Posted on January 25, 2016 by AdminUN

WHEN HAIR TRUMPS URINE

An agency suspended a firefighter for 30 days who tested positive for illegal drugs after being selected in a random test. Because the employee was absolutely convinced that he had not used drugs, he tried to prove that the urine sample produced a false positive and/or that his sample had become mixed up with another employee’s. Consequently, along with his written reply he provided the result of a private test he had done of his hair that showed he had not used drugs at any recent time. He also asked the agency for a portion of the urine it tested so that he could have a private DNA test run on it. The agency refused to release any of the urine citing HHS rules that prohibit DNA testing on urine samples collected for drug testing. So, that left it up to the judge and MSPB itself to decide what to do. Continue reading →

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Posted on January 25, 2016 by AdminUN

MEASURING THE QUALITY OF A UNION

We have always thought that you can measure the quality of a union by how quickly it moves a member’s grievance to and through arbitration for a final decision. After all, for every member left to deal with the uncertainty, anxiety, and/or stress of waiting for a final decision, there is a local union leader who probably assured the grieving member that his/her union would do everything it could to help. That union leader looks foolish as weeks and then months turn into more than a year awaiting a final decision. That is why we we’re a little sorry to see the Federal Circuit Court’s new decision letting a union off the hook for delaying a case. Here are the facts. Continue reading →

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Posted on January 25, 2016 by AdminUN

348,814 REASONS TO JOIN YOUR UNION

Imagine you own a rental property valued at $348,814.00, that generates about $55,000 a year in income for your family, and that it plays a big role in your retirement plans. What are the odds you would not insure the property? If you answer anything other than “Zero,” report immediately to the health unit for a fitness-for-duty exam. You probably should not be walking around the streets without a helmet and attendant. We just read a case decision about a non-supervisory Social Security Customer Service Representative who is a great example of something just like that. Continue reading →

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Posted on January 22, 2016 by AdminUN

TRANSGENDER ROADMAP: 10 STEPS THE EEOC THINKS EMPLOYERS SHOULD TAKE

The “Employment & Labor Insider” has done us all a favor with a new article spelling out what employers should be doing to accommodate the transgender worker. We thought practitioners on both sides of the table might appreciate the E&L Insider’s list because it works well as a quick checklist for assessing how well your own organization is doing and targeting things to change.

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Posted on January 21, 2016 by AdminUN

A LEGAL OVERVIEW OF RELIGIOUS DISCRIMINATION

We ran across a pretty good article explaining various parts of the religious discrimination process and thought those of you interested in the topic might want to see it.

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Posted on January 21, 2016 by AdminUN

WHAT IS A COBURN GORE 12-6/8?

We had never heard of it either, but it is proof of the value of creative local leader input for solving national union problems. The problem was in Coburn Gore, Maine, which is right near the towns of Jackman, St.Aurlelie, St. Juste, St. Pamphile, and St. Zacharie. Each is a very remote outpost of the Homeland Security (DHS) effort to keep the nation safe from unwanted visitors and goods coming across the Canadian border. Given the need to put Customs and Border Patrol Officers there around the clock seven days a week, the local leaders of the union chapter, who we know as a very talented and creative bunch, proposed a Compressed Work Schedule that might be useful a lot of places in their own agency as well as outside. Here is how it works. Continue reading →

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Posted on January 18, 2016 by AdminUN

FMLA QUIZ: WHO IS RIGHT AND WHO IS NOT?

Here are the facts of a 2015 MSPB decision in an adverse action suspension case. See if you remember the right answer. The employee left the office the morning of September 5 due to debilitating stomach cramps, making it to his car with the help of some of his colleagues and then driving far enough to get off post, where he parked until his cramping subsided. He then drove the short distance remaining to his home, where he went straight into a dark room he uses when he has a strong migraine and collapsed. Two days later he notified his supervisor that he left the office unannounced due to an urgent health need on September 5 and requested intermittent FMLA leave on an emergency basis to cover the absence. He also asked that the absence be compensated via a request for advance credit hours. The supervisor refused to approve the request for advance credit hours and charged him with AWOL because he failed to request and receive leave approval before departing the office on September 5, as required by the agency’s leave instruction The two-day delay was unacceptable. The agency maintained that, because the appellant was able to drive himself home and to call his daughter, he was therefore able to give notice before he left the office that morning and, because he did not do so, he was AWOL. It then suspended him for 30 days. Do you believe the suspension should be upheld or overturned? Continue reading →

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Posted on January 18, 2016 by AdminUN

THE DARK SIDE OF TELECOMMUTING

While negotiators on both sides of the bargaining table deserve credit for integrating telecommuting into the work place Inc. magazine just did a very good job of highlighting the negative impact of those were denied telecommuting. It is a topic we have never seen labor or management negotiators focus on in their contract and MOUs, but it seems like something we should be paying attention to. Check out, “The Dark Side of Telecommuting To The Office.”

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Posted on January 18, 2016 by AdminUN

CONGRATS ON 2015 MEMBERSHIP GROWTH GOES TO…

The International Federation of Professional and Technical Employees (IFPTE), the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) and the National Labor Relations Board Union (NLRBU). We looked over the fiscal year 2015 LM reports filed so far by all national unions representing large numbers of federal employees to compare this year’s membership count to last year’s. These three showed that even when federal employment is dropping quickly a well-conceived membership plan will pay off. SF-1187 signing incentives of $100.00 or more, cultural accountability for those local leaders who chronically fail to generate new members, computer-assisted demographical analyses of individual locals to identify how to energize support group-by-group, national strategic plans, etc. are all well-known ingredients. In fact, if a union does not have three out of the four and a good substitute for the missing one then it need look no further for the cause of its problems.

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Posted on January 11, 2016 by AdminUN

UNIONS THROW OPEN THEIR BOOKS FOR PUBLIC REVIEW

Once a year unions post to the Internet details about how they spent members’ money during their last fiscal year. Generally, these details are not even shared with the national executive board during the year and we know of no unions that go out of their way to mail their Board members copies before the reports are posted for the world to see. Some might consider that a lack of common courtesy while others will see it for an indication that the national officers do not hold Board members in high regard, e.g., the less they know the better. Board members often have to go find the information just like any other web surfer out there. So, as union reports for fiscal year 2015 are becoming available for scrutiny, we thought we would share with all interested readers what to look for when paging through these revelations. Continue reading →

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