Monthly Archives: August 2022

UNION REP TEST #20 – (Reprisal or Hostile Environment) Read through the following facts to identify whether it is a case of reprisal for EEO activity or a hostile EEO environment. The distinction is a big deal when representing an … Continue reading

Posted in Retaliation, Union Rep Test | Tagged | Leave a comment

CREATIVE GRIEVANCE REMEDIES One of the criticisms that can be leveled against most unions is that they often file grievances that fail to pursue all the potential remedies an employee is due.  To put it more bluntly, they are letting … Continue reading

Posted in Grievance/Arbitration | Tagged | Leave a comment

HOW TO STOP RAMPANT SELECTING OFFICIAL INCOMPETENCE Thanks to the managements’ rights provision of the labor law, federal selecting officials think they have something akin to Papal infallibility when they decide who should be selected for promotion. Afterall, the law … Continue reading

Posted in Promotion/Hiring | Tagged | Leave a comment

AFGE SEVERS ONE OF ITS COUNCILS AFGE just made a very hard decision. It notified FLRA that it no longer wished to represent the 7,500 employees of the Immigration & Citizenship Enforcement (ICE) service. That means a big loss of revenue for … Continue reading

Posted in Union Politics | Tagged | Leave a comment

HOPING FOR THE BEST FOR OUR LAW ENFORCEMENT COLLEAGUES The last ten days have seen someone ignite a firestorm of criticism against federal law enforcement personnel merely for doing the job they were appointed to and bound by law to … Continue reading

Posted in Health & Safety | Tagged | Leave a comment

HERE COME THE REMOTE WORK GRIEVANCES Agencies are quickly moving to limit remote work now that the worst COVID pandemic appears to be behind us and we thought we would pass along what may be the best thought out union … Continue reading

Posted in Telework | Tagged | Leave a comment

UNION NEGOTIATORS MUST READ AND STUDY THIS CASE FLRA just issued a decision loaded with lessons for union negotiators. It involved an agency unilaterally implementing ground rules for the renegotiation of the term agreement.  The agency threw the proverbial kitchen … Continue reading

Posted in Bargaining Law | Tagged | Leave a comment

MSPB EXPLAINS WITHIN-GRADE INCREASES         It does not happen often; in fact, it is quite rare.  But agencies do deny within-grade or step increase and when they do it almost always falls to the union to grieve and possibly arbitrate the … Continue reading

Posted in WIGI/ALOC | Tagged | Leave a comment

IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO COLLECT YOUR CASH One of the sad facts facing federal employees seeking justice on the job is that it can take years to get your money.  But as most recently demonstrated by some female … Continue reading

Posted in Back Pay | Tagged | Leave a comment

UNION RESPONSES TO MONKEYPOX Just saw a blog posting entitled, “What Employers Need To Know About Monkeypox” which struck us as a reminder that we have seen nothing out there about how unions should be reacting to this.  We recommend … Continue reading

Posted in Bargaining | Tagged | Leave a comment