Monthly Archives: January 2023

IS IT “SHIRKING” OR JUST OLD FASHION LYING? The political extremists who see unions as their enemies (and most are) and who would give managers unreviewable dictatorial power to fire whomever they wish for any reason they wish are at … Continue reading

Posted in Arbitration | Tagged | 1 Comment

WHY DOESN’T YOUR UNION BARGAIN OVER MONEY? Although only a few federal employees bargaining units are allowed to negotiate over salaries, virtually all fed units are allowed to demand increases in indirect ways of increasing their members’ total compensation. We … Continue reading

Posted in Compensation | Tagged | Leave a comment

GRIEVING A FAILURE TO MENTOR OR DEVELOP EMPLOYEES Very few labor agreements or grievances address an employee’s right to career development opportunities. But a new case out of the EEOC suggests that this is a field union reps should think … Continue reading

Posted in Details | Tagged | 2 Comments

DON’T MAKE THE GRIEVANCE MISTAKE THIS UNION DID Who knows why they did it or even if it was knowing and deliberate. But a union that normally represents state and locally police ripped the rug out from under a federal … Continue reading

Posted in Grievance/Arbitration | Tagged | Leave a comment

A BIT OF WIGI/ALOC GOOD NEWS FROM MSPB Some people call it a Within-Grade Increase (WIGI) issue while others use the Acceptable Level of Competence (ALOC) label. Both refer to the salary step increases employees qualify for periodically.  While it … Continue reading

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CBP DEAF TO DEAF EMPLOYEE RIGHTS A person EEOC identifies as Antwan applied to be a Customs & Border Protection (CBP) Agriculture Specialist where he would check for food and plants being brought into the US illegally by travelers or … Continue reading

Posted in Disability, Reasonable Accommodations | Tagged | Leave a comment

WHAT A GRIEVANCE REMEDY REQUEST SHOULD LOOK LIKE Few things bother us more than arbitration decisions sustaining a grievance only to find that the union did not ask for everything it was entitled to get.  So, we like to pass … Continue reading

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RETALIATION/REPRISAL IS EASIER TO PROVE THAN EEO HARASSMENT Not long ago we wrote about how EEOC rejected an employee’s claim of a hostile work environment, but sustained his charge of EEO reprisal based on the same facts.  The point of that post … Continue reading

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REMEMBER THIS FOR WHEN THE GRIEVANCE HATERS RETURN Although the FLRA is once again operating as a neutral and professional labor relations administrator, there will come a time when once again at least two of the three seats will be … Continue reading

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AI’S “ChatGPT” CAN HELP UNION REPS NOW How often have you been frustrated trying to find someone in the union who knew the answer to a question? Either you can’t find them or they do not know the answer when … Continue reading

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