March 03, 2024

Nolan selected as chair of interest arbitration panel

The National Association of Letter Carriers and the U.S. Postal Service have selected Arbitrator Dennis R. Nolan to serve as the neutral chair of a three-person interest arbitration panel to set the terms of a new National Agreement between the NALC and the Postal Service. Under the law, each side will also appoint union and management representatives to serve on the panel and represent their respective positions.

Arbitrator Nolan is a member of the American Arbitration Association’s labor panel and has been a full-time labor arbitrator since 1976, serving for many years as a national arbitrator on the NALC/USPS panel. He also serves as a mediator for the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. In 1985, he was selected for membership in the National Academy of Arbitrators, and eventually served as its president in 2006. Arbitrator Nolan served as the parties’ neutral arbitrator in the interest arbitration proceedings for the 2019 National Agreement, which were near conclusion when the parties reached a negotiated settlement late in 2020. 

As final preparations for interest arbitration are made, NALC and the Postal Service continue to negotiate in an attempt to reach a tentative agreement. Further updates will be provided as the collective bargaining process moves forward.