National Treasury Employees Union v. Federal Labor Relations Authority
647 F.3d 514
4th Cir.2011Background
- NTEU represented IRS employees under a negotiated CBA governing dues withholding and revocations.
- CBA expired in June 2006; IRS ceased honoring permissive provisions, including Article 10 (dues revocation procedures requiring union sign-off).
- Article 10 required a revocation form to be initialed by the chapter president or designee; unsigned forms were to be returned to the employee.
- IRS informed in July 2006 it would process revocation forms without union sign-off and processed about 1,000 forms during the annual period without sign-off.
- NTEU grieved on July 14, 2006; arbitration held Nov 22, 2006; award Feb 23, 2007 finding Article 10 valid post-expiration and a ULP by IRS, with limited remedies.
- FLRA denied exceptions on May 28, 2010, upholding the arbitrator’s remedy and affirming the award; petition for review denied.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether IRS processing revocation forms without union sign-off violated Article 10 and the Statute | NTEU | IRS/FLRA | Remedy upheld; IRS actions violated Article 10; ULP established |
| Whether the arbitrator’s remedy to contact employees and retroactively process reinstatements was compelled by law | NTEU argued for full reimbursement of dues | IRS/FLRA argued remedy not compelled by law | Remedy affirmed; not arbitrary or contrary to law |
| Whether the Authority properly reviewed the remedy with deference | NTEU claimed error in remedy | IRS/FLRA entitled to deference in remedial fashion | Remedial order within the Authority’s broad discretion |
| Whether Veterans Administration Lakeside is controlling on remedy here | NTEU relied on Lakeside to justify reimbursements | Agency distinguished Lakeside because statutory constraints differ | VA Lakeside distinguishable; remedy sustained |
Key Cases Cited
- Felter v. Southern Pacific Co., 359 U.S. 326 (1959) (revoke rights; one-year statutory limit cannot be unduly burdened)
- Veterans Admin. Lakeside Med. Ctr. v. Serv. Employees Int'l Union, 12 F.L.R.A. 244 (1983) (remedial order tailored to statutory constraints on revocation)
- AFGE, AFL-CIO and Dep't of Veterans Affairs, 51 F.L.R.A. 1427 (1996) (negotiated procedures cannot unduly burden rights to revoke dues)
- Department of Army v. FLRA, 56 F.3d 273 (D.C.Cir. 1995) (sovereign immunity and remedies context for union claims)
- NTEU v. FLRA, 910 F.2d 964 (D.C.Cir. 1990) (court review of remedies under FLRA framework)