The Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs held hearings on the pending confirmations of all three FLRA nominees on September 25. The author suggests that Federal LR practitioners watch the session which is about 1 ½ hours in length to get an appreciation of how the process works and how almost no discussion of substance took place.
The MSPB signaled its approach to furlough appeals in the first two cases.
The Merit Systems Protection Board has issued its latest guidance on DOD Furloughs dated September 10, 2013.
MSPB updates its somewhat controversial information on DOD Furlough appeals.
The Obama White House announced the nomination of Patrick Pizzella as an FLRA Member. The author asks if this will smooth the way for the confirmation of Carol Waller Pope whose nomination has been in limbo for almost a year.
If you’re a military manager dealing with employees represented by a union, the minefields are common and not always where you think they are. The author suggests ten things to do or know that can keep your foot off the pressure plate. Military managers should read this and their advisors should forward them a copy.
There’s a lot of hubbub around D.C. this week owing to a report that despite a presidential order freezing Federal pay, IRS employees are getting a $70,000,000.00 award payout. The Author, not known for his pro-union reporting, seeks to separate the truth from the rhetoric and examine what is going on at the IRS and why.
As negotiated agreements expire and bargaining appears likely, it is vital for an Agency to take stock of the old contract and assess where it wants negotiations to go. You can be sure the union will come to the table with an agenda; the author asks whether Agency representatives have an agenda of their own and attempts to lay out a framework for development of management’s agenda.
AFGE has scheduled a number of meetings at resorts and a national conference with discounted Disney tickets in Orlando Florida in September. Does this affect your pay?
FLRA is not deciding any cases as they are missing two members. If the former Chair is reconfirmed, we can expect more union proposals to be offered and ordered negotiable as “appropriate arrangements” for violating a management statutory right. The Author recently covered this topic at the Society of Federal Labor and Employee Relations Professionals’ annual conference. This article offers the meat of that presentation and suggestions for dealing with FLRA on this issue.
