by
letter of May 20, 1986, that the Union would not be provided with the
names and home addresses due to Privacy Act concerns and the means of
alternative access available to the Union.
The names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees at Hanscom
Air Force Base are maintained at that facility in their personnel files.
This data is also available by work organization in the computer data
system that is administered by the Civilian Payroll Office on the Base.
The Base's Personnel Office maintains a code of employees by bargaining
unit. Respondent's witness testified that it would not be difficult to
extract individual Social Security numbers of employees from the
bargaining unit status code in the Personnel Office and to
cross-reference that with the civilian payroll system data to provide
the names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees to the Union.
Discussion and Conclusions of Law
The Federal Labor Relations Authority has issued its lead decision on
the names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees holding that,
upon request, management must provide this data to unions. Farmers Home
Administration, Finance Office, St. Louis, MO and American Federation of
Government Employees, AFL-CIO, Local 3354, 23 FLRA No. 101, (October 31,
1986). There the Authority analyzed the interplay of the Statute, the
Privacy Act, and the Freedom of Information Act, and concluded that "the
release of names and home addresses to the Union is not prohibited by
law, is necessary for the Union to fulfill its duties under the Statute,
and meets the other requirements of Section 7114(b)(4)." Ibid., at page
11. The Authority found that a general written request for the
information is sufficient, since,
"an exclusive representative's need for the names and home
addresses of the bargaining unit employees it is required to
represent is so apparent and essentially related to the nature of
exclusive representation itself that . . . (the duty to supply the
data) does depend upon any separate explanation by the union of
its reasons for seeking the information." Ibid., at page 11.
In the instant case, it is undisputed that the Union submitted a
written request for the names and home addresses of all bargaining unit
employees and that the request was denied. The issues at trial were
whether the sought after information is normally maintained by the
Agency, whether it is necessary, and whether disclosure is prohibited by
law. These issues will be analyzed in terms of the decision in Farmers
Home Administration as follows:
A. Normally Maintained by the Agency
There is no question that the home addresses of federal employees are
in their personnel files. Farmers Home Administration, ibid., at page
7. The names and home addresses of bargaining unit employees herein are
maintained at Hanscom Air Force Base in their personnel files and in the
computer data system by work organization in the Base's Civilian Payroll
Office. The Personnel Office at the facility maintains a code of
employees by bargaining unit. The data requested is "reasonably
available" despite the fact that Respondent would have to compile the
information by reconciling computer data with separate lists maintained
at the Base. Air Force District of Washington and AFGE-GAIU Council of
HQUSAF Locals, AFL-CIO, OALJ-87-15, Judge Garvin Lee Oliver, December
11, 1986. In short, the names and home addresses of bargaining unit
employees are normally maintained in the regular course of business by
the Agency and reasonably available within the meaning of the Statute.
B. Necessary
The data is also necessary to collective bargaining and the "mere
existence of alternative means of communication is insufficient to
justify a refusal to release the information." Farmers Home
Administration, ibid., at page 9. There, the Authority found that it
was not necessary to examine adequacy of alternative means,
"because the communication between unit employees and their
exclusive representative which would be facilitated by release of
names and home addresses information is fundamentally different
from other communication through alternative means which are
controlled in whole or in part by the agency." Ibid. at page 9.
The names and home addresses of bargaining unit employes is necessary
information and should be provided to the Union whether or not
alternative means of communication are available.
C. Prohibited by Law
The release of the names and home addresses is not prohibited by law
since the provision of the data falls within the routine use excemption
(b)(3) of the Privacy Act. Farmers Home Administration, ibid., at page
7. The release of the information is also not a clearly unwarranted
invasion of privacy within the meaning of exemption (b)(6) of the FOIA
referenced by exemption (b)(2) of the Privacy Act. Ibid., at page 5.
In weighing individual privacy interests under these Statutes, the
Authority tilts the balance in favor of disclosure, citing Getman v.
NLRB, 450 F.2d 670, 674, (D.C. Cir. 1971), to enable the Union to
identify bargaining unit employees and to communicate with them. The
release of the names and home addresses is not prohibited by law since
disclosure comes within exemptions (b)(2) and (b)(3) of the Privacy Act.
In light of the foregoing, I conclude that Respondent violated
Section 7116(a)(1), (5) and (8) of the Statute by denying the Union's
request pursuant to Section 7114(b)(4) for the names and home addresses
of bargaining unit employees because this information is normally
maintained by the Agency and is reasonably available and necessary for
full and proper discussion, understanding and negotiation of subjects
within the scope of collective bargaining and furnishing such data is
not prohibited by law. To remedy this violation, the Respondent should
be ordered to provide the Union with the names and home addresses of all
bargaining unit employees and to post a Notice as required by the
Authority in Farmers Home Administration.
Having concluded that Respondent violated Section 7116(a)(1)(5) and
(8) of the Statute, I recommend that the Authority issue the following:
ORDER
Pursuant to Section 2423.29 of the Rules and Regulations of the
Federal Labor Relations Authority and Section 7118 of the Statute, the
Authority hereby orders that the Department of the Air Force, Hanscom
Air Force Base, shall:
1. Cease and desist from:
(a) Refusing or failing to furnish upon request of the National
Association of Government Employees, Local R-1-8, the addresses of
all unit employees.
(b) In any like or related manner, interfering with,
restraining or coercing employees in the exercise of their rights
assured by the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute.
2. Take the following affirmative action in order to effectuate the
purposes and policies of the Statute:
(a) Upon request, furnish to the National Association of
Government Employees, Local R-1-8, the names and addresses of all
unit employees.
(b) Post at its facilities at the Hanscom Air Force Base,
copies of the attached Notice marked "Appendix" on forms to be
furnished by the Authority. Upon receipt of such forms, they
shall be signed by the Commander, Hanscom Air Force Base, and
shall be posted and maintained by him for 60 consecutive days
thereafter, in conspicuous places, including all bulletin boards
and other places where notices to employees are customarily
posted. The Commander shall take reasonable steps to insure that
such notices are not altered, defaced, or covered by any other
magterial.
(c) Pursuant to 5 C.F.R. Section 2423.30 notify the Regional
Director, Region 1, Federal Labor Relations Authority, Boston,
Massachusetts, in writing, within 30 days from the date of this
Order, as to what steps have been taken to comply herewith.
/s/ SAMUEL A. CHAITOVITZ
Administrative Law Judge
Dated: March 24, 1987
Washington, D.C.
APPENDIX
NOTICE TO ALL EMPLOYEES
PURSUANT TO A DECISION AND ORDER OF THE FEDERAL LABOR
RELATIONS
AUTHORITY AND IN ORDER TO EFFECTUATE THE POLICIES OF CHAPTER 71
OF TITLE
5 OF THE UNITED STATES CODE
FEDERAL SERVICE LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS STATUTE
WE HEREBY NOTIFY OUR EMPLOYEES THAT:
WE WILL NOT refuse or fail to furnish upon request of the National
Association of Government Employees, Local R-1-8, the addresses of all
unit employees.
WE WILL NOT in any like or related manner, interfere with, restrain,
or coerce our employees in the exercise of their rights assured by the
Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute.
WE WILL, upon request, furnish to the National Association of
Government Employees, Local R-1-8, the names and addresses of all unit
employees.
(Agency or Activity)
Dated: . . . By: (Signature)
This Notice must remain posted for 60 consecutive days from the date
of posting and must not be altered, defaced or covered by any other
material.
If employees have any questions concerning this Notice or compliance
with any of its provisions, they may communicate directly with the
Regional Director of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, Region 1,
whose address is: 10 Causeway Street, Room 1017, Boston, Massachusetts
02222-1046, and whose telephone number is: (617) 565-7280.