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42nd Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service

Arbitration Symposium

Atlantic City, NJ

October 12-13, 2023

Speaker Biographies
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Table of Contents

Click on each name to be taken directly to the biography. 

Richard Adelman......................................................................................................................................................................3

Robert Baron.............................................................................................................................................................................4

Ezio Borchini............................................................................................................................................................................5

Dean Burrell .............................................................................................................................................................................6

Jessica C. Caggiano ..................................................................................................................................................................7

Lisa Charles..............................................................................................................................................................................8

Ralph H. Colflesh .....................................................................................................................................................................9

Ira Cure.................................................................................................................................................................................10

Jane Desimone........................................................................................................................................................................11

Pete Donatello.........................................................................................................................................................................12

Robert L. Douglas.................................................................................................................................................................13

Deborah Gaines ......................................................................................................................................................................14

Keith D. Greenberg.................................................................................................................................................................15

Kathy Hall............................................................................................................................................................................16

Barbara Lichtman ...................................................................................................................................................................17

Michelle Miller-Kotula...........................................................................................................................................................18

Arthur Pearlstein.....................................................................................................................................................................19

Earl Pfeffer.. ...........................................................................................................................................................................20

Javier Ramirez ........................................................................................................................................................................21

Haydeé Rosario.......................................................................................................................................................................22

Mary Ellen Shea .....................................................................................................................................................................23

Arthur R. Thibault Jr...............................................................................................................................................................24
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Richard Adelman

Richard Adelman was born and raised in the Bronx. He has a B.S. from Syracuse University (1961), 

and a J.D. (1964) and an LL.M in Labor Law (1972) from New York University School of Law. After 

Law School, he was a law clerk for U.S. District Judge Gus J. Solomon in Portland, Oregon, a 

Teaching Fellow at Stanford Law School, and an attorney for two years at the Appellate Court 

Branch of the NLRB in Washington, D.C. From July 1968, until January 1991, Dick practiced labor 

law in NYC, working for Ted Kheel. He began to arbitrate labor disputes in 1969, while in private 

practice, and became a full-time labor arbitrator in 1991. Dick was admitted to the National 

Academy of Arbitrators in 1993, and he has served as Chair of the New York Region, and on the 

Board of Governors of the Academy. Over the years, Dick has mentored many new labor 

arbitrators.

During his many years as an arbitrator, Dick has handled more than 5000 disputes over a wide 

range of issues in almost every industry, and in both the public and private sectors, and he has 

issued some 2500 opinions. For 20 years, Dick was the impartial umpire in the newspaper industry 

for the Mailers Union and Newspaper Deliverers Union, and for 12 years he was the impartial chair 

for contract disputes for Local 100, TWU and the New York City Transit Authority. Dick has served 

on many arbitration panels, and currently serves on panels for CWA & AT&T; TWU Local 555 & 

Southwest Airlines; Local 804, IBT & UPS; Local 2110, UAW & Columbia University; Local 1181, ATU 

& the School Bus and AAR industry; and numerous construction industry Project Labor 

Agreements, among others. Dick has been married to Anita for over 50 years, and he tries to 

mediate among three children, their spouses, and eight grandchildren.
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Robert Baron

Robert (Rob) Barron has been a full-time Arbitrator and Mediator since 2017, focusing 

primarily on labor arbitration and employment mediation. He is a member of the National 

Academy of Arbitrators. From 2007 through 2016, Rob served in a variety of roles as a senior 

executive at NFI (National Freight), one of the largest logistics companies in North America. 

Initially, Rob was NFI’s General Counsel, and from 2014 through 2016, ran NFI’s Canadian 

division, with offices across Canada, and in the U.S. and Chile. Prior to working for NFI, Rob 

worked for fifteen years at Philadelphia Newspapers Inc., publisher of the Philadelphia 

Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com. He ultimately served as PNI’s General Counsel and VP of 

Labor Relations. Rob started his career as a labor and employment attorney at Pepper 

Hamilton in Philadelphia. He received a B.A. from Clark University and a J.D. from Villanova 

University School of Law.
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Ezio Borchini

Ezio Borchini has arbitrated for the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, Education, Homeland 

Security, Interior, Justice, Labor, State, and Social Security Administration, Veterans 

Administration, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Library of Congress, Architect of the Capitol, 

and for NBPC, AFGE, NFFE, NAAE, and NTEU.
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Dean Burrell

Dean Burrell has worked with the National Labor Relations Board, major management side law 

firms, as VP of Labor for a Fortune 300 corporation, and as adjunct labor law professor.

Dean completed his B.S. from the Cornell University School of Industrial & Labor Relations 

(past president Alumni Association); J.D. from American University; LL.M in Labor and 

Employment from Georgetown University and has completed the Cornell ILR Scheinman 

Institute Labor Arbitrator Development Program.

Panel memberships include the American Arbitration Association, Federal Mediation and 

Conciliation Service, Office of Contract Administration (Local 32BJ SEIU and Realty Advisory 

Board), Postal Panel-APWU, United Federation of Teachers-NYC panel (previously), NJ 

Mediation Board, NJ PERC, NY PERB, Port Authority Employment Relations Panel, National 

Mediation Board, and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. Dean is a mediator for NJ and 

NY Courts and EEOC.

Dean was recently inducted as a Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. He 

belongs to the NJ State Bar L+E Executive Committee, formerly editorial staff L+E Quarterly, 

Diversity Committee, Dispute Resolution Section (chair), Minorities in the Profession Section 

(former chair). He is past president of Arizona LERA and past secretary of NJ LERA, past 

president of the Garden State Bar (the NJ National Bar Association affiliate), chair of NBA-ADR 

Section, master of the Bench Reitman L+E Inn of Court, L+E and ADR sections of the ABA, NBA, 

and NYS Bar.
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Jessica C. Caggiano

Jessica C. Caggiano is a partner at Willig, Williams, and Davidson, where she concentrates her 

practice on labor law, advocating for union and worker rights at a time when these rights have 

never been more important. Her work includes handling labor arbitrations, contract bargaining 

and litigation for public and private sector unions. She frequently presents, publishes, and 

trains on a variety of issues, including grievance and arbitration, social media, medical 

marijuana, and wage equity.

She obtained her law degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, graduated 

magna cum laude, and served as Senior Articles Editor of the University of Pittsburgh Law 

Review. She also obtained a B.A. from York College of Pennsylvania, where she graduated 

magna cum laude with a major in Political Science and minors in Business Administration and 

Human Resource Management.

Jessica is licensed to practice law in both Pennsylvania and New York. Before joining the firm, 

Jessica worked tirelessly on behalf of public-sector workers as counsel for the New York State 

Public Employees Federation, AFL-CIO (PEF) and as associate staff counsel at the Pennsylvania 

State Education Association (PSEA). For over 6 years, she was a member of USW Local 9265, 

where she also served as a union health benefits committee member.
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Lisa Charles

Lisa Charles is a full-time, neutral arbitrator, mediator, and factfinder. She resolves union and 

management workplace disputes in the public and private sectors. Ms. Charles is a member of 

the National Academy of Arbitrators.

She is listed on a variety of labor arbitration rosters, i.e., American Arbitration Association 

(AAA), Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), National Mediation Board, as well 

as state appointing agencies for arbitrators in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and U.S. 

Virgin Islands. She is also on permanent panels for the Department of Education in New York 

City, the Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police, and the Maryland Transit Authority.

Ms. Charles received her master’s degree in labor and Employment Relations from Rutgers 

University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and her bachelor’s degree in journalism from The 

Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. She receives annual training certificates from the 

National Academy of Arbitrators, the FMCS Symposium, and National Association of Railroad 

Referees.

She worked as an adjunct professor at Rutgers University, and Mercer County Community 

College teachiing classes on Labor and Employee Relations, Collective Bargaining, Conflict 

Resolution, Negotiations, and Diversity in Organizations.

She was formerly the Director of Employee Relations at Dow Jones & Company, which 

publishes The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, and other periodicals. She was a member of the 

negotiating team, which negotiated changes to collective bargaining agreements. Ms. Charles 

gained experience resolving workplace disputes by mediating such issues as discharge, 

discipline, discrimination, contract interpretation, management rights, past practice, 

subcontracting, seniority rights and layoff procedures.

Ms. Charles is the Past President of the Philadelphia Labor and Employment Relations 

Association (LERA), Past President of the New Jersey LERA, and a member of the New York City 

LERA.
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Ralph H. Colflesh

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS: National Academy of Arbitrators; American Arbitration 

Association

EDUCATION: BA English Juniata College; JD Law Rutgers University School of Law; MA English 

Villanova University

CERTIFICATIONS: Attorney; Video Arbitration Capable; In Person Ready; Law - Supreme Court 

of NJ 1980; Law - Supreme Court of Pa 1980

INDUSTRIES: Automotive, Bakery, Brewery, Broadcasting, Canning, Cement, Chemicals, Coal, 

Communications, Construction, Dairy, Distillery, Education, Electronics, Food 

menu/proc/service, Health care, Hotels/motels/casinos/resorts, Machinery, Maritime, Meat 

packing, Metal fabrication, Nuclear energy, Paint & varnish, Plastics, Police & fire, Pulp & 

paper, Stone/quarry, Textile, Transportation, Trucking & Storage.

ISSUES: Arbitrability, Bargaining unit work, Cost-of-living pay, Demotion, Discipline (discharge), 

Discipline (non-discharge), Discrimination, Drug/alcohol offenses, Fringe benefits, 

Health/hospitalization, Incentive pay, Job classification & rates, Job performance, Job 

posting/bidding, Jurisdictional dispute, Layoffs/bumping/recall, Management rights, Merit pay, 

Official time, Past practices, Pension and welfare plans, Safety/health conditions, Seniority, 

Strikes/lockouts/work stoppages/slowdowns, Subcontracting/contracting out, Vacation pay, 

Working conditions/work orders

PERMANENT PANELS: New Jersey Teacher Tenure Arbitration Panel; Merck and USW Panel 

(Rahway, NJ and West Point, PA; United Mine Workers of America and Biuminous Coal 

Operators District 31 Panel District; United Mine; Workers and Reading Anthracite Panel; 

Maryland Transit Administration and ATU Local 1300 Panel; Philadelphia and FOP Lodge 5 

Disability Panel; City of Scranton and FOP and IAFF Disability Panel; City of Allentown, PA and 

FOP Disability Panel; Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority

ARBITRATION ROSTERS: FMCS Arbitration Roster; American Arbitration Association National 

Labor Roster; American Arbitration Association National Employment Panel
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Ira Cure

Ira Cure is presently a full-time labor arbitrator and mediator. He is a member of the National 

Academy of Arbitrators and is Chair of the NAA’s Region 2. He serves on the following arbitration 

panels: American Arbitration Association’s Labor Panel; American Arbitration Association’s 

Employment Panel; New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission Interest Arbitration 

Panel; New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission Discipline Panel; Federal Mediation 

and Conciliation Service; New York Public Employment Relations Board Public and Private Sector 

Panels; New York City Office of Collective Bargaining; New Jersey State Board of Mediation; 

National Mediation Board; New York City and State Teacher Tenure Panels, New Jersey Teacher 

Tenure Panel, and the State of New Jersey Judiciary and the Probation Association of New 

Jersey. 

Mr. Cure is also named as an umpire under several private sector collective bargaining 

agreements. He is a member of the New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission’s 

Mediation Panel, the New York State Public Employment Relations Board Mediation Panel and 

the FINRA Mediation Panel. Prior to becoming a full time neutral in 2010, Mr. Cure was a 

member of the following firms where he represented unions, employee benefit funds and 

individuals in employment matters: Lewis Greenwald Kennedy Lewis Clifton & Schwartz 

(Associate 1984-1991, Partner 1991-1995); Kennedy Schwartz & Cure, PC (Partner 1995-2005); 

Broach & Stulberg, LLP (Counsel 2005-2008). In addition, Mr. Cure was Senior Counsel of the 

Writers Guild of America, East, Inc. (2008-2010). 

While in practice, Mr. Cure appeared in numerous judicial and administrative fora. As a member 

of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Mr. Cure chaired the sub-committee that 

drafted the Bar Associations Employment Law Handbook for Non-Lawyers, August 2006.

Mr. Cure has taught Labor and Employment Arbitration as an adjunct professor at St. John’s 

University School of Law. He is a 1975 graduate of the State University of New York at 

Binghamton, he has a master’s degree from the Labor Relations and Research Center at the 

University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and he is a 1983 graduate of Brooklyn Law School 

where he was a member of the law review.
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Jane Desimone

Jane Desimone, Esq., has devoted her profession entirely to the field of labor arbitration since 

1999. After a B.S. degree in Biology from Kent State University in 1987, she earned her J.D. 

from Cleveland State University/Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1991. A member of the 

National Academy of Arbitrators since 2010 and a panelmember of AAA, FMCS, SERB, and

Pennsylvania Bureau of Mediation, she has 24 years of experience in grievance and interest 

arbitration. She also serves as a neutral arbitrator for Pennsylvania Heart & Lung matters. Her 

practice is both in the public and private sectors, interpreting a myriad of collective bargaining 

issues. 

Her philosophy is that her role as an arbitrator is to foster the ongoing healthy relationship 

between the employer and the Union. With billing offices in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and 

Lakewood, Ohio, her caseload takes her throughout the east coast and Midwest states. 
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Pete Donatello

Prior to joining FMCS, Mr. Donatello worked with the United Food & Commercial Workers Union 

Local 342- 50, and International Leather Goods, Plastics and Novelty Workers Union.

Mr. Donatello was chosen as the lead mediator in FMCS TAGS programs for the Iron Workers 

Construction Industry and the Bergen County (NJ) Emergency Management Terrorism Task Force. 

He has been involved in dispute mediation in a wide array of industries, including health care and 

manufacturing, and in several high-profile cases including MLB, NFLRA, Westchester County Bus 

strike, and the USMX-NYSA & ILA East Coast Gulf Ports negotiations.

He also assisted with the design of the New York City Police Department, Department of 

Community Affairs Mediation Training Program and served as lead mediator in Peer Mediation 

Training at Cumberland County (NJ) Regional High School. Mr. Donatello has served as an adjunct 

Professor at Rutgers University School of Management and Labor Relations in New Brunswick, NJ.
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Robert L. Douglas

Robert L. Douglas is an Attorney, Mediator, and Arbitrator. He has a B.S. from the NYS School of 

Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University; a J.D. from Hofstra Law School, where he 

served as the Managing Editor of the Law Review; and an LL.M. in Labor Law from the New York 

University Schoolof Law. He has over forty years of experience in dispute resolution (mediation 

and arbitration) in workplace disputes in the public and private sectors throughout theUnited

States. He served as an Assistant Dean and Special Professor of Law (in Dispute Resolution, 

Employment Law,Labor Arbitration, Labor Law, and Sports Law) at the Hofstra University Law 

Schoolfrom 1982-1994. He has experience as an Apprentice Electrician in Local 3 IBEW and the 

NYC Construction Industry. He frequently teaches arbitrator and mediator ethicsforthe

American Arbitration Association, Cornell University, and professional organizations throughout 

the United States. 

He has published articles about arbitrator ethics, disclosure by arbitrators, and about remedies 

for violations of the National Labor Relations Act,as amended. He published an article about 

employment discrimination titled "The Griggs Fable Ignored: The Far-Reaching Impact of a False 

Premise, 33 Hofstra Labor & Employment Law Journal 41 (2015) (reprinted by NYS Bar 

Association; described by United States Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel A.Alito,Jr. as

"interesting" and "perceptive”). He is a member of the National Academy of Arbitrators and of 

the New York and District ofColumbia Bars. He is admitted to practice before the United States 

Supreme Court and other courts. 
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Deborah Gaines

Deborah is a full-time arbitrator and mediator. Her practice focuses mainly on resolution of 

labor-management and employment disputes in the public and private sectors. Her cases 

involve contractual, statutory, disciplinary, and common law claims in a wide range of 

industries. She has over 30 years of experience in labor and employment. First as an advocate 

and since 2008 as a full-time arbitrator and mediator. She has been selected to arbitrate 

and/or mediate over 1,600 cases. She is a member of the National Academy of Arbitrators and 

was Chair of the NY/NJ metro region chapter of the NAA.

Deborah serves on several arbitration rosters, including the FMCS, AAA, NYC Office of 

Collective Bargaining, NYS Employment Relations Board, NJ State Board of Mediation; New 

Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission and the Washington D.C. Public Employment 

Relations Board. In addition, she serves on permanent panels in various industries, including 

education, entertainment, municipal government, higher education, and manufacturing.

Deborah was a Chapter editor for the 2nd and 3rd Editions of Discipline and Discharge in 

Arbitration. She has also been a speaker and trainer at many labor-management conferences 

and seminars. She received her J.D. from Hofstra University School of Law and her B.S. from 

Cornell University.
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Keith D. Greenberg

Keith D. Greenberg is an arbitrator and mediator of private, public, and federal sector labor 

and employment disputes. He is a member of the National Academy of Arbitrators (NAA) and 

serves on its Board of Governors. He serves on several labor arbitration panels and rosters, 

including those maintained by the American Arbitration Association (AAA), the Federal 

Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), and the National Mediation Board. Mr. Greenberg 

also serves on permanent labor arbitration panels in the private, public, and federal sectors, 

and regularly adjudicates disputes involving EEO and unfair labor practice complaints. He has 

presided as sole arbitrator and as the neutral member of tripartite panels. He also serves as a 

neutral overseeing representation elections. Mr. Greenberg is listed on employment 

arbitration panels maintained and administered by the AAA and the CPR Institute, among 

other rosters, as well as the AAA’s ERISA and MPPAA arbitration panels. 

Mr. Greenberg is an experienced mediator, serving as a mediator on various rosters, including 

the AAA’s roster of employment mediators and its panel of labor mediators. Mr. Greenberg 

has experience with videoconference arbitration and mediation proceedings and has served as 

a trainer for video arbitration and mediation programs. He serves as the Technology 

Coordinator for the NAA and is co-author of a chapter in Labor and Employment Arbitration 

(Bornstein, Gosline, Greenbaum, and Mayberry, Eds.) (Matthew Bender) on conducting video 

hearings.

Mr. Greenberg spent several years in practice as an attorney in New York City in the labor and 

employment practice group of Duane Morris LLP prior to establishing his practice as a full-time 

neutral in the Washington, D.C. area. He is a graduate of the Cornell University School of 

Industrial and Labor Relations and of the University of Michigan Law School.
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Kathy Hall

Currently, Ms. Hall serves as the Field Operations Manager for Region 2, covering central and 

eastern Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Washington, DC, Virginia, North Carolina, South 

Carolina, and Florida. Over the course of her career Ms. Hall has held several leadership 

positions spanning numerous industries in private and federal sector including healthcare, 

non- profit and human services, gaming/hospitality, retail, and agriculture. She has experience 

in leadership and organizational change management, mediation and facilitation of complex 

workplace issues, work in the Diversity and Inclusion arena, alternative dispute resolution, and 

collective bargaining. She has developed and delivered a wide variety of training programs 

geared to an outcome of a productive, inclusive, and engaged workforce. Ms. Hall has 

previously served on several national committees for the National Council on Federal Labor–

Management as well as co- chaired Labor Management Committees/Partnership Forums at 

the local and national levels.

Ms. Hall has been a Labor advocate with Teamster, Local 776, while working as a correctional 

officer. Additionally, was a member of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers & Grain 

Millers International, Local Union 464, working for the Milton Hershey School. Later in her 

career, transitioning to a management advocate, fulfilled roles as a Regional Human Resource 

Manager and Labor Relations Officer servicing multiple geographical locations nationwide.

Ms. Hall is a graduate of Penn State University with a B.S. in Psychology and a graduate of Saint 

Francis University with a master’s in human resources. She has previously held professional 

certification as a SHRM Senior Certified Practitioner (SHRM- SCP) and certified as a Senior 

Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) by HRCI. Ms. Hall is or has been a member of the 

Society for Human Resources (SHRM) and Human Resource Professionals of Central 

Pennsylvania.
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Barbara Lichtman

Barbara Lichtman was appointed Commissioner to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation 

Service in August 1992. She has been involved in mediations in all industries including 

broadcasting, health care, pharmaceuticals, warehousing, trucking, food service, utilities, 

entertainment, distribution, and education. She has represented the Agency in international 

training efforts in Mexico City and Bangkok, has been the recipient of multiple FMCS 

performance awards in recognition of her work. 

Commissioner Lichtman mediates collective bargaining negotiations, grievances, to avoid 

arbitration. Gives training on traditional and interest based collective bargaining, contract 

administration, labor-management cooperation and relationship building programs presented 

to a multitude of labor and management representatives from aerospace to zookeepers with a 

high concentration on health care. Commissioner Lichtman has coordinated the annual FMCS 

Arbitration Symposium since 2012. She has been involved in more than 1,000 negotiations,

arbitrations and grievance mediations, presented at various national, regional and 

international conferences on conflict-related topics. Prior to her appointment, she was in 

private practice as an arbitrator. 

Commissioner Lichtman’s labor relations experience came primarily from her tenure with 

District 1199C, National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees. She worked as an 

administrative organizer, becoming Exec Vice President of District 1199C, Philadelphia and 

national Vice President of 1199, representing 150,000 health care employees throughout the 

United States. She was responsible for negotiating collective bargaining agreements primarily 

at hospitals and behavioral health facilities throughout the Philadelphia region and 

administering these agreements, along with her staff, including arbitrating cases when 

necessary and training stewards on grievance handling. Ms. Lichtman served as a trustee on

several joint funds, including health, pension, legal, and training. She resigned from her 

positions after 11 years in 1988, to move overseas. 

Commissioner Lichtman is or has been a member of LERA, American Arbitration Association, 

Jewish Labor Committee, Jewish Business Network and the Ethnic Labor Committee and 

various organizations focused on the autism population.
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Michelle Miller-Kotula

Michelle Miller-Kotula, a full-time labor arbitrator and mediator, established her practice in 

2006. Prior to becoming a neutral, Michelle worked in local government as the Director of 

Human Resources for the County of Washington, PA and worked in related capacities during 

her 16 years of employment with the County. Additionally, she worked extensively with her 

father, a labor arbitrator during that time. 

She received her master’s degree in human resources management & Industrial Relations from 

St. Francis University, Loretto, Pennsylvania, and her bachelor’s degree in business 

administration & Management from Saint Vincent College, Latrobe, Pennsylvania. 

Michelle is a member of the National Academy of Arbitrators and is listed with the Federal 

Mediation and Conciliation Service, American Arbitration Association, Pennsylvania Bureau of 

Mediation, Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, SERB of Ohio, National Mediation Board and 

serves as a permanent arbitrator and factfinder on several other panels. She is a frequent 

trainer and speaker on various arbitration subjects. She served as the Region Chair for the 

Western Pennsylvania National Academy of Arbitrators for over five years. Michelle is involved 

in the Western Pennsylvania LERA chapter and is an officer. She is also a member of the Saint 

Vincent Alumni Council and previously served as its first female president. She volunteers in 

her local community and has served as the former PTO President, youth cheer coach and is 

involved in other local organizations. 

She has served as a trainer for advocate and arbitrator programs for the FMCS and the 

National Academy of Arbitrators on numerous occasions. 

Ms. Miller-Kotula’s office is in Washington, Pennsylvania.
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Arthur Pearlstein

As Director of Arbitration at FMCS, Arthur Pearlstein oversees all major aspects of the 

arbitration program. He provides training to advocates as well as arbitrators, oversees 

enforcement of the Code of Professional Responsibility, conducts outreach to the labormanagement community, develops policy, and serves as a subject- matter expert. Arthur is an 

elected fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers.

In addition to his work in labor arbitration, Arthur has a substantial background in mediation, 

facilitation, negotiation, and the design of dispute resolution systems in the workplace, with 

experience as a practitioner, manager, professor, and trainer. Over his 15 years with FMCS, in 

addition to his current position, he has served as a field mediator, as general counsel, and as 

head of the Agency’s ADR and International Program. In his capacity as a Senior Mediator with 

FMCS, Arthur mediates important cases, trains mediators, and consults with major 

organizations on the design of dispute resolution systems. He has also served as the head of 

the Federal Shared Neutrals program, spearheading its transition to FMCS.

Arthur was inaugural director of the Werner Institute for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution 

and Professor of Law at Creighton University in Omaha, where he developed an 

interdisciplinary master's degree program in negotiation and ADR. He is co- author of a 

textbook on dispute resolution in which he authored the chapter on arbitration (Dispute 

Resolution: Readings and Case Studies, 3rd Ed. 2011, Edmond Montgomery pub.) He was a 

contributing author of The Legal Guide to Human Resources (West) and wrote sections on 

dispute resolution. He also authored the FMCS Guide to Video Arbitration for Labor and 

Management advocates.

Arthur received his J.D. with honors from Harvard Law School, holds a master’s in dispute 

resolution from the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at University in California, and a 

B.A. from Haverford College in Pennsylvania.
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Earl Pfeffer

Earl R. Pfeffer has worked for the past 25 years as a full-time labor arbitrator and mediator and 

has 40 years’ experience in labor relations. As a member of the National Academy of 

Arbitrators, Earl maintains a varied arbitration practice in the New York City Metropolitan Area 

and is named as a permanent arbitrator in dozens of public and private sector agreements.

A lawyer by training, he previously was a partner at the firm Cohen, Weiss and Simon, where 

he handled hundreds of arbitrations on behalf of the firm’s Union clients, and thereafter 

served as Deputy Director of the New York City Office of Collective Bargaining, acting as 

principal mediator of disputes between NYC and its municipal unions.

In his free time, Earl enjoys long distance cycling, and this past summer spent a week riding his 

bicycle in the Italian Alps. Prior to attending the law school of University at Buffalo, he was a 

doctoral student in Anthropology at Columbia University. He has resided the past 30 years in 

Montclair, New Jersey.
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Javier Ramirez

Javier Ramirez began his FMCS career as a Commissioner in 2005. Currently Javier is a 

member of the U.S. Senior Executive Staff serving as the FMCS Deputy Director of Field

Operations responsible for leading all U.S. Federal Mediators. President Biden nominated Mr.

Ramirez to be the 20th Director of FMCS in June 2021.

Javier mediated/facilitated disputes in all sectors of the economy, (except air and rail) in 

professions such as entertainment, public safety, education, hospitality, healthcare,

manufacturing, and food processing, to name just a few. He was on the facilitation team for 

several regulatory negotiations, including the Department of Energy (DOE) negotiations that

resulted in the largest energy-saving rule in DOE history. Javier also trained and successfully 

facilitated parties in various collaborative bargaining models. Notably, Javier collaborated with 

colleagues to create the FMCS Affinity Bargaining model. He represented the Agency in 

International efforts in Bangladesh, New Zealand, and Taiwan.

Additionally, Javier is regularly requested to present on conflict management topics. He was 

a guest lecturer on labor relations and conflict management at the University of Illinois, 

University of Colorado Boulder, National Defense University, Harvard, Cornell, Columbia, and 

other universities.

Prior to FMCS, Javier spent over fourteen years in labor relations, negotiating contracts, and 

resolving disputes in areas such as immigration, contract administration, communication,

staffing, and politics (Federal, State, and Local). His efforts have been featured in Rolling 

Stone, Chicago Tribune Magazine, Chicago Lawyer Magazine, cited in the New York Times 

Best Seller Fast Food Nation, and recognized by the College of Labor and Employment 

Lawyers.
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Haydeé Rosario

Haydeé is an attorney and member of the National Academy of Arbitrators with over 30 years 

of experience in labor-management relations dedicated exclusively to providing arbitration and 

mediation services. She has substantial experience in both the private and public sectors with 

issues related to contract interpretation/application, collective bargaining units, discharge and 

disciplinary actions, competency, discrimination, management rights, past practice, health & 

welfare, job bid/posting, layoff/bumping/recall, subcontracting, hiring hall, and seniority rights. 

She is also experienced in sports anti-doping arbitration.

As a bilingual Arbitrator and Mediator (Spanish/English), she has a wide-ranging experience 

working with a diverse work force throughout the United States, Puerto 

Haydeé also serves as a permanent member of various arbitration organizations as well as

numerous panels of arbitrators.

In 2006, after working for over fourteen years as an attorney at the National Labor Relations 

Board, Region 29, she joined the New York City Department of Education, Office of Labor 

Relations, where she represented the agency until 2007 in legal and labor relations matters 

related to all the collective bargaining agreements between the agency and scores of labor 

organizations representing approximately 135,000 employees.

Haydeé was born and raised in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. She was admitted to the New York Bar 

in 1991. She holds a BA in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Connecticut and J.D. 

from Queens College, CUNY Law School.
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Mary Ellen Shea

Mary Ellen Shea is an arbitrator in private practice serving private and public sector industries 

since 1988. Ms. Shea is the co-chair of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) 

Committee of the National Academy of Arbitrators for the New England Region.

Ms. Shea earned her degrees from Northeastern University and Harvard University and 

completed the Program on Negotiation and Dispute Resolution at Harvard Law School. Ms. 

Shea has served as adjunct faculty at University of Rhode Island and Antioch College and as 

visiting Instructor at University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
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Arthur R. Thibault Jr.

Arthur R. Thibault Jr. is a partner in the law firm of Apruzzese, McDermott, Mastro & Murphy 

in Liberty Corner, New Jersey, a boutique management-side labor and employmentfirm. He

has over 25 years of experience in labor negotiations with teachers, police, fire and other public 

sector unions, police and fire interest arbitration, unfair practice charges, disciplinary matters, 

grievance arbitrations, complaint investigations, and all types of proceedings before the New 

Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission. Mr. Thibault also handles employment 

litigation in state and federal courts for the firm’s clients. During his tenure, he has handled 

numerous public sector disciplinary matters and contract grievance arbitration involving all 

types of public employees. He has successfully litigated the appeal of those matters in both 

Superior Court and before administrative agencies, such as the New Jersey Civil Service 

Commission and the New Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission and argued

successfully in the Appellate Division.

Mr. Thibault is a frequent speaker at conferences on public sector labor and employment law 

issues, including at the Conference of the Association of Labor Relations Agencies, an 

international association of public and private sector governmental labor agencies, the New

Jersey Municipal Managers Association, the New Jersey League of Municipalities,the New

Jersey Public Employment Relations Commission Annual Conference, and the New Jersey 

Chiefs of Police Association. Mr. Thibault has authored several articles which have appeared 

in the New Jersey Labor and Employment Law Quarterly, New Jersey Lawyer the Magazine, 

and The New Jersey Police Chief magazine. He has been named a “Super Lawyer” in Labor and 

Employment Law by New Jersey Super Lawyer Magazine.

Mr. Thibault graduated cum laude from Cooley Law School in Michigan, where he was a 

member of Law Review. He is admitted to practice law in the state courts of New Jersey, the 

United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals,

and the United States Supreme Court.