Author Archives: AdminUN

About AdminUN

FEDSMILL staff has over 40 years of federal sector labor relations experience on the union as well as management side of the table and even some time as a neutral.

ASPERGER’S SYNDROME, THE INABILITY TO INTERACT WITH OTHERS & ADA        Some of us are shy, some are introverts, some of us have Asperger’s Syndrome and some of us have other conditions interfering with our ability to interact with others in … Continue reading

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WHEN PERFORMANCE AWARDS ARE DISCRETIONARY What’s a union to do when management distributes cash performance awards as it sees fit without any negotiated formal criteria?  A lot, even if the FSIP said the agency could do it that way. The … Continue reading

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UNION STAFF AS OFFICER CANDIDATES We were surprised by a reaction to a recent FEDSMILL posting noting that union staff or employees can run for national union office. So we thought we would do a quick review of the law … Continue reading

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WHICH BATHROOM FOR TRANSGENDER EMPLOYEES? Here are the facts. Tamara Lusardi was working for the Aviation and Missile Research Development and Engineering Center in Huntsville, Alabama.  As a known transgender employee, the agency forced her to only use a single-use … Continue reading

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WHAT UNIONS DO WITH RETIREES, FORMER FEDS, & STAFF MEMBERS Individual federal sector unions have done different things with those who have retired from or otherwise left the federal government—or anyone else allowed to join who is not an active … Continue reading

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THE ADA AND TELEWORK A federal circuit court just issued a decision undercutting the right of employees to ask for telework as a “reasonable accommodation” for a disability.  But it is not as bad for disabled employees as a lot … Continue reading

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20+ FLRA PRECEDENTS UNION NEGOTIATORS MUST KNOW Collective bargaining is like a tennis match.  The two players repeatedly fire the ball at one another hoping to force a mistake, get an advantage, or just tire the other out.  Furthermore, the … Continue reading

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HOW SHOULD UNIONS RUN THEIR INVESTMENT PROGRAMS? The quick answer is, “Very carefully.” A slightly longer answer is, “The opposite of what Madoff was allowed to do.” The four biggest federal sector unions have reported over $50 million in investments … Continue reading

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THANKS, VIC. WE WILL MISS YOU. Please excuse the briefest of sentimental moments on our part. Vic Gotbaum died last week, ending his monumental stream of contributions to American labor unions, and we want to help folks remember what he … Continue reading

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 FLRA’S POWERPOINTS & ULP LAW OUTLINES We have never been shy about taking a shot at FLRA for its incredibly slow pace at processing cases.  All too often agency back pay liabilities have doubled just waiting for FLRA to uphold … Continue reading

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