FLRA NEWS
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY – WASHINGTON, DC 20424
Contact: Eric Prag FLRA.gov FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 717-444-5859 June 5, 2023
President Biden Announces Intent to Nominate Suzanne Elizabeth Summerlin for FLRA
General Counsel
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. has announced his intent to nominate Suzanne Elizabeth
Summerlin to be General Counsel of the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA).
Summerlin currently serves as Deputy General Counsel and Deputy Executive Director for the
Federal Education Association, representing educators who serve United States military families
stateside and overseas. Previously, she served as Associate General Counsel for the National
Federation of Federal Employees, the federal sector affiliate of the International Association of
Machinists and Aerospace Workers, and was a Peggy Browning Fund Fellow at the American
Federation of Government Employees within the AFL-CIO.
Summerlin has extensive experience in federal sector labor law, advocating for a wide range of
civilian employees at more than thirty agencies, including U.S. Forest Service wildland
firefighters, Department of State passport processors, General Services Administration contract
administrators, Veterans Administration medical professionals, Transportation Security
Administration security screeners, and Army Corps of Engineers employees. In her work,
Summerlin has litigated cases in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. She has also negotiated collective bargaining
agreements on behalf of doctors and nurses at the Department of Veterans Affairs, and educators
serving in Europe and Asia with the Department of Defense Education Activity.
Prior to beginning her legal career, Summerlin was an award-winning broadcast journalist,
working as a television news producer and documentary film producer. Summerlin earned her
undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Florida.
For more information on the General Counsel’s office, click here.
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The FLRA administers the labor-management relations program for 2.1 million non-Postal federal
employees worldwide, approximately 1.2 million of whom are represented in 2,200 bargaining
units. It is charged with providing leadership in establishing policies and guidance related to
federal sector labor-management relations and with resolving disputes under, and ensuring
compliance with, the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute.