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61 FLRA No. 30
U. S. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE, WASHINGTON, D.C. AND NTEU Case No. SF-CA-02-0320 (59 FLRA 282 (2003)) (August 10, 2005)
This unfair labor practice came before the Authority on a remand from the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. National Treasury Employees Union v. FLRA, 392 F.3d 498 (D.C. Cir. 2004) (NTEU v. FLRA). In its original decision in this case, the Authority found that the unfair labor practice (ULP) charge was untimely and as a result dismissed the ULP complaint alleging that the Respondent violated § 7116(a)(1) and (8) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (the Statute) by failing to comply with an arbitration award involving compensating employees for time spent commuting to their temporary duty assignment. The Authority found that neither the General Counsel nor the Charging Party had presented arguments that warranted a departure from Authority precedent finding that the limitation period for filing a ULP charge over the failure to comply with an arbitrator's award under the Statute begins on the date the award becomes final and binding. The court vacated the Authority's decision finding the ULP charge untimely and remanded the case to the Authority for further proceedings.
Consistent with the court's decision, the Authority found that the ULP charge in this case was timely filed. In so finding, the Authority adopted the court's approach for determining whether a ULP charge challenging the failure to comply with an arbitrator's award is timely. Further, the Authority noted that it will no longer apply the Authority's prior interpretation of the limitation period for filing a ULP charge challenging the failure to comply with an arbitrator's award. The Authority further concluded that the Respondent violated § 7116(a)(1) and (8) of the Statute as alleged in the complaint.