IMPASSE SERVICES REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE

Section 220 (c)(4), of the CAA (2 U.S.C. § 1351(c)(4)) allows the Office of Congressional Workplace Right’s (OCWR) Board of Directors (“Board”) to exercise the authorities of the Federal Service Impasses Panel under Section 7119 of title 5. Any request that, under chapter 71 of title 5, would be presented to the Federal Service Impasses Panel shall, if made under this section, be presented to the Board.

The term impasse means that point in the negotiation of conditions of employment at which the parties are unable to reach agreement, notwithstanding their efforts to do so by direct negotiations and by the use of mediation or other voluntary arrangements for settlement. If voluntary arrangements, including the services of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service or any other third-party mediation, fail to resolve a negotiation impasse:

(a) Either party, or the parties jointly, may request the Board to consider the matter by filing a request as hereinafter provided; or the Board may, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 7119(c)(1), as applied by the CAA, undertake consideration of the matter upon request of (i) the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, or (ii) the Executive Director of the OCWR; or

(b) The parties may jointly request the Board to approve any procedure, which they have agreed to adopt, for binding arbitration of the negotiation impasse by filing a request as hereinafter provided.

HOW TO FILE: ALL REQUESTS TO THE BOARD SHOULD BE ADDRESSED TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE. ANY PARTY SUBMITTING A REQUEST OR RESPONSE FOR BOARD CONSIDERATION OF AN IMPASSE OR A REQUEST FOR APPROVAL OF A BINDING ARBITRATION PROCEDURE SHALL FILE AN ORIGINAL AND ONE COPY WITH THE BOARD AND SHALL SERVE A COPY OF SUCH REQUEST UPON ALL COUNSEL OF RECORD OR OTHER DESIGNATED REPRESENTATIVE(S) OF PARTIES, UPON PARTIES NOT SO REPRESENTED, AND UPON ANY MEDIATION SERVICE WHICH MAY HAVE BEEN UTILIZED.