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50 FLRA No. 71

FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

_____

AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

LOCAL 2199

(Union)

and

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

MEDICAL CENTER

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH

(Agency)

0-AR-2640

(50 FLRA 257 (1995))

_____

ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION

June 22, 1995

_____

Before the Authority: Phyllis N. Segal, Chair; Tony Armendariz and Pamela Talkin, Members.

I. Statement of the Case

This matter is before the Authority on the Union's motion for reconsideration of the Authority's decision in 50 FLRA 257 (1995). The Agency did not file an opposition to the motion.

Section 2429.17 of the Authority's Regulations permits a party who can establish extraordinary circumstances to request reconsideration of an Authority decision.

For the following reasons, we conclude that the Union has failed to establish that extraordinary circumstances exist. Accordingly, we deny the Union's motion.

II. Decision in 50 FLRA 257

In 50 FLRA 257, the Authority found no basis on which to conclude that an arbitrator's award, denying the grievance of an employee who challenged his performance appraisal, was deficient under section 7122(a) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute. More specifically, the Authority concluded that the Union failed to establish that the award was contrary to 5 C.F.R. § 430.205(e), which relates to the conduct and content of progress reviews. The Authority found that the regulation does not describe the degree of specificity that a supervisor must use to discuss an employee's performance and does not state that a supervisor must address separately each performance element. The Authority determined that the Agency's conduct with respect to the mid-year progress review was not inconsistent with the regulatory requirements.

III. Motion for Reconsideration

The Union contends that extraordinary circumstances warrant reconsideration of the Authority's decision for three reasons. First, the Union argues that the Authority's interpretation of 5 C.F.R. § 430.205(e) is contrary to its plain meaning. Second, the Union claims that the Authority offered no support for its interpretation of the regulation. Third, the Union asserts that absent a "minimum, uniform application of [the] regulation, a host of conflicting and inconsistent results are inevitable." Motion for Reconsideration at 3.

IV. Analysis and Conclusions

Under section 2429.17 of the Authority's Regulations, a party seeking reconsideration after the Authority has issued a final decision or order bears the heavy burden of establishing that extraordinary circumstances exist to justify this unusual action. In U.S. Department of the Air Force, 375th Combat Support Group, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, 50 FLRA 84 (1995) (Scott Air Force Base), we identified a limited number of situations in which extraordinary circumstances have been found to exist. We added that a moving party's disagreement with the conclusion reached by the Authority in a case is insufficient to satisfy the extraordinary circumstances requirement. We find no extraordinary circumstances in this case.

The Union's arguments are predicated on its view that 5 C.F.R. § 430.205(e) must be interpreted in a particular manner. Clearly, the Union is seeking to have its interpretation of that regulation substituted for that of the Authority. As such, the Union's arguments constitute only disagreement with the Authority's conclusion and do not establish the extraordinary circumstances necessary to warrant reconsideration of the final decision published at 50 FLRA 257. Scott Air Force Base.

V. Order

The Union's motion for reconsideration is denied.

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FOOTNOTES:
(If blank, the decision does not have footnotes.)
 

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