NTEU E-Bulletin, May 15, 2007

Inside this Issue: May 15, 2007
Top Stories: House Votes to Repeal DHS Regulations, Grant LEO Status to CBP Officers
Headlines: What's Good for the Military...
Get Involved: Help Put an End to the DHS Regulations
New on NTEU.org: Get Your Fill of NTEU Headlines on 'NTEU in the News' Page
Top Stories

Help Put an End to the DHS Regulations
The House voted last week to put a final nail in the coffin of the DHS personnel system--now it's the Senate's turn.As senators begin work on their version of the fiscal 2008 Homeland Security authorization bill, NTEU is urging them to support the House-approved provisions repealing DHS's harmful personnel management system and granting LEO status to CBP Officers.
You can take action to ensure your representatives understand the importance of these provisions and endorse them. Your efforts in generating support are vital, as the White House has already threatened to veto the House measure over the personnel rules provision.
Click here or visit http://capwiz.com/nteu/dbq/officials/?lvl=C.

House Votes to Repeal DHS Personnel System, Grant LEO Status to CBP Officers
The House on Wednesday passed legislation containing provisions NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley called a "major step forward both for DHS employees and the nation."
Lawmakers approved language repealing the DHS personnel regulations in the fiscal 2008 Homeland Security authorization bill, despite a White House threat to veto the legislation if the provision remains intact. The bill passed by a veto-proof margin of 296 to 126.
"The repeal of the DHS regulations is important to all federal employees," said Kelley. "If DHS retains this authority to revoke decades of civil service rules, it is only a matter of time before other agencies seek the same authority."The bill includes a second NTEU-sought provision that would end the long-time inequity of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) employees being denied law enforcement officer (LEO) status. The administration also took issue with this provision, arguing that CBP Officers do not meet the definition of law enforcement officers. Kelley rejected that claim, reminding the White House of recent shootings involving CBP Officers and a 2006 government report identifying more than 17,000 CBP employees who perform law enforcement duties.For the complete story, visit www.cbpunion.org.

NTEU Backs Anti-Discrimination Bill
NTEU voiced its strong support for legislation introduced both in the House and Senate that would restore federal employee protections against sexual orientation discrimination in the workplace.The bills, introduced by Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) and Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), address an interpretation of civil service statutes initiated in 2004 by Scott Bloch, head of the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). Veering from interpretations held for more than 25 years, Bloch said that the OSC only has authority to protect workers from discrimination based on specific sexual conduct and not orientation.
Bloch's narrow and impractical interpretation would severely limit the discrimination cases OSC would be required to accept and investigate. It is also inconsistent with the views of the Office of Personnel Management and the Civil Service Commission before it, as well as the previous Special Counsel. "There is no meaningful distinction between discrimination based on an employee’s sexual orientation and discrimination based on their sexual conduct," President Kelley said. "I look forward to prompt congressional action on this vital issue.” For the complete story, click here or visit www.nteu.org/PressKits/PressRelease/PressRelease.aspx?ID=1100.

House Member Cites NTEU Concerns in Floor Speech on FDA Lab Closures
A California representative last week read a strongly-worded speech on the House floor voicing his "grave concern" over the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) proposal to close seven labs. In his remarks, Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Calif.), whose constituents include employees of the San Francisco District lab slated for closure, underscored the importance of the labs to California.
Why are the FDA labs so important to your health and safety?Click here to find out
"Regional laboratories are even more important today, when an E. coli outbreak in California needs immediate attention and not days of delay because substances must be shipped across the country to a lab in New York," he said.
Lantos questioned whether alternatives to the reorganization have been considered, citing strong opposition to the plan from lawmakers and NTEU. "[President Kelley] has expressed her concern that FDA employees are not being properly considered in this radical transition plan to close labs this spring," said Lantos.For more about NTEU's efforts to stop the FDA's reorganization plan, visit www.nteu.org/FDALabs.

NTEU Files Grievances Over Performance Awards at Three HHS Divisions
First, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) opposed an NTEU request to expedite bargaining over a consolidated contract by having a neutral third party help resolve outstanding issues. Now, HHS has denied employees their due performance awards, forcing NTEU to file a grievance against three HHS operating divisions--the Office of the Secretary/Administration on Aging (OS/AoA), Administration for Children and Families (ACF) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).
In each of the grievances, NTEU alleges that the operating division not only refused to pay appropriate performance awards, but falsely held the union responsible for employees not receiving their payments. NTEU has proposed that the parties work collaboratively on a procedure valid only for this year to ensure that employees receive their awards on time while negotiations continue over a national agreement covering all HHS bargaining unit employees.
Look for bargaining updates in future issues of the NTEU e-Bulletin.

Senate Subcommittee to Examine 2008 SEC Funding Proposal
Tomorrow afternoon, the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee will begin work on fiscal 2008 funding for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). SEC Chairman Christopher Cox is scheduled to testify. In March, he testified in support of the president's $905.3 million budget request for SEC before the House Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government. To read Chairman Cox's House testimony, visit www.sec.gov/news/testimony/2007/ts032707cc.htm.
Headlines
What's Good for the Military...Washington Post, May 2, 2007
The 2008 pay raise appears to be taking shape.
The House Armed Services Committee included a 3.5 percent raise for the military in the fiscal 2008 defense authorization bill, and Rep. Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.), the House majority leader, announced he will urge other House leaders to provide an equal increase for civil service employees.
The House approved the Homeland Security bill on a 296 to 126 vote Wednesday. The bill includes a provision that would grant law-enforcement status for purposes of determining retirement benefits to certain Customs and Border Protection officers. The administration has objected, citing the cost of providing more attractive retirement benefits.
Colleen M. Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, said the veto threat "shows that this administration is willing to put its animosity toward fair treatment for workers over the interest of national security."For the complete story, click here or visit www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/10/AR2007051002223.html.

New on NTEU.orgGet Your Fill of NTEU Headlines on 'NTEU in the News' PageHas the e-Bulletin left you wanting to read more media coverage of NTEU's position and work on behalf of federal employees? Now you can get a daily dose of NTEU headlines on the newest addition to NTEU's web site, the NTEU in the News page. From contracting out to the 2008 federal pay raise, read what NTEU has to say on a range of current hot topics in media outlets including the Washington Post, USA Today, GovExec, Forbes and others.To see why NTEU is the leading voice for federal employees, click here or visit www.nteu.org/PressKits/NTEUintheNews.aspx.

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