13:0455(81)NG - Planners, Estimators and Progressmen Association, Local No. 8 and Navy, Charleston Naval Shipyard, Charleston, SC -- 1983 FLRAdec NG

 13 FLRA No. 81
 
 PLANNERS, ESTIMATORS AND
 PROGRESSMEN ASSOCIATION,
 LOCAL NO. 8
 Union
 
 and
 
 DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY,
 CHARLESTON NAVAL SHIPYARD,
 CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA
 Agency
 
                                            Case No. O-NG-601
 
                 DECISION AND ORDER ON NEGOTIABILITY ISSUE
 
    The petition for review in this case comes before the Authority
 pursuant to section 7105(a)(2)(E) of the Federal Service
 Labor-Management Relations Statute (the Statute), and raises issues
 relating to the negotiability of the following Union proposal:
 
          The Employer agrees that unit Employees, of the Association,
       will be extended non-clocking privileges.
 
 Upon careful consideration of the entire record, including the parties'
 contentions, the Authority makes the following determinations.
 
    The Union's proposal would extend to bargaining unit employees the
 practice of manually recording their time and attendance instead of
 mechanically through use of a time clock.  The Agency contends the
 proposal is negotiable only at its election because it involves matters
 which are not within the meaning of the term "working conditions" under
 section 7103(a)(14) of the Statute and because the proposal involves the
 Agency's choice of "methods" or "means" of performing work under section
 7106(b)(1).
 
    Section 7103(a)(14) defines "conditions of employment" as personnel
 policies, practices, and matters whether established by rule or
 regulation, or otherwise, affecting working conditions.  Based on the
 record, the Agency requires that there be recordings of employees' time
 and attendance so that there are records to be processed for payroll
 purposes, to insure proper credit and charges to employees' leave
 a