[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 74 (Tuesday, April 16, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16636-16637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-9322]



-----------------------------------------------------------------------


FEDERAL MEDIATION AND CONCILIATION SERVICE

Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment 
Request

AGENCY: Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This notice announces that the major information collection 
form for FMCS mediation services, FMCS F-7 form, ``Notice to Mediation 
Agencies,'' OMB No. 3076-0004, which expires on November 11, 1996, is 
coming up for renewal. Before submitting this renewal package to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB), FMCS is soliciting comments on 
specific aspects of the collection as described below, mainly its 
request for a three-year extension of this currently approved form with 
the one revision--to produce a form without three attached copies--to 
save printing and postal costs.

COMMENTS: Comments must be submitted on or before July 1, 1996

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments identified by the FMCS F-7 by mail 
to: Office of General Counsel, FMCS, 2100 K Street NW., Washington, 
D.C. 20427, Room 603, ATTN: Tammi Strozier, Public Response Section. 
Copies of the complete F-7 form may be obtained from the Office of 
General Counsel at the above address or by contacting the person whose 
name appears under the section headed FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Comments and data may also be submitted by fax at (202) 606-4253 or 
electronically by sending electronic mail (E-mail) to [email protected]. 
All comments and data in electronic form must have the F-7 number on 
them. No confidential business information (CBI) should be submitted 
through E-mail.
    All written comments will be available for inspection in Room 600 
at the Washington, D.C. address above from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM, Monday 
through Friday, excluding holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Eileen B. Hoffman, General Counsel, FMCS, 2100 K Street NW., 
Washington, D.C. 20427. Telephone: (202) 606-5444, fax (202) 606-4253, 
E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Copies of the F-7 form are available from 
the Office of General Counsel, Public Access Section, by calling, 
faxing, or writing to Ms. Tammi Strozier, Office Manager at the above 
address. Please ask for the form by its number and title.

1. Information Collection Request

    FMCS is seeking comments on the following information collection 
request:
    Title: Notice to Mediation Agencies. FMCS Form F-7. OMB No. 3076-
0004, Expiration date: November 30, 1996.
    Affected Entities: Parties affected by this information collection 
are private sector employers and labor unions involved in interstate 
commerce who file notices for mediation services to the FMCS and state, 
local, and territorial agencies, who receive copies of these notices 
filed.
    Abstract: Under the National Labor Management Relations Act, 1947, 
29 U.S.C. Sec. 158 (d)(3), Congress listed specific notice provisions 
creating a duty to bargain collectively so that no party to a 
collective bargaining agreement could terminate or modify that 
contract, unless the party wishing to terminate or modify the contract 
sent a written notice to the other party, sixty days prior to the 
expiration date (Section 8(d)(1), and offered to meet and confer with 
the other party for the purpose of negotiating a new or modified 
contract (Section 8(d)(2). Furthermore, the Act requires that the party 
notify the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service within thirty 
days after such notice of the existence of a dispute and simultaneously 
notify any State or Territorial agency established to mediate and 
conciliate disputes within the State or Territory where the dispute 
occurred (Section 8(d)(3)). The 1974 amendments to the NLRA, which 
extended coverage to nonprofit health care institutions, also created a 
notification procedure in the health care industry requiring the 
parties to notify each other 90 days in advance of termination and 60 
days to the mediation service. This amendment also required 
notification of initial bargaining situations (notification of the 
existence of a dispute) to the FMCS, within 30 days.
    To facilitate handling of more than 85,000 such notices a year, 
FMCS has created a specific information collection form. The purpose of 
this information collection activity is for FMC's Notice Processing 
Unit (NPU) to comply with FMCS's statutory duty to receive these 
notices, to facilitate assignment of mediators to assist in labor 
disputes, and to assist the parties in knowing whether or not proper 
notice was given. The information from these notices is sent to the 
five regional offices and field offices to inform mediators so they may 
contact labor and management quickly, efficiently, and offer their 
dispute resolution services, where applicable.
    Either party to the contract may make a request in writing for a 
copy of the notice filed with FMCS. These notices are critical to the 
function of FMCS and fulfill a statutory purpose as well.
    The F-7 form was created to establish conformity throughout 
interstate commerce and to allow FMCS to gather desired information in 
a uniform manner. The collection of such

[[Page 16637]]

information, including the name of employer or employer association, 
address and phone number, official contact, bargaining unit and 
establishment size, location of affected establishment and 
negotiations, industry or type of business, principal product or 
service, union address, phone number, and official contact, contract 
expiration date or renewal date, whether the notice is file on behalf 
of the union or employer, and whether this is a health care industry 
notice for initial contracts or existing contracts, is critical for 
reporting and mediation purposes.
    Burden Statement: The current annual respondent burden estimate is 
approximately 100,000 respondents. This one-page form takes about 10 
minutes to compete, for a total of 50,000 annual hours. Each respondent 
is required to respond only once per event (i.e., 30 day notice for 
mediation). The frequency is once per collective bargaining contract.
    In response to an employee's cost saving suggestion, FMCS 
investigated and determined that a substantial amount of printing, 
postal, storage, and distribution costs could be saved by creating a 
form without the three attached copies. The present form has three 
copies (the original to FMCS, the second copy to the appropriate state 
or territorial agency; the third copy to the opposite party involved in 
negotiations, and the fourth copy to be retained by the party filing 
the notice). In this era of computers and faxes, it is very likely that 
this 3-copy form is outdated and with optical scanners coming in the 
future, there may be an even easier format available. The current cost 
of the F-7, as printed by the U.S. Government Printing Office in 
quantities of 100,000 4-part units is .06 cents each. FMCS estimates a 
savings of approximately $11,600 from printing and shipping costs with 
this change today and further cost savings in the future. In addition, 
FMCS has learned that while most filers send the original copy to FMCS, 
they do not use the other copies but send photocopies or faxes to the 
relevant state agency and opposite party. For each notice required to 
be filed with FMCS, there may not be a state or territorial agency 
involved or the contract may cover more than one state location. In 
either case, the party filing can more easily create photocopies of the 
form. Since FMCS is required by statute only to maintain the notices 
filed with it, FMCS seeks to create savings by changing the number of 
copies of its form. FMCS, however, also seeks comments from state and 
territorial agencies as well as labor and management officials about 
this change.

II. Request for Comments

    FMCS solicits comments to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.

III. Public Docket

    A record has been established for this action. A public version of 
this record, including printed, paper versions of electronic comments, 
is available for inspection from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. The public record is located in Room 
600 of the Office of General Counsel, Washington, D.C. 20427 as is 
maintained by the Public Access Section, Office Manager, Tammi 
Strozier. FMCS will transfer all electronically received comments into 
printed paper form as they are received.

List of Subjects

    Mediation, Information collection requests, Notices.

    Dated: April 9, 1996.
Wilma Liebman,
Deputy Director.
[FR Doc. 96-9322 Filed 4-15-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6372-01-M