Labor & Employment Law

FMCS will change rules

FMCS - the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service - plans to change some of its rules relating to arbitration services, and invites public comment on or before October 6, 2008. [Federal Register Notice] 

In a nutshell, here are the changes:

• Increase the listing fee FMCS charges arbitrators - from $100 to $150. 
• Change procedure regarding complaints about arbitrators. 
• Change procedures for arbitrators on inactive status.
• Change procedure relating to parties requesting arbitration panels. These are the lengthiest changes, and mostly deal with (a) situations where the collective bargaining agreement requires a joint request and (b) situations in which each party advises FMCS of its order of preference by numbering each name on a panel.

My view: These are incremental changes designed to improve the operations of the FMCS, an agency that already is awesomely efficient and effective.

Full post as published by Arbitration Blog on August 13, 2008 (boomark / email).