[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 29, Volume 4]
[Revised as of July 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 29CFR1404.9]

[Page 50-51]
 
                             TITLE 29--LABOR
 
                        AND CONCILIATION SERVICE
 
PART 1404_ARBITRATION SERVICES--Table of Contents
 
              Subpart C_Procedures for Arbitration Services
 
Sec. 1404.9  Procedures for requesting arbitration lists and panels.

    (a) The Office of Arbitration Services (OAS) has been delegated the 
responsibility for administering all requests for arbitration services. 
Requests should be addressed to the Federal Mediation and Conciliation 
Service, Office of Arbitration Services, Washington, DC 20427.
    (b) The OAS will refer a panel of arbitrators to the parties upon 
request. The parties are encouraged to make joint requests. In the 
event, however, that the request is made by only one party, the OAS will 
submit a panel of arbitrators. However, the issuance of a panel--
pursuant to either joint or unilateral request--is nothing more than a 
response to a request. It does not signify the adoption of any position 
by the FMCS regarding the arbitrability of any dispute or the terms of 
the parties' contract.
    (c) As an alternative to a request for a panel of names, OAS will, 
upon written request, submit a list of all arbitrators and their 
biographical sketches from a designated geographical area. The parties 
may then select and deal directly with an arbitrator of their choice, 
with no further involvement of FMCS with the parties or the arbitrator. 
The parties may also request FMCS to make a direct appointment of their 
selection. In such a situation, a case number will be assigned.
    (d) The OAS reserves the right to decline to submit a panel or make 
appointments of arbitrators, if the request submitted is overly 
burdensome or otherwise impracticable. The OAS, in such circumstances, 
may refer the parties to an FMCS mediator to help in the design of an 
alternative solution. The OAS may also decline to service any requests 
from parties with a demonstrated history of non-payment of arbitrator 
fees or other behavior which constrains the spirit or operation of the 
arbitration process.
    (e) The parties are required to use the Request for Arbitration 
Panel (Form R-43), which has been prepared by the OAS and is available 
in quantity upon request to the Federal Mediation

[[Page 51]]

and Conciliation Service, Office of Arbitration Services, Washington, DC 
20427, or by calling (202) 606-5111 or at www.fmcs.gov. Requests that do 
not contain all required information requested on the R-43 in 
typewritten form may be rejected.
    (f) Requests made by only one party, for a service other than the 
furnishing of a standard list or panel of seven (7) arbitrators, will 
not be honored unless authorized by the applicable collective bargaining 
agreement. This includes unilateral requests for a second or third panel 
or for a direct appointment of an arbitrator.
    (g) The OAS will charge a nominal fee for all requests for lists, 
panels, and other major services. Payments for these services must be 
received with the request for services before the service is delivered 
and may be paid by either labor or management or both. A schedule of 
fees is listed in the Appendix to this part.