Monthly Archives: December 2015

STORIES COMING AFTER THE HOLIDAYS Against our better judgment we have decided to give in to staff demands for time off during the holidays. We probably could have coerced the Marketing, PR, IT, News, Editorial and Admin staffs into staying, … Continue reading

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THE FLSA GRIEVANCE REMEDY PERIOD Not long ago we wrote about the very substantial difference between the time period in which a grievance must be filed once learning of a violation and how far back in the past an arbitrator … Continue reading

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WHEN SHOULD UNIONS NEGOTIATE OVER GOVERNMENT-WIDE REG CHANGES? Assume that your contract or some MOU includes a provision that limits the Best Qualified list in a promotion action to the top four rated candidates for a single vacancy. Then imagine … Continue reading

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SHOULD EMPLOYERS INVITE EMPLOYEES ON FMLA LEAVE TO HOLIDAY PARTIES? That seems like a very good question especially around this time of the year. Does it violate the employees’ right to exclude them simply because they are on FMLA leave? … Continue reading

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WHEN HR DISRESPECTS DECIDING OFFICIALS Sitting as the deciding official over a proposed adverse action is a big deal.  Not only does the DO have to respect employee Constitutional rights, but also the requirements of law, regulation, agency policy, past … Continue reading

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EEOC PROVIDES ADA GUIDANCE FOR EMPLOYEES’ DOCTORS If you have ever been involved with a disabled employee’s request for a reasonable accommodation, you know that a lot depends of what the employee’s doctor does and writes.  EEOC just gave them … Continue reading

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FMLA QUIZ: WHO IS RIGHT AND WHO IS NOT? Here are the facts of a 2015 MSPB decision in an adverse action suspension case.  See if you remember the right answer.  The employee left the office the morning of September … Continue reading

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FLRA OFFERS TUTORIAL SLIDES FOR BARGAINING OVER OFFICE MOVES While we are not about to call it absolutely the best advice any LR practitioner can get on how to bargain over office moves, if you are involved in that situation … Continue reading

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AFGE CELEBRATES ITS NOT-SO-SECRET SUCCESS FORMULA Even a quick check of AFGE’s current  national newsletter will give you an idea of how proud and happy the union is to have achieved an on-going level of 300,000 dues paying members. While … Continue reading

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FEDERAL WHISTLEBLOWER RIGHTS AND PROTECTIONS VIDEO Whistleblowing laws have changed a lot in the last few years and most of the change has been good for employees.  Union reps should make sure they can spot the situations where employees qualify … Continue reading

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