[ v11 p105 ]
11:0105(28)UC
The decision of the Authority follows:
11 FLRA No. 28
U.S. ARMY TRAINING AND DOCTRINE COMMAND
Activity
and
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES
Labor Organization/Petitioner
Case No. 3-UC-21
DECISION AND ORDER
Upon a petition duly filed with the Federal Labor Relations Authority
under section 7112(d) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations
Statute (the Statute), a hearing was held before a hearing officer of
the Authority. The Authority has reviewed the hearing officer's rulings
made at the hearing and finds that they are free from prejudicial error.
The rulings are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in this case, including the contentions of the
parties, the Authority finds:
The National Association of Government Employees (NAGE) filed the
instant petition seeking to consolidate 11 units within the U.S. Army
Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) for which it is the exclusive
representative. /1/ The units presently represented by NAGE and covered
by the petition are set forth in the Appendix.
TRADOC contends that the proposed consolidated unit, which would
cover approximately 5,800 out of TRADOC's total civilian workforce of
38,000 employees in 11 of the 56 bargaining units (encompassing
approximately 26,800 employees) exclusively represented within TRADOC is
not appropriate for the purpose of exclusive recognition because it does
not meet the criteria established by section 7112(a)(1) of the Statute.
/2/ More specifically, it contends that the employees in the proposed
unit do not share a community of interest because they neither share a
common mission, common overall supervision, similar job classifications
and working conditions, nor similar labor relations policies and
practices. TRADOC additionally argues that the proposed consolidated
unit is not appropriate because three of the units exclusively
represented by NAGE at TRADOC's Fort Lee, Virginia facility are not
included in the petitioned for consolidated unit. /3/ It contends that
failure to include these three units would destroy an existing
multi-unit bargaining relationship and would neither serve the interests
of employees nor promote effective dealings between the parties.
Further, TRADOC argues that the mission of each of its 17 installations
is distinctly different, that each installation commander has been
delegated authority to operate and maintain the respective installation
and that the proposed consolidated unit therefore would not promote
either effective dealings or efficiency of operations.
NAGE contends that the proposed consolidated unit satisfies the
requisite criteria for consolidation under section 7112(a)(1) of the
Statute. It is NAGE's contention that the employees sought to be
included in the proposed unit share a clear and identifiable community
of interest as evidenced by such factors as a common mission, common
working conditions, and common labor relations programs and policies.
It further argues that consolidation would promote effective dealings by
providing for a more effective use of manpower and resources and by
raising negotiations to a higher, more professional level, and would
also promote the efficiency of TRADOC operations by creating a more
comprehensive bargaining unit.
TRADOC is an intermediate level, subordinate command known as a Major
Army Command of the United States Army with its headquarters at Fort
Monroe, Virginia, and is commanded by a General of the Army. In
addition to its headquarters function, TRADOC commands 17 Army
installations located in 14 states that include 24 schools, 4 Reserve
Officer Training Corps Regional Headquarters, and 3 Army Training
Support Centers. It also has several Army training centers and several
analytic, test and experimental activities. The Command headquarters
employs approximately 38,000 civilian employees and had stationed at its
various installations approximately 56,000 military personnel during
fiscal year 1980. TRADOC's mission is to prepare the Army for war by
developing operational concepts for military operations on the
integrated conventional, nuclear and chemical battlefield; by
developing and managing the system that trains the entire Army in
strategies, tactics, materiel systems, and force organizations and
structures; and by providing and operating installations and mission
support activities.
Approximately 5,800 employees at 5 installations in 11 bargaining
units are included in the proposed consolidated unit, representing about
15% of TRADOC's total civilian workforce of approximately 38,000. The
missions and functions of the 5 affected installations are different.
Fort Bliss is primarily responsible for air defense training. Fort
Eustis is the transportation and military doctrine training center for
officers and enlisted students attending the Transportation School. The
Army Training Center is also located at Fort Eustis. Fort Lee has the
responsibility of covering all aspects of logistics and is the home of
the Quartermaster Center and School. Fort Pickett, a sub-division of
Fort Lee, provides for combat training. Fort Leonard Wood trains
personnel, ranging from electricians to bridge builders and heavy
equipment operators, in engineering methodology.
Each installation has its own civilian personnel office and a
labor-management staff to deal with organizing efforts, negotiation and
administration of labor agreements, training, resolution of grievances,
and the processing of unfair labor practice charges and negotiability
appeals. There are no civilian personnel manuals supplemented by TRADOC
and, as a result, personnel policies and regulations are interpreted at
each installation by the local civilian personnel office on behalf of
the local commander. The authority to hire, appoint, transfer,
separate, discipline and bargain is vested in the local commanders and
supervisors. However, TRADOC headquarters reviews the contracts of each
installation for compliance with TRADOC and Department of the Army
regulations and reviews filings of unfair labor practice charges,
impasses and appellate matters beyond the local level.
NAGE represents 11 of the 56 bargaining units at 5 of TRADOC's 17
installations. Three of these 11 units consist exclusively of TRADOC
employees and the other eight, in addition to TRADOC employees, also
include employees who report to other major Army commands. The
multi-command units were created as a result of reorganizations within
the Department of the Army. With regard to the agreements covering the
multi-command units, they are usually signed by each employer and the
installation commander. Three of the installations included in the
petition are located in Virginia and the other two are in Missouri and
Texas, respectively. Although many of the job classifications are
similar, more than one-half are located at only one or two of the five
installations. The employees in the 11 units are not in the same area
of consideration with regard to merit promotion or reduction-in-force
actions and there is minimal interchange among the employees in the
respective units.
In Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C., 5 FLRA No. 89
(1981), the Authority dismissed petitions to consolidate units noting
that section 7112(a)(1) of the Statute requires any unit found
appropriate to conform to the three criteria established by that
section-- a clear and identifiable community of interest among the
employees in the unit; and the promotion of effective dealings with,
and the efficiency of the operations of, the agency involved. The
Authority further noted that section 7112(d) of the Statute, /4/ which
provides for the consolidation of existing units into a single more
comprehensive unit, requires that such consolidated unit meet the same
three criteria required of any proposed unit.
With regard to the community of interest criterion, the Authority
will consider the degree of commonality and integration of the mission
and function of the components involved; the distribution of the
employees involved throughout the organizational and geographical
components of the agency; the degree of similarity in the occupational
undertakings of the employees in the proposed unit; and the locus and
scope of personnel and labor relations authority and functions.
Department of the Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, 8 FLRA No. 4 (1982). As
noted above, the proposed consolidated unit herein would be limited to
employees at only 5 of the 17 TRADOC installations, and NAGE does not
represent all of the employees at any of the five. Most of the
employees included in the petition, representing only about 15% of the
TRADOC civilian workforce, have different job classifications and
working conditions because of uniqueness of mission. Others included in
the petition are not employed by TRADOC at all, but are covered at the
local level by multi-employer agreements. The job classifications and
the conditions of employment at each installation appear to relate to
specific and unique local functions. Conversely, in some instances
where the job classifications and functions of employees exclusively
represented by NAGE within TRADOC are similar at several locations
(e.g., commissary employees and firefighters), NAGE has sought to
include some of these employees within the proposed consolidated unit
while excluding others (see n. 3, supra). Further, there seems to be a
minimal amount of interchange of employees from one NAGE unit to
another. Moreover, personnel authority and control of labor relations
historically have been delegated to each local installation. Based on
these facts, the Authority finds that the petitioned for consolidated
unit would not ensure a clear and identifiable community of interest
among the employees involved and will order that the petition be
dismissed. /5/
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that the petition in Case No. 3-UC-21 be, and it hereby
is, dismissed. Issued, Washington, D.C., January 27, 1983
Ronald W. Haughton, Chairman
Henry B. Frazier III, Member
Leon B. Applewhaite, Member
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY
APPENDIX - Units Sought to be Consolidated
Unit (1) Included:
All non-supervisory Wage Grade and Classification Act employees
assigned to the Adjutant General Reproduction Branch whose duty
station is Fort Eustis, Virginia.
Excluded:
Management officials, supervisors, guards, Federal personnel
workers in other than a purely clerical capacity as defined in
Executive Order 11491, as amended.
Unit (2) Included:
All non-supervisory General Schedule employees of the U.S. Army
Transportation Center and Fort Eustis, U.S. Army Medical
Department Activities, Fort Eustis, the U.S. Army Dental
Activities with duty station at Fort Eustis, and the Fort Eustis
Commissary Store, U.S. Army Troop Support Agency.
Excluded:
Employees in other recognized bargaining units at Fort Eustis,
Virginia, professionals, management officials, employees engaged
in Federal personnel work except in a purely clerical capacity,
guards and supervisors.
Unit (3) Included:
All non-supervisory Wage Grade employees of the U.S. Army
Transportation Center and Fort Eustis, U.S. Medical Department
Activities, Fort Eustis, and the Fort Eustis Commissary Store,
U.S. Army Troop Support Agency.
Excluded:
Employees in other recognized bargaining units at Fort Eustis,
Virginia, management officials, employees engaged in Federal
personnel work except in a purely clerical capacity, guards, and
supervisors.
Unit (4) Included:
All GS and WG employees of Headquarters, Fort Monroe, Fort
Monroe, Virginia, the United States Army Health Services Command
Medical Department Activity, Fort Eustis, Virginia, and the United
States Army Communications Command Agency, Fort Monroe, Virginia.
Excluded:
Employees engaged in Federal personnel work in other than a
clerical capacity, professionals, guards, casual and/or temporary
employees.
Unit (5) Included:
All full time civilian employees of Headquarters Fort Monroe,
Fort Monroe, Virginia, the United States Army Health Services
Command Medical Department Activity, Fort Eustis, Virginia, and
the United States Army Communications Command Agency, Fort Monroe,
Virginia.
Excluded:
Management officials, supervisors, guards, employees engaged in
Federal personnel work in other than a purely clerical capacity,
professional employees, summer hire employees or other similar
special authority employees and nonappropriated fund employees,
including Army, Air Force Exchange employees.
Unit (6) Included:
All eligible Wage Grade (WG) employees within the boundaries of
the Fort Lee Reservation of the U.S. Army Quartermaster Center and
Fort Lee under the jurisdiction of the Command General, Fort Lee,
Virginia, U.S. Army Communications Command, under the jurisdiction
of the Commander, USACC Agency, Fort Lee, Virginia, and U.S. Army
Health Services Command under the jurisdiction of the Commander,
MEDDAC, Fort Lee, Virginia.
Excluded:
Commissary employees, management officials, professionals,
employees engaged in Federal personnel work except in a purely
clerical capacity, guards, and supervisors, as defined in
Executive Order 11491, as amended.
Unit (7) Included:
All eligible Wage Grade employees of the U.S. Army Garrison,
Camp Pickett, Virginia, stationed.within the boundaries of the
Camp Pickett Reservation, under the jurisdiction of the Commander,
U.S. Army Quartermaster Center and Fort Lee, Fort Lee, Virginia,
and the Commander, U.S. Army Communications Command, Fort Lee,
Virginia.
Excluded:
Management officials and supervisors, employees engaged in
Federal personnel work in other than a purely clerical capacity,
guards, and professional employees.
Unit (8) Included:
All full time, permanent, non-supervisory, appropriated fund,
Wage Grade employees stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, for whom the
Commanding General, United States Army Air Defense Center and Fort
Bliss, Fort Bliss, Texas, the Commanding Officer, U.S. Army
Communications Command Agency, Fort Bliss, Texas, and the
Commissary Officer, U.S. Army Troop Support Agency, U.S. Army
Commissary at Fort Bliss, Texas, have been delegated appointing
authority.
Excluded:
All management officials, supervisors, professional employees,
guards, non-appropriated fund employees, General Schedule (GS)
employees, employees engaged in Federal personnel work in other
than a purely clerical capacity, and all employees assigned to
tenant activities for which the Commanding General, United States
Army Air Defense Center and Fort Bliss, does not have delegated
appointing authority with the exception of the U.S. Army
Communications Command Agency, Fort Bliss, Texas and the U.S. Army
Troop Support Agency, U.S. Army Commissary at Fort Bliss, Texas.
Unit (9) Included:
All non-supervisory employees of the Fire Prevention and
Protection Division, Director of Facilities Engineering, U.S. Army
Air Defense Center and Fort Bliss, Fort Bliss, Texas.
Excluded:
All management officials, supervisors, professional employees,
any employee engaged in Federal Personnel work in other than a
purely clerical capacity and guards.
Unit (10) Included:
All full time non-supervisory General Schedule appropriated
fund employees stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, serviced by the
Fort Bliss Civilian Personnel Office, and for whom the Commanding
General, U.S. Army Air Defense Center and Fort Bliss, Fort Bliss,
Texas, the Commanding Officer, U.S. Army Communications Command
Agency, Fort Bliss, Texas, and the Commissary Officer, U.S. Army
Troop Support Agency, U.S. Army Commissary at Fort Bliss, Texas,
have been delegated appointing authority.
Excluded:
All professional employees, management officials, confidential
employees, employees of the Fire Prevention and Protection
Division, Wage Grade employees, employees engaged in Federal
personnel work in other than a purely clerical capacity, all
temporary employees employed 90 days or less, and supervisors as
defined in Executive Order 11491, as amended.
Unit (11) Included:
All Wage Grade employees of the United States Army Training
Center Engineer and Fort Leonard Wood, and all Wage Grade
employees of the United States Army Health Services Command and
the United States Army Communications Command with duty station at
Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
Excluded:
Employees of the Commissary Sales Store, employees engaged in
Federal personnel work in other than a purely clerical capacity,
management officials, supervisors and guards as defined in
Executive Order 11491, as amended.
--------------- FOOTNOTES$ ---------------
/1/ NAGE also filed a separate petition (Case No. 3-UC-18) for
consolidation of its units in the U.S. Army Materiel Development and
Readiness Command (DARCOM). The Regional Director issued an Order
Consolidating Cases in 3-UC-18 and 3-UC-21. Thereafter, a hearing was
held with respect to the petition in Case No. 3-UC-18, and a separate
hearing concerning Case No. 3-UC-21 was also conducted at a later date.
At the hearing in Case No. 3-UC-21, and in its brief to the Authority,
TRADOC took the position that the two petitions should not have been
consolidated since TRADOC and DARCOM are distinct and completely
separate entities with regard to both mission and organizational
structure. TRADOC has also requested in its brief that the two cases be
severed. The Authority agrees since the parties and the issues involved
in the two cases are not the same. Moreover, unnecessary costs or delay
would not be avoided by consolidating the two cases. Accordingly,
TRADOC's request to sever the cases is granted.
/2/ Section 7112(a)(1) 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.
/3/ There are five NAGE units at Fort Lee that are covered by one
multi-unit agreement. Only two of these five units are included in the
instant consolidation petition. All GS employees at Fort Lee would be
excluded from the proposed unit; among these are a unit of 16 GS
Firefighters, a unit of 60 WG and 35 GS commissary employees, and 111 GS
employees in a unit of 112 employees in the South East Field Office.
/4/ Section 7112(d) provides as follows:
(d) Two or more units which are in an agency and for which a
labor organization is the exclusive representative may, upon
petition by the agency or labor organization, be consolidated with
or without an election into a single larger unit if the Authority
considers the larger unit to be appropriate. The Authority shall
certify the labor organization as the exclusive representative of
the new larger unit.
/5/ Inasmuch as all three criteria of section 7112(a)(1) of the
Statute must be satisfied in order for the Authority to find that the
proposed consolidated unit is appropriate, and a failure to satisfy any
one of them must result in a finding that the unit sought is
inappropriate, see Department of the Navy, Navy Publications and
Printing Service Branch Office, Vallejo, California, 10 FLRA No. 108
(1982); Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C., 5 FLRA No. 89
(1981), the Authority's finding that the unit sought herein fails to
meet the community of interest criterion makes it unnecessary to address
the other two criteria.