National Mediation Board

What National Mediation Board does

The National Mediation Board (NMB) is an independent U.S. federal agency established by the 1934 amendments to the Railway Labor Act to facilitate labor-management relations within the railroad and airline industries. The agency maintains exclusive statutory jurisdiction over collective bargaining representation, mediation, and arbitration disputes between carriers and their employees in these two transportation sectors, operating as a neutral federal intermediary to prevent work stoppages that could disrupt interstate commerce.

The NMB's service portfolio centers on three integrated functions: Representation Services that investigate and certify collective bargaining representatives through a mail-ballot election system — which succeeded earlier Telephone Electronic Voting (2002) and Internet Voting (2007) platforms and is currently transitioning to an internally-built secure electronic voting system; Mediation Services, including Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), grievance mediation training, and Facilitated Problem Solving; and Arbitration Services, administered through the Arbitrator Workspace (AWS) online platform that supports the National Railroad Adjustment Board, Public Law Boards, and Special Boards of Adjustment. The agency also operates Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) proceedings under the Railway Labor Act, including PEB 254 created on January 16, 2026 for the Long Island Rail Road. Supporting technology includes a free online video-conferencing center for remote arbitration and the AWS platform for arbitrator scheduling, work requests, and payment processing.

The NMB is funded through congressional appropriations and provides all services free of charge to airlines, railroads, and their employees — there is no pricing model, no channel partners, and no revenue transaction. Its roughly 51-100 staff operate from Washington, DC (headquarters, 1301 K Street NW, Suite 250E) and Chicago, governed by a three-member bipartisan Board nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. The agency reports a ~99% mediation success rate since 1980 and 97% lifetime case resolution without service interruption.

Name

National Mediation Board

Legal name

National Mediation Board

Website

https://nmb.gov

Company type

Private

Founded year

1934

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

The National Mediation Board is an independent U.S. federal agency that administers representation, mediation, arbitration, and Presidential Emergency Board services for labor disputes across the entire railroad and airline industries under the Railway Labor Act.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Federal Labor Dispute Resolution Services

NAICS

Regulation and Administration of Transportation Programs (92612)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Labor, Employment Standards & Occupational Licensing Boards (BPAIAOAF)

Keywords

• Labor dispute resolution
• Railway labor mediation
• Airline collective bargaining
• Grievance arbitration
• Union representation

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

The National Mediation Board is an independent U.S. federal agency that mediates labor-management disputes in the railroad and airline industries under the Railway Labor Act. It provides integrated dispute resolution services including representation investigations and union certifications, mediation of collective bargaining agreement negotiations, and administration of grievance arbitration, all delivered free of charge through federal appropriations.

Product overview

The National Mediation Board offers an integrated suite of dispute resolution services for the railroad and airline industries under the Railway Labor Act. The core offerings include Representation Services (investigating and certifying employee representation disputes), Mediation Services (facilitating collective bargaining agreement negotiations), and Arbitration Services (administering grievance arbitration through Public Law Boards, Special Boards of Adjustment, and the National Railroad Adjustment Board). Supporting these core services, the NMB provides the Arbitrator Workspace (AWS) online platform for case management and the Presidential Emergency Board Services for escalated disputes. The agency also operates an Electronic Voting System for representation elections.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Representation Services Investigation and resolution of representation disputes among employees in the airline and railroad industries under the Railway Labor Act, including certification of collective bargaining representatives and the conduct of representation elections.
• Mediation Services Statutory mediation services for collective bargaining disputes in the airline and railroad industries, including Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) programs, grievance mediation training, and Facilitated Problem Solving.
• Arbitration Services Administration of arbitration processes for resolving railroad and airline grievances, including certification of arbitrators and management of Public Law Boards, Special Boards of Adjustment, and the National Railroad Adjustment Board.
• Arbitrator Workspace (AWS) Online system for arbitrators to schedule cases, submit work requests, report on completed work, and access the NMB Online Video-conferencing Center for remote arbitration proceedings; includes online registration for case assignment and payment processing.
• Presidential Emergency Board Services Investigation and reporting services for emergency boards created by the President to address labor disputes that threaten to interrupt interstate commerce, with up to two emergency boards available for commuter rail carriers such as Long Island Rail Road, NJ Transit Rail Operations, SEPTA, and Metro North.
• Electronic Voting System Mail ballot election system for representation elections under the Railway Labor Act, transitioning from Telephone Electronic Voting (TEV) and Internet Voting to an internally-built electronic voting system that complies with federal security standards.
• Online Video-conferencing Center Internet-based video conferencing system for arbitration proceedings, free to parties and NMB arbitrators; available for Railway Labor Act matters involving U.S. railroads and airlines.

Quantifiable outcome

• 97% of all mediation cases resolved without interruptions to public service
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Federal Aviation Administration (FAA): Federal agency regulating civil aviation safety and air traffic control. Operates in the same airline industry ecosystem as NMB but on aviation safety rather than labor relations, paralleling the FRA relationship in the rail sector.
• Federal Railroad Administration (FRA): Federal agency within the Department of Transportation responsible for railroad safety oversight. Shares regulatory scope over U.S. railroads with NMB but on safety rather than labor relations, making it an adjacent incumbent in the same transportation sector.
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC): Federal agency enforcing employment discrimination laws. Functions as a broader federal employment-law regulator with overlapping processes (investigation, mediation, adjudication) to NMB, but on civil rights rather than collective bargaining.
• U.S. Department of Labor: Cabinet-level federal department that houses multiple labor-related agencies (including FMCS, NLRB referral oversight, and OSHA). Shares the broader federal labor regulation mandate with NMB but at vastly greater scope and scale; NMB's Chair previously served as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at OSHA.
• Surface Transportation Board (STB): Independent federal agency with economic regulatory authority over U.S. freight railroads. Operates in the same rail industry ecosystem as NMB but focuses on rates, mergers, and service obligations rather than labor relations.

Direct peers

• National Labor Relations Board (NLRB): Independent federal agency enforcing collective bargaining rights and investigating unfair labor practices in the private sector. Operates the labor regulatory enforcement function that complements NMB's mediation role, with overlapping substantive expertise in representation elections and collective bargaining disputes.
• Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA): Independent federal agency administering labor-management relations for the federal civilian workforce. Applies the same dispute resolution framework (representation, mediation, unfair labor practice adjudication) as NMB but for federal sector unions and agencies.
• Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS): Independent U.S. federal agency that mediates labor disputes outside the rail and air industries. It is the closest functional counterpart to NMB, operating under parallel statutory authority ( Labor-Management Relations Act) with the same mediation-and-arbitration service model for a complementary jurisdiction.

Others

• Railroad Retirement Board (RRB): Independent federal agency administering retirement, unemployment, and health benefits for railroad workers. Operates in the same rail industry constituency as NMB and shares institutional knowledge of railroad labor but executes an entirely different mission (benefits administration rather than labor mediation).
• Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB): Independent federal quasi-judicial agency adjudicating employment disputes for most federal civilian employees. Shares the federal-sector adjudication and alternative dispute resolution framework with NMB but serves federal employees rather than rail/air carrier workers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-mediation-board

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about National Mediation Board