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Washington, D.C.?The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) and one of the government's largest departments have taken a major step forward in labor?management relations in the federal sector with an agreement to broaden the subjects over which the parties will negotiate.

NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley called the agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) "a welcome and significant advance" in the development of federal sector labor?management partnership and said it "clearly advances the goal of having an effective employee voice in a variety of meaningful workplace issues."

The parties described the positive benefits for the more than 4,500 HHS employees represented by NTEU as providing them with extensive pre?decisional involvement on a wide range of substantive matters, including budgeting, personnel, strategic planning, reorganization and the use of technology, going beyond traditional bargaining over the impact and implementation of a management decision.

The agreement, worked out by the NTEU?HHS Partnership Council, deals with so?called "permissive" bargaining subjects spelled out in Section 7106(b)(1) of Title 5 of the U.S. Code. These subjects are known collectively as "(b)(1)" matters, and prior to an Executive Order in the first year of the Clinton Administration were negotiable only at the election of the agency. They include such key issues as the number, types and grades of employees or positions and the technology, methods or means of performing work.

In Executive Order 12871, issued on October 1, 1993, President Clinton, in an effort to foster the development of federal labor?management partnership, ordered agencies to engage in such bargaining.

Since then, however, managers in a number of government agencies have been less than enthusiastic about bargaining over such subjects. Late last fall, President Clinton reaffirmed his support for federal labor?management partnerships and again directed agencies to move toward full implementation of his Executive Order concerning bargaining over these matters.

HHS leadership accepted the recommendation of the NTEU?HHS Partnership Council that "(b)(1)" bargaining be undertaken "in the context of partnership" using an interest?based negotiating approach in which the goal is consensus decision?making and mutual trust.

Under the agreement, which includes a range of joint training on such skills as may be needed for effective implementation, the parties have set up a joint impasse procedure. If an operating division or its local partnership council is unable to resolve a (b)(1) bargaining dispute, the matter will be referred to the NTEU?HHS Partnership Council for a final decision.

Kelley expressed the hope that other federal agencies will follow the lead set by HHS and engage their unions in establishing processes that resolve bargaining disputes rather than a blind exercise of rights. Management, Kelley added, "needs to weigh the costs and long?term impact of any unilateral (b)(1) decisions."

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing some 155,000 employees in 24 agencies and departments.