Source: http://openjurist.org/418/f3d/1068/national-treasury-employees-union-v-federal-labor-relations-authority
Timestamp: 2013-12-05 22:40:36
Document Index: 364918354

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 7123', '§ 7101', '§ 7114', '§ 7105', '§ 7114', 'art 551', 'art 551']

418 F3d 1068 National Treasury Employees Union v. Federal Labor Relations Authority | OpenJurist
418 F. 3d 1068 - National Treasury Employees Union v. Federal Labor Relations Authority	Home418 f3d 1068 national treasury employees union v. federal labor relations authority
418 F3d 1068 National Treasury Employees Union v. Federal Labor Relations Authority 418 F.3d 1068
NATIONAL TREASURY EMPLOYEES UNION (NTEU), Petitioner,v.FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY, Respondent.
No. 03-74093.
Gregory O'Duden, General Counsel, Barbara A. Atkin, Deputy General Counsel, and Julie M. Wilson, Assistant Counsel, Washington, D.C., for the petitioner.
David M. Smith, Solicitor, William R. Tobey, Deputy Solicitor, and David M. Shewchuk, Attorney, Washington, D.C., for the respondent.
On Petition for Review of an Order of the Federal Labor Relations Authority. FLRA No. O-NG-2667.
Before GOULD, TALLMAN, and RAWLINSON, Circuit Judges.
This petition for review of an order by the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) arises out of negotiations for a collective bargaining agreement between the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) and the Internal Revenue Service. NTEU sought to include in the agreement a provision that would provide compensation to IRS employees who are required to spend extra time commuting from home to a temporary work site within their official duty station. The IRS accepted the provision and approved the agreement.
The Secretary of the Treasury disapproved NTEU's proposed contract provision as contrary to a government-wide regulation defining "hours of work" promulgated by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). NTEU petitioned the FLRA for review of the Secretary's disapproval. The FLRA denied the petition, concluding that NTEU's proposed contract provision was nonnegotiable because it was contrary to law.
NTEU timely filed a petition for review of the FLRA's order. We have jurisdiction under 5 U.S.C. § 7123(a), and we affirm.
* The Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (FSLMRS), 5 U.S.C. §§ 7101-7135 (2000), governs labor relations for federal employees. The statute requires federal agencies to bargain in good faith with its employees over wages. See Fort Stewart Schs. v. FLRA, 495 U.S. 641, 644, 110 S.Ct. 2043, 109 L.Ed.2d 659 (1990). Agreements between an agency and its employees are subject to approval by the head of the agency; a provision may be disapproved only if it is not in accordance with applicable law, rule, or regulation. See 5 U.S.C. § 7114(c).1 Employees may challenge an agency head's disapproval through an appeal to the FLRA. See id. §§ 7105(a)(2)(E), 7117(c).
In its collective bargaining agreement with the IRS, NTEU sought to include the following provision:
The IRS accepted the provision and approved the agreement.
The Secretary of the Treasury, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 7114(c), reviewed the agreement and disapproved the language requiring pay for extra commute time as contrary to Part 551 of the OPM regulations, which covers "hours of work."2
The subpart of Part 551 that addresses "Time spent traveling" states:
An employee who travels from home before the regular workday begins and returns home at the end of the workday is engaged in normal