[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 249 (Wednesday, December 27, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 81862-81864]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-32950]
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FEDERAL MEDIATION AND CONCILIATION SERVICE
Labor-Management Cooperation Program Application Solicitation for
Labor-Management Committees FY2001
A. Introduction
The following is the final solicitation for the Fiscal Year (FY)
2001 cycle of the Labor-Management Cooperation Program as it pertains
to the support of labor-management committees. These guidelines
represent the continuing efforts of the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service to implement the provisions of the Labor-
Management Cooperation Act of 1978 which was initially implemented in
FY81. The Act authorizes FMCS to provide assistance in the
establishment and operation of company/plant, area, public sector, and
industry-wide labor-management committees which:
(A) Have been organized jointly by employers and labor
organizations representing employees in that company/plant, area,
government agency, or industry; and
(B) Are established for the purpose of improving labor-management
relationships, job security, and organizational effectiveness;
enhancing economic development; or involving workers in decisions
affecting their jobs, including improving communication with respect to
subjects of mutual interest and concern.
The Program Description and other sections that follow, as well as
a separately published FMCS Financial and Administrative Grants Manual,
make up the basic guidelines, criteria, and program elements a
potential applicant for assistance under this program must know in
order to develop an application for funding consideration for either a
company/plant, area-wide, industry, or public sector labor-management
committee. Directions for obtaining an application kit may be found in
Section H. A copy of the Labor-Management Cooperation Act of 1978,
included in the application kit, should be reviewed in conjunction with
this solicitation.
B. Program Description
Objectives
The Labor-Management Cooperation Act of 1978 identifies the
following seven general areas for which financial assistance would be
appropriate:
(1) To improve communication between representatives of labor and
management;
(2) To provide workers and employers with opportunities to study
and explore new and innovative joint approaches to achieving
organizational effectiveness;
(3) To assist workers and employers in solving problems of mutual
concern not susceptible to resolution within the collective bargaining
process;
(4) To study and explore ways of eliminating potential problems
which reduce the competitiveness and inhibit the economic development
of the company/plant, area, or industry;
(5) To enhance the involvement of workers in making decisions that
affect their working lives;
(6) To expand and improve working relationships between workers and
managers; and
(7) To encourage free collective bargaining by establishing
continuing mechanisms for communication between employers and their
employees through Federal assistance in the formation and operation of
labor-management committees.
The primary objective of this program is to encourage and support
the establishment and operation of joint labor-management committees to
carry out specific objectives that meet the aforementioned general
criteria. The term ``labor'' refers to employees represented by a labor
organization and covered by a formal collective bargaining agreement.
These committees may be found at either the plant (company), area,
industry, or public sector levels. A plant or company committee is
generally characterized as restricted to one or more organizational or
productive units operated by a single employer. An area committee is
generally composed of multiple employers of diverse industries as well
as multiple labor unions operating within and focusing upon a
particular city, county, contiguous multicounty, or statewide
jurisdiction. An industry committee generally consists of a collection
of agencies or enterprises and related labor union(s) producing a
common product or service in the private sector on a local, state,
regional, or nationwide level. A public sector committee consists
either of government employees and managers in one or more units of a
local or state government, managers and employees of public
institutions of higher education, or of employees and managers of
public elementary and secondary schools. Those employees must be
covered by a formal collective bargaining agreement or other
enforceable labor-management agreement. In deciding whether an
application is for an area or industry committee, consideration should
be given to the above definitions as well as to the focus of the
committee.
In FY 2001, competition will be open to company/plant, area,
private industry, and public sector committees. Public Sector
committees will be divided into two sub-categories for scoring
purposes. One sub-category will consist of committees representing
state/local units of government and public institutions of higher
education. The second sub-category will consist of public elementary
and secondary schools.
Special consideration will be given to committee applications
involving innovative or unique efforts. All application budget requests
should focus directly on supporting the committee. Applicants should
avoid seeking funds for activities that are clearly available under
other Federal programs (e.g., job training, mediation of contract
disputes, etc.).
Required Program Elements
1. Problem Statement--The application should have numbered pages
and discuss in detail what specific problem(s) face the company/plant,
area, government, or industry and its workforce that will be addressed
by the committee. Applicants must document the problem(s) using as much
relevant data as possible and discuss the full range of impacts these
problem(s) could have or are having on the company/plant, government,
area, or industry. An industrial or economic profile of the area and
workforce prove useful in explaining the problem(s). This section
basically discusses why the effort is needed.
2. Results or Benefits Expected--By using specific goals and
objectives, the application must discuss in detail what the labor-
management committee will accomplish during the life of the grant.
Applications that promise to provide objectives after a grant is
awarded will receive little or no credit in this area. While a goal of
``improving communication between employers and employees'' may suffice
as one over-all goal of a project, the objectives must,
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whenever possible, be expressed in specific and measurable terms.
Applicants should focus on the outcome, impacts or changes that the
committee's efforts will have. Existing committees should focus on
expansion efforts/results expected from FMCS funding. The goals,
objectives, and projected impacts will become the foundation for future
monitoring and evaluation efforts of the grantee, as well as the FMCS
grants program.s
3. Approach--This section of the application specifies HOW the
goals and objectives will be accomplished. At a minimum, the following
elements must be included in all grant applications:
(a) A discussion of the strategy the committee will employ to
accomplish its goals and objectives;
(b) A listing, by name and title, of all existing or proposed
members of the labor-management committee. The application should also
offer a rationale for the selection of the committee members (e.g.,
members represent 70% of the area of company/plant workforce).
(c) A discussion of the number, type, and role of all committee
staff persons. Include proposed position descriptions for all staff
that will have to be hired as well as resumes for staff already on
board;
(d) In addressing the proposed approach, applicants must also
present their justification as to why Federal funds are needed to
implement the proposed approach;
(e) A statement of how often the committee will meet (we require
meetings at least every other month) as well as any plans to form
subordinate committees for particular purposes; and
(f) For applications from existing committees, a discussion of past
efforts and accomplishments and how they would integrate with the
proposed expanded effort.
4. Major Milestones--This section must include an implementation
plan that indicates what major steps, operating activities, and
objectives will be accomplished as well as a timetable for when they
will be finished. A milestone chart must be included that indicates
what specific accomplishments (process and impact) will be completed by
month over the life of the grant using September 17, 2001, as the start
date. The accomplishment of these tasks and objectives, as well as
problems and delays therein, will serve as the basis for quarterly
progress reports to FMCS.
5. Evaluation--Applicants must provide for either an external
evaluation or an internal assessment of the project's success in
meeting its goals and objectives. An evaluation plan must be developed
which briefly discusses what basic questions or issues the assessment
will examine and what baseline data the committee staff already has or
will gather for the assessment. This section should be written with the
application's own goals and objectives clearly in mind and the impacts
or changes that the effort is expected cause.
6. Letter of Commitment--Applications must include current letters
of commitment from all proposed or existing committee participants and
chairpersons. These letters should indicate that the participants
support the application and will attend schedule committee meetings. A
blanket letter signed by a committee chairperson or other official on
behalf of all members is not acceptable. We encourage the use of
individual letters submitted on company or union letterhead represented
by the individual. The letters should match the names provided under
Section 3(b).
7. Other Requirements--Applicants are also responsible for the
following:
(a) The submission of data indicating approximately how many
employees will be covered or represented through the labor-management
committee;
(b) From existing committees, a copy of the existing staffing
levels, a copy of the by-laws (if any), a breakout of annual operating
costs and identification of sources and levels of current financial
support;
(c) A detailed budget narrative based on policies and procedures
contained in the FMCS Financial and Administrative Grants Manual;
(d) An assurance that the labor-management committee will not
interfere with any collective bargaining agreements; and
(e) An assurance that committees will be held at least every other
month and that written minutes of all committee meetings will be
prepared and made available ot FMCS.
Selection Criteria
The following criteria will be used in the scoring and selection of
applications for award:
(1) The extent to which the application has clearly identified the
problems and justified the needs that the proposed project will
address.
(2) The degree to which appropriate and measurable goals and
objectives have been developed to address the problems/needs of the
applicant.
(3) The feasibility of the approach proposed to attain the goals
and objectives of the project and the perceived likelihood of
accomplishing the intended project results. This section will also
address the degree of innovativeness or uniqueness of the proposed
effort.
(4) The appropriateness of committee membership and the degree of
commitment of these individuals to the goals of the application as
indicated in the letters of support.
(5) The feasibility and thoroughness of the implementation plan in
specifying major milestones and target dates.
(6) The cost effectiveness and fiscal soundness of the
application's budget request, as well as the application's feasibility
vis-a-vis its goals and approach.
(7) The overall feasibility of the proposed project in light of all
of the information presented for consideration; and
(8) The value of the government of the application in light of the
overall objectives of the Labor-Management Cooperation Act of 1978.
This includes such factors as innovativeness, site location, cost, and
other qualities that impact upon an applicant's value in encouraging
the labor-management committee concept.
C. Eligibility
Eligible grantees include state and local units of government,
labor-management committees (or a labor union, management association
or company on behalf of a committee that will be created through the
grant), and certain third-party private non-profit entities on behalf
of one ore more committees to be created through the grant. Federal
government agencies and their employees are not eligible.
Third-party private, non-profit entities that can document that a
major purpose or function of their organization is the improvement of
labor relatings are eligible to apply. However, all funding must be
directed to the functioning of the labor-management committee, and all
requirements under Part B must be followed. Application from third-
party entities must document particularly strong support and
participation from all labor and management parties with whom the
applicant will be working. Applications from third-parties which do not
directly support the operation of a new or expanded committee will not
be deemed eligible, nor will applications signed by entities such as
law firms or other third-parties failing to meet the above criteria.
Applicants who received funding under this program in the past for
committee operations are generally not eligible to apply. The only
exceptions apply to grantees who seek funds on
[[Page 81864]]
behalf of an entirely different committee whose efforts are totally
outside of the scope of the original grant.
D. Allocations
The FY 2001 appropriation for this program is $1.5 million, of
which at least $1,000,000 will be available competitively for new
applicants. Specific funding levels will not be established for each
type of committee. The review process will be conducted in such a
manner that at least two awards will be made in each category (company/
plant, industry, public sector, and area), providing that FMCS
determines that at least two outstanding applications exist in each
category. After these applications are selected for award, the
remaining applications will be considered according to merit without
regard to category.
In addition to the competitive process identified in the preceding
paragraph, FMCS will set aside a sum not to exceed thirty percent of
its non-reserved appropriation to be awarded on a non-competitive
basis. These funds will be used only to support applications that have
been solicited by the Director of the Service and are not subject to
the dollar range noted in Section E.
FMCS reserves the right to retain up to five percent of the FY2001
appropriation to contract for program support purposes (such as
evaluation) other than administration.
E. Dollar Range and Length of Grants and Continuation Policy
Awards to expand existing or establish new labor-management
committees will be for a period of 18 months. If successful progress is
made during this initial budget period and all grants are not obligated
within 18 months, these grants may be extended for up to six months. No
continuation awards will be made.
The dollar range of awards is as follows:
Up to $65,000 over 18 months for company/plant committees
or single department public sector applicants;
Up to $125,000 per 18-month period for area, industry, and
multi-department public sector committee applicants.
Applicants are reminded that these figures represent maximum
Federal funds only. If total costs to accomplish the objectives of the
application exceed the maximum allowable Federal funding level and its
required grantee match, applicants may supplement these funds through
voluntary contributions from other sources. Applicants are also
strongly encouraged to consult with their local or regional FMCS field
office to determine what kinds of training may be available at no cost
before budgeting for such training in their applications. A list of our
field leadership team and their phone numbers is included in the
application kit.
F. Cash Match Requirements and Cost Allowability
All applicants must provide at least 10 percent of the total
allowable project costs in cash. Matching funds may come from state or
local government sources or private sector contributions, but may
generally not include other Federal funds. Funds generated by grant-
supported efforts are considered ``project income,'' and may not be
used for matching purposes.
It will be the policy of this program to reject all requests for
indirect or overhead costs as well as ``in-kind'' match contributions.
In addition, grant funds must not be used to supplant private or local/
state government funds currently spent for committee purposes. Funding
requests from existing committees should focus entirely on the costs
associated with the expansion efforts. Also, under no circumstances may
business or local officials participating on a labor-management
committee be compensated out of grant funds for time spent at committee
meetings or time spent in committee training sessions. Applicants
generally will not be allowed to claim all or a portion of existing
full-time staff as an expense or match contribution. For a more
complete discussion of cost allowability, applicants are encouraged to
consult the FY2001 FMCS Financial and Administrative Grants Manual
which will be included in the application kit.
G. Application Submission and Review Process
Applications must be signed by both a labor and management
representative and be postmarked or electronically transmitted no later
than May 19, 2001. No applications or supplementary materials can be
accepted after the deadline. It is the responsibility of the applicant
to ensure that the application is correctly postmarked by the U.S.
Postal Service or other carrier. An original application containing
numbered pages, plus three copies, should be addressed to the Federal
Mediation and Conciliation Service, Labor-Management Grants Program,
2100 K Street NW., Washington, DC 20427. FMCS will not consider
videotaped submissions or video attachments to submissions.
After the deadline has passed, all eligible applications will be
reviewed and scored initially by one or more Grant Review Boards. The
Board(s) will recommend selected applications for rejection or further
consideration. The Director, Program Services, will finalize the
scoring and selection process. The individual listed as contact person
in Item 6 on the application form will generally be the only person
with whom FMCS will communicate during the application review process.
Please be sure that person is available between June and September of
2001.
All FY2001 grant applicants will be notified of results and all
grant awards will be made before September 15, 2001. Applications
submitted after the May 19 deadline date or that fail to adhere to
eligibility or other major requirements will be administratively
rejected by the Director, Program Services.
H. Contact
Individuals wishing to apply for funding under this program should
contact the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service as soon as
possible to obtain an application kit. Please consult the FMCS web site
(www.fmcs.gov) to download forms and information.
These kits and additional information or clarification can be
obtained free of charge by contacting the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Service, Labor-Management Grants Program, 2100 K Street
NW., Washington, DC 20427; or by calling 202-606-8181.
George W. Buckingham,
Deputy Director, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.
[FR Doc. 00-32950 Filed 12-26-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6732-01-M