Two Congressmen recently sent a letter (below) to Education Department Secretary Betsy DeVos expressing their disapproval of the agency’s recent decision to institute a new collective bargaining agreement.
The letter was sent by Congressmen Elijah Cummings (D-MD) and Bobby Scott (D-VA). The lawmakers have sided with AFGE in the matter and are asking the agency to withdraw the terms covering the AFGE Council 252 that the Department unilaterally implemented in March, resume bargaining with AFGE, and abide by the terms of the expired collective bargaining agreement.
The Congressmen also asked the Education Department to provide them with documentation on the agency’s decision to suspend bargaining and communications between the agency and AFGE Council 252 regarding collective bargaining.
In a press release, the Congressmen called the agency’s actions “union busting” and said, “The reports raise serious questions about whether Trump Administration officials are complying with laws requiring them to conduct negotiations in ‘good faith’.”
What was behind the agency’s decision? There apparently are some significant costs involved to support the union which may have been a factor.
FedSmith author Bob Gilson has covered the situation in two different articles (see the links to both articles below) and provided a detailed analysis of the situation and costs involved in his article, Department of Education v. AFGE: Union Busting or Fiscal Responsibility?.
Is the Education Department really “union busting?” You can read the facts surrounding the situation and decide for yourself.
Letter to ED Re: AFGE Collective Bargaining
