15:0353(75)AR - San Antonio Real Property Management Agency and AFGE Local 3782 -- 1984 FLRAdec AR

 15 FLRA No. 75
 
 SAN ANTONIO REAL PROPERTY
 MANAGEMENT AGENCY
 Activity
 
 and
 
 AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT
 EMPLOYEES, LOCAL 3782
 Union
 
                                            Case No. O-AR-643
 
                        ORDER DISMISSING EXCEPTIONS
 
    This matter is before the Authority on exceptions to the award of
 Arbitrator John A. Bailey filed by the Union under section 7122(a) of
 the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute and 2425.1 of the
 Authority's Rules and Regulations.  For the reasons stated below, it has
 been determined that the exceptions must be dismissed as untimely filed.
 
    The Arbitrator's award in this case is dated November 17, 1982, and
 appears to have been served on the parties by mail on the same day.  In
 his award, the Arbitrator found that the Activity had not violated the
 parties' collective bargaining agreement, as interpreted by the
 Arbitrator, and denied the Union's grievance.  The Arbitrator also
 retained jurisdiction of the matter to resolve any dispute concerning
 application of the award.  The Union subsequently invoked the
 Arbitrator's retained jurisdiction, contending that management had not
 complied with the Arbitrator's interpretation of the agreement in a
 number of instances.  By letter of July 12, 1983, the Arbitrator
 essentially found that the Activity had not violated the award as
 alleged, denied the Union's complaint and referred the parties to
 pertinent language in his November 17, 1982 award.  On August 16, 1983,
 the Union again wrote to the Arbitrator, this time requesting
 clarification of the award as interpreted and applied in the
 Arbitrator's July 12 letter.  The Arbitrator responded by letter of
 August 29, 1983, essentially reiterating pertinent portions of his
 award.  The Union then filed the instant exceptions with the Authority
 on September 27, 1983.
 
    Under section 7122(b) of the Statute, as amended, /1/ and section
 2425.1(b) of the Authority's Rules and Regulations, as amended, /2/
 which amendments are applicable to exceptions to arbitration awards
 pending or filed with the Authority on or after March 2, 1984, and under
 sections 2429.21 and 2429.22 of the Rules and Regulations, which are
 also applicable to computation of the time limit here involved, any
 exceptions to the Arbitrator's award of November 17, 1982 had to be
 filed with the Authority by the close of business on December 21, 1982.
 Thus, it immediately and clearly appears that the exceptions filed by
 the Union on September 27, 1983 are untimely.  The Union, however,
 apparently takes the position that its exceptions are timely filed from
 the Arbitrator's award "as clarified" by his letter of August 29, 1983.
 
    As the Authority recently held in Portsmouth Naval Shipyard and
 Federal Employees Metal Trades Council, AFL-CIO, 15 FLRA No. 28 (1984),
 the fact that an arbitrator retains jurisdiction of a matter to resolve
 problems that might arise concerning the award does not deprive the
 award of finality or extend the time limit for filing exceptions to the
 award with the Authority.  Nor does a request for clarification and the
 mere possibility of modification of the award by the arbitrator render
 the award interlocutory.  Unless the arbitrator, in response to the
 request, modifies the award in such a way as to give rise to alleged
 deficiencies, the time period begins with the award and not with the
 arbitrator's response to the request.
 
    In terms of this case, the Arbitrator did not modify his November 17,
 1982 award in any way in response to the Union's request.  Rather, in
 his responses, the Arbitrator essentially reiterated pertinent portions
 of his award and determined, contrary to the Union's allegations, that
 the Activity had complied with the award.  Thus, the time limit for
 filing exceptions to the Arbitrator's award began on the date the award
 was served on the parties, i.e., November 17, 1982, and expired on
 December 21, 1982.  The exceptions filed by the Union on September 27,
 1983 are therefore untimely.
 
    Accordingly, the Union's exceptions are hereby dismissed.
 
    For the Authority.
 
    Issued, Washington, D.C., July 24, 1984
                                       Jan K. Bohren, Executive
                                       Director/Administrator
 
 
 
 
 
 
 --------------- FOOTNOTES$ ---------------
 
 
    /1/ Section 7122(b) of the Statute was amended by the Civil Service
 Miscellaneous Amendme4ts Act of 1983 (Pub. L. No. 98-224, Sec. 4, 98
 Stat. 47, 48 (1984)) to provide that the time limit for filing
 exceptions to an arbitrator's award begins on the date of the award is
 served on the filing party.
 
 
    /2/ 49 Fed.Reg. 22623 (1984).