Release date: 11/13/2015
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) today announced it has awarded eight grants totaling $751,055 to support cooperative initiatives by labor-management groups nationwide to support their innovative approaches to workplace issues as well as best practices in labor relations.
“We are pleased to announce this year’s grant program recipients, which represent potentially model projects and strong leadership for similar labor-management cooperation and collaboration efforts throughout the country. Among the most important grants we award are those addressing relationship building and communication between labor and management for projects that benefit a facility, a community, or a region in a way that others can emulate,” said FMCS Director Allison Beck.
Through the years, the FMCS grants program has helped labor and management groups nationwide develop creative conflict resolution projects that improve cooperation and enhance organizational effectiveness. “This year’s grantees represent a diverse range of projects, involving both the public and private sector, including the service, health care, manufacturing and construction industries. We are pleased to see the emphasis on innovation in addressing joint problems among our applicants, and we look forward to working with these labor-management groups in achieving the worthwhile goals they have set for themselves,” the FMCS Director said.
The grants program, which began in 1981 under the authority of the Labor-Management Cooperation Act of 1978 (PL 95-524), has funded a broad range of projects designed to address a specific workplace, industry or community problem through joint processes. Collaborative efforts have enabled the parties to address critical issues, such as, safety, health care costs, skills development, training and the resolution of workplace disputes.
Applicants wishing to learn more about the FMCS labor-management grants program may call the FMCS Grants Office at 202-606-8181 or visit the agency’s website at www.fmcs.gov, where online summaries of the grant recipients’ projects are also available.
For a PDF version of the FMCS release, click here.