FMCS | 250 E St. SW, Washington, D.C. 20427 | 202-606-8100 | www.fmcs.gov

NEWS RELEASE

Tuesday, June 26, 2018 Contact: John Arnold

For Immediate Release Director, Public Affairs

Website: www.fmcs.gov Phone: 202-606-8100

Announcement: FMCS Announces Key Personnel Positions

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) Acting Director, Rich 

Giacolone announced on June 26 during a regularly-scheduled managers’ meeting that, effective 

immediately, FMCS Commissioner Gary Hattal will be replacing John Pinto as Deputy Director of Field 

Operations in preparation for Pinto’s upcoming retirement.

Pinto served FMCS for almost 30 years, beginning his career as a field mediator in 1988 and assuming 

the duties of Deputy Director, Field Operations in 2016.

The Deputy Director, Field Operations oversees the FMCS field office structure and ensures maximum 

support to all field staff, including administrative assistants, mediators, and managers.

Hattal has been with FMCS since 1995 and has served as a field mediator in three field stations 

(Washington, D.C., Oakland, CA and Seattle, WA), director of Arbitration Services for the FMCS, director 

of the FMCS Institute for Conflict Management, and as a special assistant to the FMCS’s former Agency 

Director. He has served across a variety of arenas including dispute settlement, preventive mediation, 

training, assessment, coaching, and facilitation skills to achieve enhanced work relationships. He has 

varied and extensive experience in the phases of interest-based negotiations procedures, organizational 

culture, and labor-management partnership development. 

Prior to receiving his FMCS appointment, Hattal’s experience includes over 15 years of labor relations 

representation, contract negotiations, and has served as an adjunct professor for numerous colleges and 

universities.

Giacolone also announced that FMCS Commissioner David Thaler will be transitioning to a new position 

as Senior Advisor to the Director’s Office. In this capacity, Thaler will advise and support senior 

managers in the Office of the Director in policy development and implementation. 

Thaler, previously based out of the Metro New York field office, mediated disputes involving collective 

bargaining, and designed and facilitated labor-management committee cooperation efforts involving 

major hospitals and unions in the New York City area. He also trained labor and management partners in 

a variety of industries in core relationship and communications skills so that they could excel in the 

administration phase of their collective bargaining agreements. Prior to joining FMCS, Thaler practiced 

employment and commercial litigation in New York City, handling cases involving employment-related 

statutes such as the Fair Labor Standards Act and Title VII. He later served as an International Programs 

Officer with the Bureau of International Labor Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor. 

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FMCS | 2100 K St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20427 | 202-606-8100 | www.fmcs.gov

The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, created in 1947, is an independent U.S. government 

agency whose mission is to preserve and promote labor-management peace and cooperation. 

Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 10 district offices and more than 60 field offices, the agency 

provides mediation and conflict resolution services to industry, government agencies and communities.

Photo Caption:

WASHINGTON, DC (June 26, 2018) Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) Acting Director, 

Rich Giacolone (second from right) announces at a regularly-scheduled managers’ meeting his selection 

of FMCS commissioners Gary Hattal (right) and David Thaler to serve as the new Deputy Director of Field 

Operations and Senior Advisor to the Director’s Office, respectively. (FMCS Photo/Released)