OVER AT AFGE, WOW!

I was talking with two long-time AFGE national staff leaders last week about the state of federal labor relations when I remembered how that union had the classiest training program for local leaders when I broke into the field.  So, I decided to check in with what they are doing today because for a decade or so their training efforts had declined—in my opinion. Boy, have they come back strong.  For example, since we were talking about collective bargaining, I focused on that and here is just some of what I found. 

They made Youtube videos not just on dealing with the negotiability of management rights, but also another on I&I or appropriate arrangement bargaining.  These supplement their “Collective Bargaining Manual,” their “Negotiations Skills Participant Guide,” a larger site with over a dozen helpful documents related to bargaining. (Sorry for the short Youtube commercials before the AFGE pieces.) A particularly well-done piece is a webinar on bargaining basics.

Their program is not perfect, but it is better than anything else sitting out there on the Internet. Bargaining is undoubtedly a critical skill for unions.  After all, while you might think the side that wins is the one that is most stubborn and shouts the loudest in bargaining, it is actually technical expertise that carries the day.  These AFGE resources are a great place to start acquiring that expertise.