Requests for Arbitration Panels
Key claim: The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service is changing its rules so it can refuse to appoint an arbitration panel when a request is legally improper or outside its authority, rather than having to honor every one-sided request.
Abstract
(Rule · Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service) The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) is issuing an interim final rule with requests for comments to amend its arbitration services regulations. The interim final rule clarifies the circumstances in which the Office of Arbitration (OA) may decline to issue an arbitration panel, make a direct appointment, or provide related arbitration services. The rule would remove language that could be read to require FMCS to honor every unilateral request for an arbitration panel, regardless of legal constraints or FMCS’s authority. Due to a technical error, FMCS is reposting this IFR and extending the deadline for comments to 30 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register. FMCS seeks public comment on this interim final rule.
Why this matters
FMCS panel appointments are a routine step in resolving grievance disputes under collective bargaining agreements, so a rule letting FMCS decline improper or ultra vires requests shifts a small but real gatekeeping function in labor arbitration. For unions and employers, it means one-sided or non-compliant panel requests can be turned away at the front door rather than proceeding to arbitrator selection, potentially changing leverage in contested grievance procedures.