Posts tagged arbitrator
The Faster Labor Contracts Act Is a Backdoor for Union Leadership’s Political Agenda
May 28, 2026 // Here's what the FLCA's backers won't say out loud: mandatory arbitration doesn't just remove workers from the ratification process, it removes union leadership from the obligation to bargain in good faith. Why negotiate seriously when running out the clock gets you a government arbitrator who is far more likely to deliver the political contract provisions your members would have voted down? The FLCA doesn't just create a shortcut. It creates an incentive to stall.
The Union Organizing Boom Has a Number They Don’t Want You to See
May 14, 2026 // The Faster Labor Contracts Act, championed by union-aligned legislators on Capitol Hill, would impose a 90-day bargaining deadline. If no deal is reached, a government-appointed arbitrator writes the contract — and workers do not get to vote on the result. Critics have pointed out that this structure actually incentivizes union negotiators to stall and run out the clock, betting an arbitrator delivers better terms than good-faith bargaining would. Workers get a contract faster. They just lose the right to approve it. The dues keep coming either way.
How the Faster Labor Contracts Act could hurt workers
May 7, 2026 // Contracts can take a long time to negotiate because one or both sides are new to the process, have unreasonable demands, and are negotiating complex terms that will affect all future contracts. It’s not uncommon for collective bargaining agreements to address dozens of workplace provisions (well beyond just pay and benefits) and to span hundreds of pages. A Bloomberg Law analysis of first contracts reached between 2004 and 2021 found an average length of 409 days between election certification and contract ratification. The Faster Labor Contracts Act would provide a maximum bargaining period of 120 days — 90 days of bargaining followed by 30 days of mediation — before either party could invoke mandatory arbitration.
Arbitrator rejects police union’s retaliation claims against Whitehall chief
March 19, 2026 // An independent arbitrator has rejected claims by the police union that Whitehall Police Chief Mike Crispen retaliated against officers, issuing a ruling this week regarding the discipline of former officer Brooke Cano. Arbitrator Jonathan Klein ruled there was no evidence to support allegations by Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 9 that the chief targeted officers involved in union activities or those who failed to meet alleged ticket quotas. The decision follows a three-day hearing that reviewed union claims dating back to 2016.
Social Security ordered to restore telework; EPA and NASA roll back collective bargaining
March 15, 2026 // A provision in AFGE’s collective bargaining agreement with SSA gives agency management “sole discretion to temporarily change, reduce, or suspend approved telework day(s) for any employee(s), office, component, or agency-wide due to operational needs.” The contract also gives agency management sole discretion to change, reduce, or suspend approved telework for any employee due to their performance.
Washington Democrats propose collective bargaining for farmworkers
January 21, 2026 // Washington Farm Bureau director of government relations Breanne Elsey told the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee on Jan. 19 that farmworkers are excluded from the federal law for good reasons. Untimely labor disputes would bankrupt farms, she said. “Striking during harvest could threaten the small window of time farmers have to produce their income for the entire year,” she said. SB 6617 would apply to housekeepers and employees of some small businesses, as well as farmworkers. Senate Bill 6045 and House Bill 2409 are confined to collective-bargaining rights for just farmworkers. Those bills are scheduled for initial hearings Jan. 20.
3 CT state employee unions to get pay hikes worth 4.5%
December 4, 2025 // The raises, ordered for judicial marshals, their supervisors and a third group that includes probation officers, information technology analysts, assistant clerks, counselors and other support staff, are retroactive to July 1, when the fiscal year began. The award announced Wednesday also increases the likelihood that dozens of additional bargaining units in state government — which haven’t yet settled compensation deals — will get similar raises. And if that happens, it will mark the fifth consecutive year state employees’ compensation has increased by about 4.5%. (A step hike typically adds about 2 percentage points to the overall raise value.)
New York State Looks to Take Over Labor Law Enforcement Amidst Uncertainty at the NLRB
June 26, 2025 // With mounting uncertainty about the lack of a quorum and near term future of the National Labor Relations Board (the “NLRB” or the “Board”), New York State legislators are attempting to usurp the powers delegated to the Board by Congress.
Postal Service strikes deal with another of its unions
June 18, 2025 // The Postal Service strikes a deal with another one of its unions. Members of the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association approved a tentative contract that lasts through 2027. About 67% of voting members approved the tentative agreement. Next up, the American Postal Workers Union votes whether or not to approve its contract next month. Members of another union, the National Association of Letter Carriers, voted against a tentative agreement with USPS in January. A third-party arbitrator eventually struck a deal with both parties.
IRS workers only had to show up to work once a week in person, before Trump took over
April 18, 2025 // Last December, a bombshell report from Ernst’s office found that a measly 6% of the federal workforce showed up “in-person on a full-time basis.” Almost one-third of federal workers were remote on a full-time basis at the time, marking a steep decline from the pre-pandemic era in which only 3% teleworked daily, according to the report. Ernst has clashed with the IRS repeatedly, including over watchdog findings last July that current and former workers owed $46 million to Uncle Sam in unpaid taxes. “This adds insult to injury to the fact that the agency is filled with tax cheats,” the Hawkeye State senator added, referring to the collective bargaining deal. “I have a laundry list of reforms to fix America’s least favorite government agency.”