October 2004 Newsletter
Contents
To the Members of Local 3197
To the Members of Local 3197,
The presidential election is approaching quickly. Before you vote on November 2nd, we encourage you to educate yourself about where the candidates stand on working family issues, particularly those affecting AFGE members and federal workers.
It may not have made national headlines, but President Bush’s Administration worked to kill legislation to give front-line nurses a greater say in how the nurse professional standards boards operate and interpret the nurse qualifications standards. They also opposed AFGE’s efforts to improve staffing at the VA by setting safe nurse-to - patient ratios.
Bush Administration officials at the VA also fought AFGE efforts to expand Saturday premium pay to Title 5 employees working weekends at VA hospitals. After our Union succeeded in getting Congress to change the law on Saturday premium pay to include all VA hospital staff (including houskeeping staff, police and food service employees), the Administration refused to pay all affected workers under the new law. AFGE was forced to file a national grievance to get the VA to stop ignoring the law. The arbitration was held in Washington, DC, on September 14 and 15th, and we are awaiting the arbitrator’s decision.
And President Bush has recommended the cutting of 540 FTEs within VBA for the VHA 2005 Budget. Last April, all employees of the Seattle VARO were mandated to work 8 hours overtime to work down a backlog of claims. And the management of VARO is claiming the need for mandating overtime for employees again for the months of October, November and December 2004, for the same reason. The employees at VARO are stretched to the limit, often threatened with discipline if they cannot meet increasing production levels with perfect accuracy. How can decreasing the workforce of the VBA increase efficiency?
Both Senator Kerry and Senator Edwards strongly support the right of workers to form and join unions, including federal employees, and have opposed President Bush’s undermining of civil service protections. They both have consistently voted to protect federal civil service and collective bargaining rights, and the right to overtime pay. See www.afge.org and www.wemakeamericawork.org. for more information.
How you vote on November 2nd is a personal decision. However, after carefully researching the candidates’ records, AFGE has endorsed John Kerry and John Edwards. We hope you will give them your consideration. We hope you will vote!
Sincerely and In Solidarity,
Barbara Phinney, President; Gilbert Martinez, First VP; Larry Fowler, Unit
VP, VARO; Bianca Plank, Treasurer; Barbara TIckner, Chief Professional
Steward; Roy Frye, Acting Chief Steward
For more information see the National AFGE and We Make America Work websites.
From 3197's New Women's Coordinator
The National AFGE Human Rights Committee is comprised of the National Women's Director and 24 elected district officers, called the National Fair Practices Affirmative Action Coordinators (FPAAC), and the National Women's Advisory Committee Representative (NWAC). The purpose of the Human Rights Committee (HRC) is to study and recommend legal, legislative and administrative proposals relating to improving working conditions, with a focus on eliminating employment discrimination in the Government. These proposals may be presented to the National Executive Committee (NEC) through the Women's Director. The topics of these proposals include but are not limited to eliminating discrimination based on race, color, age, religion, national origin, disability/handicap, political affiliation, personal appearance, family responsibility, and sexual preference or sexual orientation as they relate to the quality of life for AFGE members, their families and their communities.
As the Local Women's Coordinator (LWC) I will be primarily concerned with any issue that has an adverse impact on women in the workplace. The main objective of the LWC is to assure that the agency maintains policies and practices which are free from artificial barriers to the progress of women. Among the areas of concern are childcare, gender-based wage discriminations, sexual harrassment, alternative work schedules, upward mobility, career developmet, family friendly leave policies, health and safety matters and leadership skills development. These issues are but a few addressed by the coordinators. Actions to resolve issues may require that I pursue solutions within the agency, or seek legislative solutions.
From Linda Bennett
September 9, 2004
Today the Senate Appropriations Transportation, Treasury and General Government Subcommittee voted on a funding bill that will affect pay raises in FY 2005. The Subcommittee bill included a 3.5% pay increase for GS and FWS employees and covered DoD and DHS civilian workers along with VA, SSA, HUD, etc. This is an important victory in our continuing fight to get all federal employees a 3.5% pay increase e in FY 2005. Senator Murray (DWA) was key to this victory, because she is the Ranking Member of this important Appropriations Subcommittee. She worked in a bipartisan effort with Chairman Shelby ( R-AL) to make sure that the 3.5% pay raise was in the bill.
At the subcommittee meeting today Senator Murray said: "In the area of federal employees, I am pleased that the bill provides for parity between defense and non-defense employees, all of whom will receive a 3.5 percent pay raise in the coming year under the provisions of this bill. The President proposed this pay raise only for military personnel and that raise is well-deserved and long overdue. I am pleased that the Subcommittee could extend that raise to civilian personnel as well, including the blue collar federal workforce."
We still have a number of steps to go before the pay raise in the pockets of our members but Senator Murray's work has put the pay raise on the right track.
A Letter From Alma L. Lee
On the Five-tier Performance Evaluation System, September 22, 2004
The purpose of this letter is to make you aware that the National VA Council (NVAC)-AFGE has been approached by the Department of Veterans Affairs concerning their desire to proceed with a new five-tier performance evaluation system for bargaining unit employees. Be confident that as your President, I am extremely cognizant of the sensitivity regarding this issue and its potential effect on AFGE bargaining unit employees' worklives. My desire at this point is to provide information and circumvent any misinformation that may come out from management on this very important matter.
As you well know, our collective bargaining agreement, the VA-AFGE Master Agreement, contemplates a performance evaluation system for AFGE bargaining unit employees. The current performance evaluation system is a two-tier pass/fail system. In 2003, VA management utilized a provision of the Master Agreement that allows either party to reopen the agreement for renegotiation. Negotiations began last year and were proceeding slowly until this spring, when VA management suspended negotiations for reasons only they completely know, but say it was because we did not give them all of our contract proposals at one time.
Since suspension of contract negotiations, VA management has aggressively approached NVAC-AFGE regarding their desire to change the current two-tier pass/fail performance evaluation system to a five-tier performance evaluation system, which they have been considering for some time. The five-tier system, as indicated by management, contemplates awards associated with tiers above satisfactory performance by bargaining unit employees. Some employees may remember that in the past VA had a similar five-tier performance evaluation system that was deemed by employees to be very subjective and susceptible to manipulation by unscrupulous supervisors. VA has certain management rights with regard to establishing the number of tiers in a performance evaluation system; however, procedures for implementation of a performance system requires negotiation with NVAC-AFGE.
Information provided by management indicates that some of the other unions within VA have no desire to bargain on the five-tier system and it will be implemented for their bargaining unit employees in the near future. One union is reportedly furnishing VA with proposals for negotiation on the five-tier system.
We have filed two national grievances on national VA management on their actions in national renegotiation of the Master Agreement. We have filed grievances on ten management actions taken with respect to negotiations with our national Mid-Term Bargaining Committee. VA has not been the best negotiating partner, and that fact plays a role in our reluctance to negotiate this matter at this time.
We are going to negotiate the performance evaluation system at the national level, in the renegotiations of the Master Agreement. VA is trying to insist that we should negotiate this outside of the established procedure. We suspect they may not have the best motives for making that request.
VA management has suggested that NVAC-AFGE should consider negotiation on the five-tier system so that AFGE employees will not be left behind when employees from other unions begin receiving their performance awards. The Council finds this position by management curious, since we are currently in negotiations for a contract provision that management reopened and has since suspended. The AFGE bargaining unit employees will continue to receive awards and bonuses under the current pass/fail performance system. Moreover, there is no indication that any dedicated money is, or will be, available for the proposed performance based award system at a time when VA appropriations are already limited.
The potential impact of piece-meal bargaining on matters currently in our Master Agreement under re-negotiation at the request of VA is a subject that must be seriously considered by this Council. Be assured that the effect management's proposal may have on our bargaining unit employees is of the utmost concern to us and we will continue to closely monitor all proposals to the Council that will affect the workplace environment. Therefore, the Council has decided not to negotiate the five-tier system outside of the Master Agreement. P.S. September 24, 2004. As you are aware when the VA and AFGE were in negotiations on the Master Agreement, VA suspended the negotiations and filed a ULP claiming that the Union bargained in bad faith because we did not give them all of our proposals for the contract at one time. The FLRA dismissed the VA's charges and maintained that we could give proposals in accordance to our ground rules, which allowed us to submit initial proposals and additional proposals thereafter. Of course the VA can appeal. As you may also be aware, we have filed a grievance and are waiting on arbitration for VA not signing off on articles during the negotiations that both sides had agreed to. We won this one and we believe we will win the arbitration.
Special Election for Chief Steward
AFGE Local 3197 will elect a Chief Steward at our Local meeting on Wednesday, December 8, 2004, at 5:00 PM in Room 240 Bldg 1, Seattle VA, 1660 South Columbian Way. Both nominations and the election will occur at the December meeting.
The election will be conducted by an Election Committee, which will be elected at the November 17 meeting (having been nominated at October meeting).
In order to run for the office of Chief Steward, a candidate must be nominated and must accept the nomination. Candidates must be a member in good standing for one year prior to the date of the election. Candidates may not be on the Election Committee.
Nominations may be made in person at the December meeting, or submitted in writing to a member of the Election Committee prior to the December meeting. Nominations may be accepted in person at the December meeting, or may be accepted in writing and submitted to the Election Committee prior to the December meeting.
After the November meeting, the Election Committee will mail to all members a Call for Nominations for the Office of Chief Steward, with instructions for nominating or accepting nomination.
In order to cast a vote for Chief Steward, you must be at the December meeting.
Elections are conducted in accordance with Local and National Constitution and Bylaws.