The FLRA board, which adjudicates allegations of unfair labor practices and disputes over matters like whether a union contract proposal is negotiable, has been operating at less than full strength since January.

The FLRA board, which adjudicates allegations of unfair labor practices and disputes over matters like whether a union contract proposal is negotiable, has been operating at less than full strength since January. DNY59 / Getty Images

FLRA Could Be Back to Full Strength With Latest Nomination

After six months of operating with an even partisan split, President Biden announced he would nominate a top Defense Department official for the final post at the FLRA.

President Biden on Friday announced that he plans to nominate Nancy Anderson Speight to serve as the third and final member of the Federal Labor Relations Authority, potentially portending the end of a months-long vacancy at the agency that oversees federal sector labor relations.

The FLRA board, which adjudicates allegations of unfair labor practices and disputes over matters like whether a union contract proposal is negotiable, has been operating at less than full strength since January, when then Chairman Ernest DuBester’s term as a carryover appointee expired. DuBester had been tapped for a new term at the agency, but Republicans successfully blocked the Senate from voting on his nomination over allegations of impropriety, which he denied.

FLRA Chairwoman Susan Tsui Grundmann and Member Colleen Duffy Kiko have continued to issue decisions over the first six months of 2023, although federal employee unions have argued that the vacancy in the seat reserved for a member of the president’s political party has made it more difficult for the agency to decide controversial cases.

Speight currently serves as deputy assistant secretary of Defense for civilian personnel policy, a post she has held since August 2021. She also served from 2001 until 2009 as the Atlanta regional director of the FLRA, prior to which she held multiple positions within the FLRA’s Office of General Counsel. She is the author of multiple FLRA employee manuals that remain in use today, the White House said.

The announcement of a nominee for the final FLRA seat was quickly lauded by federal employee unions.

“We are extraordinarily pleased that President Biden has nominated such a qualified individual to be a member of the Federal Labor Relations Authority,” said Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees. “Now that the president has put forth a full slate of nominees, the Senate must approve these nominations as soon as possible to ensure the Authority can continue to perform its vital function adjudicating labor disputes in the federal government.”

National Treasury Employee Union National President Tony Reardon touted Speight’s prior experience at the FLRA and said his union supports her nomination.

“President Biden’s forthcoming nominee for the Federal Labor Relations Authority, Nancy Anderson Speight, has extensive experience in federal sector labor law, including eight years as a regional director at FLRA’s Atlanta office and, before that, with the FLRA’s Office of General Counsel,” he said. “Her work experience is well suited to filling the final vacancy at the three-member FLRA, an agency that plays an important role in protecting the rights of federal employees and holding agencies accountable for unfair labor practices.”

Matt Biggs, president of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, urged the Senate to move quickly both on Speight’s nomination and that of Suzanne Summerlin, whom Biden tapped last week to serve as the FLRA general counsel following six years without a Senate-confirmed appointee in the position.

“Ms. Speight, who currently serves as deputy assistant secretary of Defense for civilian personnel policy, has a long and successful career of public service, including as regional director of the Atlanta FLRA region from 2001 to 2009,” Biggs said. “She is not only highly qualified for this position, but has a strong appreciation and respect for federal workers and will no doubt hit the ground running at the FLRA.”

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.