CollectBargain

Section 7103(a)(12) of the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute defines collective bargaining as: ". the performance of the mutual obligation of the representative of an agency and the exclusive representative of employees in an appropriate unit in the agency to meet at reasonable times and to consult and bargain in a good faith effort to reach agreement with respect to the conditions of employment affecting such employees and to execute, if requested by either party, a written document incorporating any collective bargaining agreement reached, but the obligation referred to in this paragraph does not compel either party to agree to a proposal or to make a concession."

Once certified as an exclusive representative, the union will want to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). A CBA is a contract negotiated by representatives of management and the exclusive representative. The contract is binding upon all parties: management, union, and employees. It signifies that management and the union have agreed upon terms and conditions of employment for employees in the bargaining unit.

The Statute imposes upon both unions and employers the obligation to bargain in good faith concerning conditions of employment. This obligation persists throughout the period of exclusive representation, not just when a collective bargaining agreement is being negotiated or renegotiated. Thus, if management wants to change a condition of employment, such as the working hours, it must give the unions notice of the projected change and an opportunity to negotiate.

In most negotiations, the union will normally submit its proposals to management prior to negotiating. The management team will discuss them and decide their positions with respect to each proposal. They may agree to some, others they will not agree to as proposed, others may be acceptable and they will agree to them if it becomes advantageous during the "give and take" of negotiations, and others they may feel are nonnegotiable and so won't discuss.

Generally, management and the union will first negotiate ground rules for the negotiations. This may include agreeing upon the time, date, and place of negotiations; whether or not the session will be open or closed; the order of business, who will be on the negotiation teams and who will be spokespersons; how often proposals will be tabled before impasse procedures are utilized; and whether the contract will be implemented while negotiability disputes are being decided by third parties. After the ground rules are agreed upon, the parties generally complete a memorandum of understanding (MOU) containing the provisions.

The parties then negotiate over their proposals and counter proposals. Neither side need agree to a proposal, but each must discuss it in good faith unless it falls outside the scope of bargaining. If the parties cannot agree on a proposal, there are a variety of processes available to them to resolve the matter, starting first with mediation. If that fails, a third party, the Federal Service Impasses Panel, will intervene and impose an agreement upon the parties.

RELATED TOPIC: Interest-Based Bargaining; Negotiations