DAFI 36-134: LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS

DAFI 36-134 — index record

Number	DAFI 36-134
Title	LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS
Published	March 23, 2026
Certified current	March 23, 2026
Office of primary responsibility	AF/A1
Issued by	Headquarters, Department of the Air Force
Status on the index	Current
Last index action	UpdateContact, April 10, 2026
Source index	Air Force e-Publishing
Index last read	October 20, 2026

Copied from Air Force e-Publishing (index). The publication itself is the authority; this page does not summarize or interpret it. Verify the current edition on the index before acting.

From the publication itself

Text below is lifted mechanically from the official PDF (39 pages, read October 20, 2026) with no editing or interpretation. Quote the document, not this page.

Purpose, in the publication’s words

This instruction implements Department of the Air Force Policy Directive 36-1, Appropriated Funds Civilian Management and Administration. It contains the Department of the Air Force (DAF) procedures and guidance for managers and supervisors when working with a labor organization “union” recognized by law as the exclusive bargaining representative of civilian employees. It assigns responsibilities to commanders, management officials, supervisors, civilian personnel officers (CPOs), labor relations officers (LROs), human resource officers (HROs) and Staff Judge Advocates (SJAs), and used in conjunction with applicable Federal Service Labor- Management Relations Statute, Title 5, United States Code (USC) Chapter 71 (the Statute). This publication applies to the United States Space Force (USSF), Regular Air Force, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard civilian employees, administered under Title 5 USC. The Chief of the National Guard Bureau (CNGB) will determine the extent to which this instruction will

Summary of changes, as printed

This rewrite renumbers DAFI 36-134. This document has been substantially revised and must be completely reviewed. Major changes include clarification of roles and responsibilities of FLDCOM, MAJCOM, Field Operating Agencies and Direct Reporting Units; deleting reference to Defense Civilian Intelligence Personnel System in opening paragraph; deleting reference to Executive Order (EO) 14003, Protecting the Federal Workforce, issued 22 January 2021, now rescinded; incorporating labor-management relations training requirement; and clarifying agency head review submission procedures.

Chapter 1—OVERVIEWp. 6
Chapter 2—ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESp. 7
Chapter 3—RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF AGENCIES AND LABOR ORGANIZATIONSp. 14
Chapter 4—MANAGEMENT RIGHTSp. 16
Chapter 5—NATIONAL CONSULTATION RIGHTS (NCRS)p. 17
Chapter 6—DUTY TO BARGAINp. 19
Chapter 7—COLLECTIVE BARGAINING/NEGOTIATIONSp. 22
Chapter 8—AGENCY HEAD REVIEWp. 25
Chapter 9—FORMAL DISCUSSIONSp. 28
Chapter 10—OFFICIAL TIMEp. 31
Chapter 11—REQUESTS FOR INFORMATIONp. 33
Chapter 12—UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICESp. 34
Chapter 13—GUIDELINES RELATED TO UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICE CHARGESp. 36
Chapter 14—NEGOTIATED GRIEVANCESp. 38
Chapter 15—ARBITRATION PROCEDURESp. 39
Chapter 16—EXCEPTIONS TO ARBITRATION AWARDSp. 40
Chapter 17—BARGAINING UNIT STATUS (BUS) CODES AND DUES WITHHOLDINGp. 41
Attachment 1—GLOSSARY OF REFERENCES AND SUPPORTING INFORMATIONp. 43

All 97 contents entries

Chapter 1—OVERVIEWp. 6
Chapter 2—ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIESp. 7
2.2. Directorate of Civilian Force Management, Civilian Personnel (AF/A1C)p. 7
2.3. Director, Civilian Policy and Programs (SF/S1C)p. 7
2.4. Air Force Personnel Center (AFPC)p. 7
2.6. FLDCOM, MAJCOM, Field Operating Agency and Direct Reporting Unit:p. 8
2.7. Installation Commandersp. 9
2.8. Civilian Personnel Officersp. 9
2.9. Installation Labor Relations Officersp. 9
2.10. Nonappropriated Fund (NAF) Human Resources Officers (HRO)p. 11
2.11. Management Officials and Supervisorsp. 12
2.12. Installation Staff Judge Advocate (SJA) Officep. 13
Chapter 3—RIGHTS AND DUTIES OF AGENCIES AND LABOR ORGANIZATIONSp. 14
3.1. Employee Rightsp. 14
3.2. Strike, work stoppage, slowdown, or picketing is prohibitedp. 14
3.3. Organizingp. 14
3.4. Representation Proceedings (5 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 2422)p. 15
Chapter 4—MANAGEMENT RIGHTSp. 16
4.1. Management Decision Making Authorityp. 16
4.2. Reserved Rightsp. 16
4.3. Permissive Rightsp. 16
4.4. Bargaining Procedures and Appropriate Arrangementsp. 16
Chapter 5—NATIONAL CONSULTATION RIGHTS (NCRS)p. 17
5.1. Legal Requirement for Consultationp. 17
5.2. Matters Subject to Consultationp. 17
5.3. National Consultation Rightsp. 17
5.4. How the DAF Accomplishes National Consultationp. 17
5.5. Labor organization request for meetingp. 18
5.6. No request for NCRp. 18
Chapter 6—DUTY TO BARGAINp. 19
6.1. Duty to Bargainp. 19
6.2. Past Practicep. 19
6.3. De minimisp. 20
6.4. Negotiability Appealsp. 20
6.5. Unilateral CBA Implementationp. 21
Chapter 7—COLLECTIVE BARGAINING/NEGOTIATIONSp. 22
7.1. Formal Negotiationsp. 22
7.2. Methodsp. 22
7.3. Processp. 22
7.4. Condition of Employmentp. 22
7.5. Contractsp. 22
7.6. Languagep. 23
7.7. Mediationp. 23
7.8. Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP)p. 23
7.9. Policyp. 23
7.10. Agency Head Review Approval Distributionp. 24
Chapter 8—AGENCY HEAD REVIEWp. 25
8.1. The DAF Labor Agreementsp. 25
8.2. Negotiated Agreements Subject to Agency Head Reviewp. 25
8.3. Agency Head Reviewsp. 25
8.4. Documentsp. 26
8.5. Ratificationp. 26
8.6. Timelinessp. 26
8.7. Rollover or Automatic Renewalp. 26
Chapter 9—FORMAL DISCUSSIONSp. 28
9.1. Obligationp. 28
9.2. Formal Discussion or Meetingsp. 28
9.3. Weingarten Rightsp. 29
Chapter 10—OFFICIAL TIMEp. 31
10.1. Official Time to Perform Representational Functionsp. 31
10.2. Recording Official Timep. 31
Chapter 11—REQUESTS FOR INFORMATIONp. 33
11.1. Requests for Informationp. 33
Chapter 12—UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICESp. 34
12.1. Basis for Unfair Labor Practicesp. 34
12.2. Refusing to Bargain in Good Faithp. 34
12.3. Compliance with Regulationsp. 34
12.4. ULP Avoidancep. 34
Chapter 13—GUIDELINES RELATED TO UNFAIR LABOR PRACTICE CHARGESp. 36
13.1. ULP filingp. 36
13.2. ULP filings with the FLRAp. 36
13.3. ULP resolvingp. 36
13.4. AF/JACL Representatives for ULPsp. 36
13.5. Unfair Labor Practice Charges Filed Against Installation Managementp. 36
13.6. Reporting Guidelinesp. 36
13.7. Decisions by the Administrative Law Judgep. 37
Chapter 14—NEGOTIATED GRIEVANCESp. 38
14.1. Proceduresp. 38
14.2. Exclusivityp. 38
14.3. Statutory Exclusionsp. 38
14.4. Negotiated Exclusionsp. 38
14.5. Representationp. 38
Chapter 15—ARBITRATION PROCEDURESp. 39
15.1. Questions and Issuesp. 39
15.2. Management Representative in Arbitration Proceedingsp. 39
15.3. Submission Agreementsp. 39
15.4. Matters Before the Arbitratorp. 39
15.5. Dating of Arbitration Awardsp. 39
15.6. Special Reporting Requirementsp. 39
Chapter 16—EXCEPTIONS TO ARBITRATION AWARDSp. 40
16.1. Grounds for Appealp. 40
16.2. Arbitration Exceptionsp. 40
Chapter 17—BARGAINING UNIT STATUS (BUS) CODES AND DUES WITHHOLDINGp. 41
17.1. Bargaining Unit Status (BUS) Codesp. 41
17.2. Obtaining a BUS Codep. 41
17.3. Dues Withholdingp. 41
Attachment 1—GLOSSARY OF REFERENCES AND SUPPORTING INFORMATIONp. 43

Other DAFI publications nearby in the series

500 DAFI records on the Air Force index. Search the full index.

Works of the United States Government are not subject to copyright (17 U.S.C. § 105). This site is not affiliated with the Department of the Air Force or any government agency.

DAFI 36-134

DAFI 36-134 — index record

From the publication itself

Purpose, in the publication’s words

Summary of changes, as printed

Contents

Other DAFI publications nearby in the series

Calculators for the subject of this series