(Source: National Mediation Board press release, March 29, 2020)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Mediation Board (NMB) is pleased to announce that Ms. Terri D. Brown has been selected as the new Director of the Office of Arbitration Services effective March 29, 2020. She replaces Roland Watkins who retired October 1, 2019.
Ms. Brown began her career in labor relations at Amtrak in 1988 as a Labor Contract Administrator. Two years later, she was promoted to Labor Relations Officer where as a carrier advocate she gained extensive experience in rail arbitration.
Ms. Brown joined the NMB in 2002 as a Mediator. She was promoted to Senior Mediator in 2010. During her tenure, she successfully mediated many complex cases in both the airline and railroad industries. Most recently, she was responsible for coordinating the bargaining between the National Carrier Conference Committee (NCCC) and various unions and coalitions.
In 2015, Ms. Brown led the Arbitrator Utilization Program, a NMB sponsored course aimed at providing training and education to current labor arbitrators with minimal experience in railroad grievance arbitration, pursuant to Section 3 of the Railway Labor Act (RLA). The training program was universally well received in the industry, in part because of Ms. Brown’s leadership in bringing together experienced railroad referees/neutrals, rail carriers, and rail labor organizations to develop and implement the training. Many of the arbitrators who attended the training have subsequently been selected for a wide variety of arbitration panels.
Ms. Brown has an MBA from the University of Baltimore, a JD from Howard University and a BA from Chatham University. She is a member of the American Bar Association Section of Dispute Resolution.