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Go to WWW.AFGE.ORG for up to date information on National Events that effect us and our other Brothers and Sisters. Information with Local Impact!
1.9% Raise Highly Likely as Funding Bill Signed into Law Reference: AFGE – The Insider - October 01, 2018 Thanks
to hard work and efforts of members like you, Congress passed and the President signed into law a funding package that prevented
a government shutdown on Oct. 1. Congress, however, needs to pass another funding bill to provide final authorization for
the pay adjustment. The
funding package Trump just signed includes full-year funding for the departments of Defense, Labor, Education, and Health
and Human Services. It also includes a continuing resolution that funds other federal agencies at current levels through Dec.
7. Trump
has earlier this month signed into law a separate funding package that funds the departments of Veterans Affairs and Energy,
water projects, military construction, and the Legislative Branch. Congress must include the 1.9 % pay increase in the Financial services and General
Government appropriations bill, which is the vehicle that provides final authorization for federal pay. Congress is currently
working to finalize this bill. Please
contact your Senators and Representative and urge them to support a minimum 1.9% pay
increase for federal employees. If you need assistance in determining and contacting your Representatives, please call the Union (845 938-2367) or
come by the office (bldg. 667, 6th floor). We’re here to help you protect your rights
and earned benefits. Every Government Worker Should Know These Hatch Act Facts Reference:
AFGE - The Government Insider, October 01, 2018 October 6 marks the 25th anniversary of the Hatch Act Reform Amendments signed into law by former President Bill
Clinton. The 1993 law amended the original 1939 Hatch Act, which originally prohibited nearly all partisan political activities
by federal employees. The 1993 law allowed federal employees to engage in partisan political activities during off-duty hours
so that they can exercise their democratic rights as American citizens. As the November election draws near, we want to make sure you know your Hatch Act
rights as a federal employee. Here's what you can do under the Hatch Act: - Safe
activities when off duty, off site, not in uniform, not using government equipment or systems
- Contact your elected officials to educate
them about federal employee issues.
- Display a bumper sticker on your personal vehicle.
- Attend a candidate rally.
- Put a candidate sign in your yard or windows.
- Express your opinion about a candidate,
participate in a phone bank, or canvass for votes for a candidate.
- Send political materials of your choice to AFGE members at their
home address or home email.
- Conduct a voter registration drive.
Safe activities while
at work: - Talk with your co-workers about legislative and agency issues
like pay, working conditions, contracting out, and personnel reform.
- Wear red to show solidarity
with fellow federal employees on these important issues. Read our guidance on wearing red.
- Invite all employees, AFGE members, and
potential members to a meeting at work to discuss issues affecting them. Then, sign up new members.
- Post fliers about issues important to
federal employees on bulletin boards.
- Hold a rally, set up a picket
line, or hold a press conference on federal employee issues. These are not Hatch Act violations, but you may want to
check other regulations limiting these types of activities that may apply to your agency.
OPM Reviewing Pay, Leave,
Performance Policies Reference:
Fedweek, 24 Jul 18 OPM says it is continuing to review federal employment
policies on pay, leave and performance for possible additional administrative actions and legislative proposals. In an update
on the federal workforce portion of the President’s Management Agenda, OPM said it has reviewed previous proposals and
alternative systems on performance management “to start to identify possible areas for legislative, regulatory, or administrative
improvements”; has “collected findings from MSPB and GAO on addressing poor performance”; and has reviewed
research on performance management from industry and academia and from demonstration projects already operating inside the
government. OPM also said it has analyzed statistics “to better understand the operation of the current general schedule
and title5 leave systems.” The administration has frequently criticized the GS as outdated and lacking in either rewards
for good performance or consequences for poor performance. In its budget proposal earlier this year it further recommended combining sick leave and annual leave into one category to be called paid time off. So far it
has not proposed specifics on either topic but has said it expects to make a proposal to Congress before the November elections
to revamp key provisions of the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act, the basic body of law governing federal employment. The update
also said OPM is continuing to work on another theme mentioned in the management agenda and other administration initiatives,
“reskilling” employees to move into high-priority fields such as IT and cybersecurity where the government has
especial trouble recruiting and retaining employees. Work also is continuing on simplifying and streamlining hiring practices
while making more use of the alternative methods already available, it said. OPM further said
that tasks the management agenda assigns to it are on track except for: ensuring that all first-line supervisors “possess
critical leadership competencies” within the first year of appointment; and developing a plan to use “social media
and other crowd-sourcing capabilities to identify and share examples of federal career paths.” _______________________________________________________
AFGE NEWS Massive Protests in the Streets, Congress, Court Against Illegal Executive Orders July 30, 2018Thousands of AFGE members, more than 100 union presidents, members of Congress, and union members
from unions throughout the country gathered to wear red for feds and stand up to the illegal executive orders targeting federal
employees.
Read More July 30, 2018In the first victory against the Trump administration’s efforts to purge your union and
your rights in the workplace, our union prevailed in an unfair labor practice investigation against the Department of Education,
which unilaterally imposed its own illegal edict on 3,900 federal employees.
Read More July 30, 2018From putting the first man on the moon to ensuring your food is safe to eat, federal employees,
like you, make profound differences in our lives every day. Your union is proud to represent these fine men and women, and
help them do their jobs better serving the American people. That’s why we’re launching the America’s Workforce
campaign – to tell our stories and show the country the important work we do!
Read More July 30, 2018Over the past 27 years, more than $4.3 million have been awarded to students of over 2,900 union
families. Start your application today at www.unionplus.org/scholarship.
Read More July 30, 2018Government contractors go on a hiring spree as federal employment shrinks, the Education Department
illegally curbs workers’ rights, and more. Here are the stories you need to know this week.
Read More July 23, 2018On #RedforFeds Day, July 25, our union and members across the country are taking the administration
to court and will be in the streets to protest his union-busting, democracy-busting executive orders.
Read More July 23, 2018The Department of Veterans Affairs has begun implementing the administration's executive
order purging unions and gutting your rights to fight injustice in the workplace.
Read More July 23, 2018Without due process, we cannot have a democratic system. Only in a dictatorship where citizens
are not protected by a system of due process and could be wrongfully punished. Unfortunately, some politicians are taking
our country in that direction.
Read More July 23, 2018For 60 years, NASA’s mission to further knowledge of our home planet and the search for
life on other worlds is a source of pride for us all. From Apollo 13’s journey to the Moon to Pioneer 10’s flight
to Jupiter, NASA employees’ expertise, passion, and dedication have helped us reach the stars. For them, the sky is
literally not the limit.
Read More July 16, 2018In yet another example of an irresponsible, undemocratic, unprecedented attempt to wipe out
labor unions from the United States, the Trump administration has ordered federal agencies across the country to begin implementing
the three controversial executive orders to obstruct our work fighting discrimination, retaliation, and injustices in the
federal workplace.
Read More July 16, 2018Our union exists to protect the merit systems, ensure justice, equality, and workers’
voice – all important factors for our government to serve and protect the American people. We make sure researchers,
scientists, doctors, nurses, and other public servants have the tools and resources they need to do their jobs. But this administration
is showing zero leadership in helping them do their jobs better.
Read More July 16, 2018As the administration works to purge our union from the workplace, 132 members of Congress join
us in calling for a stop to the union-busting Executive Orders.
Read More July 16, 2018Unions are a cornerstone of our democracy and our middle class. Unions are important more than
ever in light of an all-out war on the labor movement, whether it’s right-to-work-for-less laws, Janus, or other Supreme
Court rulings that helped advance corporate interests.
Read More July 16, 2018Since its creation in 1930, the VA has been a world-class organization, providing health care
and life-changing benefits to millions of veterans across the country. The VA is also home to medical breakthroughs, inventions,
and Nobel Prize laureates. VA’s tremendous research and partnerships with academic institutions have far-reaching impact
and have transformed the world of medicine. This kind of success is due in no small part to dedicated VA employees –
1 in 3 are veterans themselves.
Read More Lawmakers File Legal Brief Supporting AFGE Lawsuit Against Trump July 09, 2018A bipartisan group of current and former lawmakers have filed an amicus brief in support of
lawsuits filed by AFGE and other federal unions challenging President Trump’s anti-worker executive orders.
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