National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Etc., et al. v. Federal Labor Relations Authority et al. (527 U.S. 229)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided June 17, 1999 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 527 U.S. 229 · 119 S. Ct. 1979
- Decided
- June 17, 1999
- Term
- October Term 1998
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority author
- Justice Stevens
- Issue area
- Unions
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party lost
- Ideological direction
- Liberal
Opinion excerpt
Justice Stevens delivered the opinion of the Court. On October 12, 1978, Congress enacted the Inspector General Act (IGA), 5 U. S. C. App. § 1 et seq., p. 1381, which created an Office of Inspector General (OIG) in each of several federal agencies, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The following day, Congress enacted the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (FSLMRS), 5 U. S. C. § 7101 et seq., which provides certain protections, including union representation, to a variety of federal employees. The question presented by this case is whether an investigator employed in NASA’s Office of Inspector General (NASA-OIG) can be considered a “representative” of NASA when examining a NASA employee, such that the right to union representation in the FSLMRS may be invoked. § 7114(a)(2)(B). Although certain arguments of policy may support a negative answer to that question, the plain text of the two statutes, buttressed by administrative deference and Congress’ countervailing policy concerns, dictates an affirmative answer. I In January 1993, in response to information supplied by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), NASA’s OIG conducted an investigation of certain threatening activities of an employee of the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, which is also a component of NASA. A NASA-OIG investigator…
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