12:0306(67)CU - Air Force, HQ 2852d Air Base Group (AFCC) McClellan AFB, CA and NAGE Local R12-58 -- 1983 FLRAdec RP

 12 FLRA No. 67
 
 DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE
 HEADQUARTERS 2852d AIR BASE GROUP (AFCC)
 MCCLELLAN AIR FORCE BASE, CALIFORNIA
 Activity
 
 and
 
 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENT
 EMPLOYEES, LOCAL R12-58
 Labor Organization/Petitioner
 
                                            Case No. 9-CU-25
 
                            DECISION AND ORDER
 
    Upon a petition duly filed with the Authority under section
 7111(b)(2) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute
 (the Statute), a hearing was held before a hearing officer of the
 Authority.  The hearing officer's rulings made at the hearing are free
 from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.  Upon careful
 consideration of the entire record, including the parties' contentions,
 /1/ the Authority finds that:  NAGE, in its petition, is seeking to
 amend the description of its bargaining unit to all "eligible employees
 in the Operations Branch of the Security Police Division * * * " so as
 to have the unit include only uniformed police officers in the
 Enforcement Section, Operations Branch, Security Police Division,
 McClellan Air Force Base, California.  Thus, in effect, NAGE is seeking
 to sever from its current unit approximately eight employees in other
 job classifications.  /2/
 
    NAGE has been the bargaining representative of the existing unit
 since 1968, and various collective bargaining agreements have been
 negotiated since 1973.  All employees in the existing unit have
 substantially the same working conditions and are subject to the same
 supervision.  Further, it appears clear that there exists a continuing
 day-to-day contact and interplay between all these employees in the
 fulfillment of their common mission, and no evidence was presented to
 indicate a change in the Activity's operations since the unit was
 established.  However, NAGE contends that uniformed police officers do
 not share a community of interest with the other employees since they
 are for the most part lower graded and have different work schedules.
 
    The Authority has stated that, in severance cases such as this, it
 "is bound by the three criteria for determining the appropriateness of
 any unit . . . ." /3/ In applying these three criteria to the
 circumstances of this case, the Authority concludes that severance
 should be denied since the unit currently represented by NAGE is
 appropriate.  Thus, all of the employees share a community of interest
 and the unit promotes effective dealings and efficiency of agency
 operations.  /4/ In this regard, the Authority notes particularly that
 all of the Operations Branch employees share a common integrated
 mission, are subject to substantially identical working conditions and
 benefits, share common supervision and have been part of a
 long-standing, established bargaining unit.  Further, there is no
 evidence to demonstrate that there has been any change in the Operations
 Branch since the establishment of the present NAGE unit which would
 impact upon the appropriateness of the unit.
 
    Accordingly, under the circumstances presented here, the Authority
 concludes that NAGE's petition seeking a severance of certain employees
 from the existing appropriate unit must be dismissed.
 
                                   ORDER
 
    IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition in case 9-CU-25 be, and it
 hereby is, dismissed.  Issued, Washington, D.C., July 14, 1983
                                       Barbara J. Mahone, Chairman
                                       Ronald W. Haughton, Member
                                       Henry B. Frazier III, Member
                                       FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY
 
 
 
 
 
 
 --------------- FOOTNOTES$ ---------------
 
 
    /1/ As the brief filed by the National Association of Government
 Employees, Local R12-58 (NAGE) was untimely filed, it has not been
 considered.
 
 
    /2/ These other classifications are Criminal Investigator
 (GS-1811-09), Clerical Assistance (GS-301-05), Tool and Parts Attendant
 (WG-6904-06), Traffic Planner (GS-301-09) and Police Officer
 (GS-083-09).
 
 
    /3/ International Communication Agency, 5 FLRA No. 19 (1981).
 
          Section 7112(a)(1) of the Statute provides:
 
          Sec. 7112.  Determination of appropriate units for labor
       organization representation.
 
          (a)(1) The Authority shall determine the appropriateness of any
       unit.  The Authority shall determine in each case whether, in
       order to ensure employees the fullest freedom in exercising the
       rights guaranteed under this chapter, the appropriate unit should
       be established on an agency, plant, installation, functional, or
       other basis and shall determine any unit to be an appropriate unit
       only if the determination will ensure a clear and identifiable
       community of interest among the employees in the unit and will
       promote effective dealings with, and efficiency of the operations
       of, the agency involved.
 
 
    /4/ The Activity took no position in this case.