FLRA NEWS
FEDERAL LABOR RELATIONS AUTHORITY – WASHINGTON, DC 20424
Contact: Eric Prag FLRA.gov FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 771-444-5859 October 20, 2026
The Federal Labor Relations Authority and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Announce Negotiability Partnership
The Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) today announced a new program to provide labor organizations and agencies the chance to resolve negotiability appeals through mediation before they are considered by the FLRA’s three-Member decisional component (the Authority).
Negotiability appeals arise when there is a dispute relating to whether a particular issue falls outside the statutory duty to bargain.
Under the program, the FLRA may refer negotiability disputes to FMCS – either on its own initiative or at the request of the parties – before the Authority Members consider the matter. Once a negotiability appeal is referred to FMCS, the Authority will place the case in abeyance and pause further processing while mediation takes place.
“I am pleased the FLRA is once again partnering with FMCS to give agencies and labor organizations an invaluable opportunity to resolve their negotiability disputes efficiently and collaboratively,” said Chairman Colleen Kiko. “Resolving these disputes through mediation returns the parties to the bargaining table and advances the collective bargaining process.”
See the Federal Register notice for more information. For more on the Authority, click here.
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The FLRA administers the labor-management relations program for federal employees (excluding Postal Service employees) worldwide. 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.