Monthly Archives: May 2012
BILINGUALISM AS A MANAGEMENT WEAPON Bilingualism is a highly valued skill in our diverse society, but some managers over at the Social Security Administration have found a new use for it, namely as a weapon to retaliate against an employee. This … Continue reading
ARE YOU “GETTIN’ ENOUGH”— FROM GRIEVANCES? (Part 1) One of the first mistakes a union can make when drafting a grievance is to not ask for enough of a remedy. Not only does the grievant potentially lose something she might … Continue reading
Posted in Arbitration, Grievance/Arbitration, Remedies
Tagged AFGE, FLRA, NAGE, NFFE, NLRBU, NTEU
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CONGRATS TO NWSEO It is never easy to get any job upgraded, but boosting the grade of those doing clerical and admin support has been particularly hard. OPM considers them overgraded already and there rarelya re enough of them in … Continue reading
WHEN IS SEVERE OBESITY A PROTECTED DISABILITY? A federal district court recently backed up EEOC’s position that severe obesity is considered a disability protected by law. That leaves us with the question of what is a severe disability.
WHAT IS “ASSOCIATIONAL” DISCRIMINATION? The courts are recognizing a new form of illegal discrimination, which means that union reps should be notified and trained how to prove it exists. In short, it involves an employee being discriminated against because of … Continue reading
ADVERSE ACTION DUE PROCESS AND AGGRAVATING FACTORS Agencies are allowed to consider aggravating factors when choosing adverse action penalties. These could include prior disciplinary actions, poor work record, lack of rehabilitative potential, etc. However, MSPB just reminded us that there … Continue reading
SIMILARLY SITUATED CONCEPT EXPANDED AGAIN Not long ago FEDSMILL.com posted a piece entitled, “Who Are the Similarly Situated.” We noted that at least one circuit court did not require that the employees in the compared cases have the same supervisor, … Continue reading
SOLICITING MEMBERSHIP ON DUTY TIME While management seems to work very hard to avoid unions soliciting new members in work area or while anyone in the area is working, it is illegal to prevent it. The FLRA has held that … Continue reading
PAID PERPETUAL JURY DUTY Everyone knows that if a fed is called to jury duty, he/she continues to receive salary for the duration of that duty. But what if the employee volunteers for jury duty; in fact, what if the … Continue reading
TEST YOURSELF #3- Per Diem Entitlement Assume that you have a union member who performed official travel to Pennsylvania, leaving his home in Ohio at 7:15 a.m. and returning at 8:15 p.m. Is the employee entitled to any per diem … Continue reading