Posts tagged AFGE
COLORADO: Stephen Varela investigated for alleged misuse of union funds
February 23, 2024 // When Stephen Varela became president in 2016 of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 2430 in southern Colorado, former union officers say one of the first things he did was ask the bank for a debit card for the union’s account. Local 2430, a union representing U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs employees, explicitly states in its bylaws that its president and treasurer must both sign checks covering any union expenditures. That way there can be oversight of union money and how it’s spent. Debit cards are not normally allowed.
As Hollywood strike drags on, Biden’s relationship with unions becomes complicated
September 6, 2023 // For example, in the 2020 election, labor unions contributed $27.5 million to Biden’s campaign while his opponent, former President Donald Trump, received less than $360,000, according to Open Secrets. The states with the largest concentration of union workers are hardline Democratic states, like Hawaii, New York, Washington, Oregon, New Jersey and California. In 2022, 10.1% of American wage and salary workers belonged to unions compared to 20.1%, in 1983, signifying a large drop in membership. But this hasn’t translated to a drop in popularity for unions, at least according to recent polls.
Unions fear ceding members in Defense Health Agency reorganization
August 22, 2023 // “Who am I to come in and say ‘you’re now in my union?’” he said. Some members have also questioned the structure of the units, saying markets force together facilities that group different military services, chains of command and cultures, even if the employees share job duties, management and working environments. “Whenever there’s a big reorganization like this, the FLRA needs to certify appropriate bargaining units,” Friday said. “But it doesn’t have to be the most appropriate bargaining units. There can be other workable configurations. And so here’s a question of trying to find something that comports, to some extent, with the agency structure, but also [with] NFFE’s goal that would also allow us to represent as many of our folks as we can.” The Colorado market, for example, is comprised of four treatment facilities and several medical clinics located in Colorado and Utah.
American Federation of Government Employees Works to Unionize Defense Department Employees in Europe
August 14, 2023 // AFGE has established a new at-large local known as Local 14 under District 14. While District 14 primarily covers federal employees in Maryland, Virginia, and D.C., it also extends its membership to European federal employees and already has a few smaller locals in Europe. The goal is to establish more locals in Europe based on profession and locality. The new at-large local is open to federal employees throughout Europe, regardless of agency, who are not yet represented by an AFGE local. The hope is to eventually represent around 10,000 employees under Local 14. Currently, AFGE has about 100 dues-paying at-large members within the new local. While these members receive representation in labor disputes, collective bargaining can only occur once the union is recognized through FLRA elections. AFGE needs 30% of the workforce to express interest in holding elections before collective bargaining can take place.
Federal agencies face off with unions over remote work
August 11, 2023 // AFGE’s statement about the agreement did not mention remote work at all but emphasized the creation of a joint labor union-management council to improve working conditions. Yet AFGE Council 220 President Jessica LaPointe mentioned to the media that the union will continue to look for ways to implement more remote work at SSA, such as making the SSA’s teleservice center fully remote and proposing a decade-long field study to add more remote work options to encourage employee retention. Overall, LaPointe suggested the union will push for remote work at SSA because “employees will go elsewhere where telework is offered,” she said.
Unions push back on Biden plan to bring federal workers back
August 9, 2023 // Biden has directed Cabinet officials to “aggressively execute” plans to reinstate in-person work for federal workers this fall, more than three years after the administration maximized telework policies amid the COVID pandemic. Axios first reported the stepped-up callback Friday, citing a memo from White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients. Biden pledged in his State of the Union address that “the vast majority of federal workers will once again work in person,” and the adminisration has followed followed by slowly transitioning to more in-person work. In April, instructions for agencies to end maximum telework and create plans to bring people back to the office were sent out by the Office of Management and Budget. A report published by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that out of the 24 federal agencies, 17 of them estimated that they used 25 percent or less of their headquarters buildings capacity.
VA, AFGE reach ‘historic’ settlement to reinstate, compensate thousands of wrongfully fired feds
August 4, 2023 // The department said it expects the total cost of the settlement agreement with AFGE to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. The exact amount, though, could take years to determine, depending on how many former employees ultimately choose to return to their VA jobs. The settlement comes years after AFGE, which represents more than 291,000 VA employees, filed a grievance against the department in 2018. The union said the agency’s implementation of the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, which aimed to speed up the firing process for poor-performing VA employees, violated their collective bargaining agreement.
AFGE Urges Congress to Pass Bill Reinstating Federal Tax Deduction for Union Dues
August 1, 2023 // The Tax Fairness for Workers Act, H.R. 4963, would restore the tax deductibility of union dues for workers and would create an “above the line” deduction for unions so workers can use it even if they don’t itemize. The bill, which currently has 158 co-sponsors, would also help workers by restoring the deduction for unreimbursed employee expenses including job search expenses, travel, out of pocket cost of uniforms and tools, and other costs related to being an employee. AFGE thanks Reps. Brendan Boyle, D-Pa., and Donald Norcross, D-N.J., for introducing his important bill. AFGE also thanks Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., for leading the Senate bill, S. 738, which has 39 co-sponsors.
NSF announces return-to-office changes before finishing negotiations, drawing union ire
July 18, 2023 // Starting in October, all telework-eligible NSF employees and Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) employees stationed at agency headquarters will have to work in the office at least four days per two-week pay period, NSF leaders said in an all-staff email, obtained by Federal News Network. The changes do not apply to employees eligible for remote work or those with an approved remote work agreement. “We want to strengthen the NSF culture by increasing our time in person, while meeting our business needs and maintaining workplace flexibility,” NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan and Chief Operating Officer Karen Marrongelle said in the email.
Federal Worker Unions Lose Only 1 Percent of Complaints Filed Against Them by Government Workers: Study
July 14, 2023 // An analysis by Americans for Fair Treatment (AFFT) of Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) data found less than one percent of the more than 1,200 government worker complaints filed between December 2015 and December 2022 resulted in any kind of adverse action against civil service employee unions. The vast majority of the annual average of 193 complaints filed during the seven-year period involved the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the largest of the multiple labor groups representing portions of the 2.1 million federal civil service workforce.