Management R

Management Rights is a term which defines those areas over which management exercises exclusive decision-making authority. These rights are spelled out in the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute. There are two categories of management rights, "mandatory" or reserved rights, such as the right to determine mission, budget, internal security and "permissive" rights. Permissive rights are those rights (e.g., numbers, types and grades of employees assigned to an organizational subdivision, work project, or tour of duty) that management may bargain, but is not statutorily required to do so.

Even with respect to nonnegotiable "mandatory" management rights, management must bargain, upon request, over the procedures it will use in exercising these rights and on appropriate arrangements for employees adversely affected by the exercise of such rights. For example, in a reduction-in-force, the decision to RIF is a management right, but how that RIF is conducted and outplacement or other assistance for displaced employees are negotiable issues.

When there is a question whether a proposal is outside the duty to bargain because it involves a management right or is subject to bargaining as a condition of employment, the matter may be raised as a negotiability appeal to the Federal Labor Relations Authority. Negotiability decisions of the FLRA can be challenged in Federal court.

A union may propose measures whose purpose is to alleviate the adverse impact on unit employees of a management action. If, however, the union's proposal seriously interferes with the exercise of a management right, the FLRA will apply the "excessive interference" test. That test provides that a union proposal whose purpose is to ameliorate the adverse affects of a management decision is negotiable unless it impinges upon a management right to an excessive degree.

RELATED TOPICS: Union Rights; Employee Rights; Negotiations