A handful of senators late Wednesday scrambled to try to ensure that federal workers would receive a pay raise in 2019 if Congress is able to pass a shutdown-averting, stop-gap funding bill acceptable to President Trump. Roughly one-third of federal agencies are scheduled to lose funding after Friday.
On Wednesday afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell introduced a continuing resolution to fund through Feb. 8 the agencies that don’t yet have full year appropriations. While the measure, passed by unanimous consent late Wednesday, would avert a partial government shutdown, it did not include the 1.9 percent pay increase for federal civilian employees the Senate had previously approved.
See full article In Government Executive: 2019 Pay Raise
Message from Dorothy James, District 7 NVP
October 9th, 2018 | Posted by in Did you know? | Events | Rally | Wear Red Day - (0 Comments)
We may have won our executive order lawsuit, but the fight isn’t over. The administration is appealing the judge’s decision, and is actively working to put the union-busting, democracy-busting executive orders back in place.
We’re all in on fighting for workers’ rights. We need you and your coworkers to show management and the administration that our union isn’t going anywhere. Make sure to wear red EVERY Wednesday.
When management and the administration see worksites full of government workers wearing red, it will be a powerful display of our strength, solidarity, and willingness to fight the administration’s outrageous attempts to bust our union and break our democracy.
It is up to us to keep working for what is right – and to do that, our union has to be all in. That’s why we’re wearing Red for Feds every Wednesday, and sharing pictures of our red on social media with the hashtag #RedForFeds.
Please make sure that you are not on government time or government property when you take or share your photos. If your employment requires a specific uniform or dress policy, be mindful of compliance. The wearing of red is not for, or against, any candidate or party, and is not a violation of the Hatch Act.
By joining together and raising our voices as a union family, we know we can do great things. Thank you for all that you do.
If you have any questions or would like to talk about more ways you or your local can get involved, don’t hesitate to e-mail us at district7@afge.org.
In Solidarity,
Dorothy James
National Vice-President
American Federation of Government Employees
District 7
When is the Next Union Meeting?
October 8th, 2018 | Posted by in Did you know? | JOIN AFGE | Local 1395 | Membership Meetings | News - (0 Comments)
Monthly Membership Meetings
2nd Wednesday of each Month.
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: 600 W. Madison, Chicago IL 60661
Room: HWSSC Conference Room #1- 1st FL.
NEXT MEMBERSHIP MEETING
Wednesday October 10th, 2018
Attacks on Government Employees – Round II
September 25th, 2018 | Posted by in Court Ruling | Did you know? | Executive Orders - (0 Comments)Trump Administration Appeals Court Ruling On Workforce EOs
The Justice Department on Tuesday filed a notice that it would appeal a recent court decision that struck down three controversial workforce executive orders President Trump signed earlier this year to make it easier to fire federal workers and reduce the influence of federal employee unions.
The case will go to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
In a notice filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Assistant Attorney General Joseph Hunt said the administration will seek to overturn the August decision by U.S. District Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson, which found that the key provisions of the executive orders were unlawful.
IT TAKES A VILLAGE! – BE THE VILLAGE!
September 21st, 2018 | Posted by in FEEA | FLOODS/Weather - (0 Comments)AFGE FAMILY,
As a union family, we know that we can count on each other for help when we need it the most. And after Hurricane Florence, we know that some of our brothers and sisters may need some extra help as they recover.
FEEA was created in 1986 to financially help government workers with disaster relief and scholarship funds, so that they could provide for their families and pursue their dreams.
AFGE will continue to do everything we can to support our members and get our communities back on their feet. Thank you for all that you do.
In solidarity,
AFGE
P.S. Were you affected by Hurricane Florence, and are you in need of financial assistance? If so, click here to apply for a FEEA grant.
ATTACKS TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEES CONTINUE
September 13th, 2018 | Posted by in Did you know? | News | Your Rights - (0 Comments)Heads up federal employee friends, Congress is trying to pass another BS law designed to hurt us. Its called the MERIT ACT, short for Modern Employment Reform Improvement, and Transformation Act. Call your reps today 866-356-0201 to tell your Member of Congress that this is unfair and unproductive, and to oppose the MERIT Act.
Under the MERIT Act:
You would no longer be able to appeal adverse actions and unfair reductions in force actions through the grievance procedures. The only venue for you to appeal these unfair actions would be the severely under-resourced Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), which reviews similar cases for the entire federal workforce of 2 million employees. The agency’s decision becomes final if the MSPB does not issue a decision within 30 days.
You will not have enough time to mount a credible defense if you are accused of performance or disciplinary issues, because the bill drastically shortens the response time.
You can be fired at any point in your first two years on the job, for any reason.
You may be forced to repay a bonus or award if the agency head claims he or she was unaware of a conduct or performance issues when you received the payment.
To stay involved and updated on what AFGE is doing to protect your rights, text AFGE to 225568 from your personal phone (never your government phone) to subscribe to text updates.
AFGE WINS
September 12th, 2018 | Posted by in Court Ruling | Did you know? | Solidarity | Your Rights - (0 Comments)Democracy Wins as Court Strikes Down Trump’s Anti-Worker Executive Order
AFGE applauds ruling that administration illegally gutted workers’ rights, violated labor contracts
WASHINGTON – In a landmark decision, a federal judge has ruled that President Trump violated the U.S. Constitution and laws providing checks and balances in the federal government by attempting to deny more than 2 million federal workers their legal right to representation.
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled late last night that the Trump administration’s May 25executive order on official time violated the 1stAmendment to the U.S. Constitution and the separation of powers as established in law.
The American Federation of Government Employees, which was the first union to challenge President Trump’s executive orders in court, applauded the judge’s ruling.
“President Trump’s illegal action was a direct assault on the legal rights and protections that Congress specifically guaranteed to the public-sector employees across this country who keep our federal government running every single day,” AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. said.
“We are heartened by the judge’s ruling and by the huge outpouring of support shown to federal workers by lawmakers from both parties, fellow union workers, and compassionate citizens across the country,” Cox said. “Our members go to work every single day to serve the American people, and they deserve all the rights and protections afforded to them by our founding fathers.”
AFGE, the largest union representing federal government employees, filed two lawsuits challenging President Trump’s executive orders. The first lawsuit challenged the executive order on official time as a violation of the right to freedom of association guaranteed by the First Amendment, and as exceeding the president’s authority. The second lawsuit charged that the remaining two orders exceed the president’s authority under the U.S. Constitution by violating the separation of powers and exceeding current law.
The impact of these executive orders began being felt months before they were even issued, as the Department of Education in March threw out the contract covering 3,900 federal employees represented by AFGE and implemented its own illegal management edict that strips workers of their union rights, a precursor to what was to come weeks later when President Trump issued the three union-busting, anti-federal worker executive orders. Since the executive orders were signed May 25, other agencies including the Social Security Administration and Department of Veterans Affairs have issued similar edicts in an attempt to eradicate unions from the federal workplace and deny workers their legal right to representation.
“Now that the judge has issued her decision, I urge all agencies that have attempted to enforce this illegal executive order to restore all previously negotiated contracts and to bargain in good faith with employee representatives on any future changes as required under the law,” Cox said.
AFGE LOCAL 1395 is located at:
600 W. Madison – 6th Fl
Chicago IL 60661
Agatha Joseph 312-575-5612—President
Cheryl Bellamy-Bonner 312-575-5614 – Exec. Vice President
Main Office 312-575-5619
Are you legally healthy? Chances are your answer is “What?” “I guess so.” “How would I know?” or some variation of all three.
Legal health is not a generally accepted concept. Preventive medicine and preventive dentistry are well-established. Periodic dental and physical examinations have been recommended for decades. Financial planning has gained wide acceptance in recent years, but preventive law is still an unfamiliar term (even to many lawyers) and “legal checkup” and “legal health” are even less well known.
But it’s only a matter of time before all three are overworked buzzwords, because the idea behind preventive law, legal health and legal checkups is sound:
Expert evaluation of your legal situation (legal health) now can prevent many legal problems from developing later.
ATTACKS ON FEDERAL EMPLOYEES CONTINUE
September 7th, 2018 | Posted by in Uncategorized - (0 Comments)Heads up federal employee friends, Congress is trying to pass another BS law designed to hurt us. Its called the MERIT ACT, short for Modern Employment Reform Improvement, and Transformation Act. Call your reps today 866-356-0201 to tell your Member of Congress that this is unfair and unproductive, and to oppose the MERIT Act.
Under the MERIT Act:
You would no longer be able to appeal adverse actions and unfair reductions in force actions through the grievance procedures. The only venue for you to appeal these unfair actions would be the severely under-resourced Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), which reviews similar cases for the entire federal workforce of 2 million employees. The agency’s decision becomes final if the MSPB does not issue a decision within 30 days.
You will not have enough time to mount a credible defense if you are accused of performance or disciplinary issues, because the bill drastically shortens the response time.
You can be fired at any point in your first two years on the job, for any reason.
You may be forced to repay a bonus or award if the agency head claims he or she was unaware of a conduct or performance issues when you received the payment.
To stay involved and updated on what AFGE is doing to protect your rights, text AFGE to 225568 from your personal phone (never your government phone) to subscribe to text updates.
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