Posted on September 29, 2025 by AdminUN

FROM THEIR LIPS TO GOD’S EARS

Without triggering a theological inquisition about  whether God has ears or even more fundamental questions, I want to share with you the latest Federal Court of Appeals decision blocking Trump’s Executive Order to kill unions. Oh, that other judges and justices read and adopt it. Until then, the reasoning of the court provides hope for those of us  dealing with “government by revenge.” You can read the full decision by clicking here, but below are the highlights. Continue reading →

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Posted on September 28, 2025 by AdminUN

OUR COMPLIMENTS TO NTEU FOR…

Its newsletter to members-only updating them on all the court cases it and other unions have filed against the various Trump efforts to destroy unions,  fire federal employees, and turn the Executive Branch into a threatening club to build the Trump family’s personal wealth. NTEU updates its members a couple of times a month on almost every  lawsuit that could have an impact on their lives. And there are many. (The most recent NTEU Legal update reported on 16 cases filed by it, AFGE, NAAE, AFSA, POPA, FEA and the AFL-CIO.)  For example, depending on how these cases play out those feds fired as probationers could be reinstated with gobs of back pay and benefits; the same goes for those RIF’d or whose work or agency was shutdown.  In addition, these cases have the potential to give those union officials who have had to do union work on their own time, due to Trump’s cancellation of their negotiated official time, back pay as well for those extra hours. Similarly, any employee who could have filed a grievance had Trump not terminated their negotiated right to grieve should be able to file it no matter how far beyond the negotiated filing deadline.  FEDSMILL is of the opinion that one of the great benefits of unions is the information they can or potentially can give their members about their job site and career. These cases and similar fed employee developments are almost never covered in the general media. When people ask, “What has my union done for me lately?” unions that can point to a constant flow of information to members only have a ready answer to that.

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Posted on September 24, 2025 by AdminUN

DON’T BE A SUCKER FOR THIS AWARDS PROGRAM

The White House revels in taking some federal program that was around long before its current occupant arrived and declaring it new, ingenious, and the best ever—or words to that effect. A good example is a new Treasury Department press release about how feds are now eligible for awards up to $10,000 if they identify contractor abuse that results in the contract being cancelled or scaled back. That is not new; it has been the law for a while. But another part of the law will give a fed up to 30% of the savings from identifying a contractor engaging in fraud or similar actions. We wrote about this back in 2012 in a post entitled, “The Employee As Bounty Hunter .” That can put millions in a fed’s pocket. For example, in 2024, before the new White House occupants arrived, the government passed out $400 million to feds and others who blew the whistle through the process known as a “qui tam” lawsuit under the Federal  Claims Act.  Here is how to do it.   Continue reading →

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Posted on September 24, 2025 by AdminUN

WHEN DINOSAURS DECIDE FULL-TIME TELEWORK REQUESTS

With our apologies to the dinosaur community, we have to say we immediately thought of the stereotypical behemoths when we read about an agency official who decided that “telework was not an entitlement.” Hew then categorically forbade “supervisors, military, and administrative personnel and anyone on alternate work schedules from participating in regular and recurring telework.” We especially focused on the last phrase which penalized employees by denying them one benefit Congress and the President have endorsed because they took advantage of another benefit Congress and the President endorsed. Fortunately, this modern-day dino ran into his own personal meteorite compliments of EEOC. (But as we now see those dinosaurs must have used the current day location of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington, DC as breeding grounds.)  Continue reading →

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Posted on September 16, 2025 by AdminUN

WHAT COUNTS AS A WHISTLEBLOWER RETALIATION?

Loved this post from the Devadoss Law Firm (Click here) .  I suspect with all the shenanigans going on in government right now there will be more and more opportunities to blow the whistle on unethical, immoral, illegal leadership behavior.  Consequently, it would help for members to know the signs of retaliation.  So, pass this on via you email network. If you or some other member does whistle blow and believes management is retaliating, then check with your union leaders and/or an outside firm like Devadoss for help.  

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Posted on September 15, 2025 by AdminUN

REMEDIES: WHAT IS A “NO CONTACT” ORDER?

It is a remedy no one should forget to request. Josefina at the VA did not.  She filed a complaint alleging her manager had subjected her to a hostile work environment on the basis of reprisal for prior protected EEO activity as evidenced by several incidents. The EEOC agreed and issued an unusual order called a “No Contact” order. It required the agency to “… take all necessary steps to ensure that, following her reinstatement, Complainant has no contact with the Supervisory Medical Instruments Technician (hereinafter Former Supervisor.” When a dispute arose as to whether the agency was complying, the Commission wrote— Continue reading →

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Posted on September 11, 2025 by AdminUN

THAT TIME NTEU SMACKED DOWN A U.S. PRESIDENT

The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) is unique among unions. Despite its name, it represents thousands of employees who work for agencies other than those in the Treasury Department.  It is a very flat organization, meaning that any local union president can pick up the phone and get the National President on the line to talk about a problem they are having with management or staff. There is no hierarchy in between.  And unlike most unions the vast majority of the union’s staff are attorneys. So focused is the union on using laws and regulations to protect employees that some outsiders have said it is not a union, but “A law firm masquerading as a union.”  Personally, I consider that a deep compliment. It enables the union to assign highly trained professionals to each of its nearly 300 locals. Continue reading →

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Posted on September 10, 2025 by AdminUN

WOMEN! WHY DON’T THEY KNOW THEIR PLACE?

For those of you with an archeological interest, return with me to observe a Stone Age man at the Dep’t. of Agriculture.   Lia, an employee of that Neanderthal, filed an EEO complaint charging management with sex discrimination and harassment.  She alleged that her supervisor commented on numerous occasions about her appearance, that her job as a female was to do dishes, that she needed to stay home to start a family, that she needed her fiancé’s permission to attend school, and that her fiancé is likely to cheat on her with a cheerleader. Further, Lia alleged that her supervisor pressured her into picking up his lunch, provided opportunities for advancement to her male co-workers, and subjected her to other unwelcome conduct. Continue reading →

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Posted on August 27, 2025 by AdminUN

IT IS NOW TOUGHER TO DENY A REQUEST FOR RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Imagine this happens to you. You represent employees at an agency that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, like the folks at Customs and Border Protection.  They assign officers to work weekends, graveyard shifts and holidays. Further imagine that a member asks union help for a religious accommodation. Specifically, she wants to be exempt from ever having to work a weekend or overtime. You instantly realize that will mean that the other employees will have to work weekends and overtime more often to make up for her absence—and that they are going to be very upset with the union if it backs her. What do you do?  Continue reading →

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Posted on August 27, 2025 by AdminUN

FMLA BASICS – SELF-LED TRAINING CHECKLIST

Although there are some slight differences between federal and private sector FMLA rights and procedures, one need not worry about them when trying to get a basic understanding of employee rights.  Consequently, we recommend using a U.S. Dept. of Labor checklist for union stewards handling their first couple of FMLA cases or for members asking about their FMLA rights. Click here for a very helpful web site checklist addressing 15 different elements of FMLA rights. Continue reading →

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