Posted on September 25, 2011 by AdminUN

EDITORIAL – WHAT HAPPENS AT FLRA HAPPY HOURS

How do we know that FLRA is having regular happy hours during the day?  Well, we don’t, but something like that must be happening based on the quality of its particularized need decisions.  They are a mess—and that is the sugarcoated characterization.  While legalists are having a grand old time waxing eloquently about the concept, actual practitioners struggle mightily to unscramble the case law jumble they have given us. By one count, FLRA and its ALJ’s have had to issue over 55 particularized decisions since January 1, 2000, which affirms a state of extreme conceptual turmoil.  Office-wide FLRA inebriation is not the only possible explanation for this; it is just far more polite than others. But, enough of cheap accusations that reveal more about our shortcomings than FLRA’s; let’s look at facts. Continue reading →

Posted in FLRA, Information | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Posted on September 21, 2011 by AdminUN

UNION MEMBERSHIP ACHIEVEMENTS

AFGE, NTEU, and NATCA excel when it comes to membership statistics, but for different reasons. Continue reading →

Posted in Membership Building | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Posted on September 21, 2011 by AdminUN

RESIGNING WITH A CLEAN RECORD REDEFINED

MSPB has just changed how it will interpret termination settlement agreements that call for the removal, cancellation or even change of the official record. In this case, management settled a removal appeal by agreeing to reinstate the employee and “[t]o change the nature of the Employee’s Standard form [SF] 50 bearing effective date 11 August 2007 from Removal to a 30-day Suspension.” Continue reading →

Posted in Discipline/Adverse Action, MSPB, Resignations | Leave a comment

Posted on September 21, 2011 by AdminUN

PART-TIMERS OWED BACKPAY

On August 23, 2011, OPM issued final regulations implementing a court decision requiring the payment of Sunday premium pay to part-time employees, as well as to full-time employees.  The decision was Fathauer v. United States.  Continue reading →

Posted in Back Pay, Regulations | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Posted on September 20, 2011 by AdminUN

FLRA BOOSTS TELEWORK REMEDIES  

Few things are as frustrating as winning a grievance, arbitration or ULP only to find that the sole remedy imposed is an order that management not violate the law or contract again.  FLRA claims that remedies should “restore, so far as possible, the status quo that would have obtained but for the wrongful act,” and that they should be chosen in part as a “deterrence of future violative conduct.”  Even the courts have talked tough about remedies, “An approach to remedies that systematically fails to deter non-compliance, or dilatory compliance, with the Statute’s directives is fundamentally at odds with the Authority’s responsibilities. . .”  Continue reading →

Posted in Flexiplace, Grievance/Arbitration | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Posted on September 15, 2011 by AdminUN

GRIEVANCE DRAFTING TIPS 1, 2 & 3

Most contracts merely require the union to put the following in the grievance: 1- Article and section violated, 2- Description of the grieved event, and 3- Remedy desired.   As clear as that or similar language appears, there are some drafting tips that will boost your chances of winning. Continue reading →

Posted in Grievance/Arbitration | Leave a comment

Posted on September 15, 2011 by AdminUN

GRIEVANCE DRAFTING TIPS 4, 5, & 6

Before we turn to three other parts of a grievance where you can boost its winning potential and impact, remember this.  If you were unable to draft the grievance broadly enough during the grievance stage, often arbitrators will allow the parties to deviate from the exact wording of the grievance and the management responses when crafting the formal issues statement for him.  If you have that opportunity, here is an example of how a promotion-related grievance might be written for the arbitrator, “Did the agency violate Article X, Section Y of the parties agreement or any law, rule or regulation when it denied the following individuals promotion.” Continue reading →

Posted in Grievance/Arbitration | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Posted on September 14, 2011 by AdminUN

HOW FLRA BLEEDS AGENCY BUDGETS

Almost no one talks about it, but every day FLRA takes to resolve back pay cases costs federal agencies dearly. That is not opinion; it is cold, hard fact. Here is a great example. Continue reading →

Posted in FLRA | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Posted on September 9, 2011 by AdminUN

WHAT UNION REPS CAN DO THAT EMPLOYEES CAN’T

All employees do not have equal legal rights.  Union representatives have far more rights than most.  In fact, they have far more rights than the average manager. So, if you hear anyone asking the question, “What Can the Union Do for Me?” here is just a short list of the powers a union rep can put to work for employees the minute a union is certified in an election. Continue reading →

Posted in Membership Building, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Posted on September 8, 2011 by AdminUN

FREE RESEARCH SITES FOR UNIONS

Management representatives often have access to the best electronic legal research tools to help them deal with the union. However, it is unusual that a union can afford services such as Cyberfeds, Lexis or Westlaw, or even has the training to get the most out of them. But union leaders can make up for that disadvantage by making good use of several free web sites that provide very useful information. Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment