On October 31st, 2019, the Senate passed its first appropriations package, but a final agreement on government funding remains elusive. The current Continuing Resolution is set to expire on November 21st. NTEU is actively working with members of Congress and urging them to properly fund federal agencies, provide employees with a fair pay raise, protect their collective bargaining rights, and avoid another disastrous shutdown.
Read MoreReagan Building Air Quality Concerns
NTEU Chapter 280 helps employees with many concerns. Most recently we worked to ensure safe and healthful working conditions were restored after a floor in the Reagan Building due to a leak in a water pipe.
Based upon our inspection, we discovered that either the new carpet, new paint, or carpet glue was off-gassing. Here's the email we sent to EPA facilities asking them to adopt remedial measures....
Read MoreEPA Alumni Association Job Center
The EPA Alumni Association created a "job center" for former EPA employees and those employees planning to leave the agency. Here's the Association's press release......
Read MoreHouse Committee Passes EPA Budget Bill
Today the U.S. House of Representatives Interior & Environment Committee passed a funding bill for EPA, the Department of the Interior, and related agencies. The bill provides EPA a bit more than $7.5 billion, a 6.6% cut. Coupled with the 1% cut for fiscal year 2017, EPA would be down 7.6% if the bill passes and is signed into law.
There some question about whether the EPA funding bill will pass Congress. Legislators are still discussing an "omnibus" spending bill, that would lump all the non-defense agencies together. No telling what would come out of that process.
We'll keep you posted!
Cookies & Cream & a Big Thank You for Our Work!
A coalition of 54 environmental and civic groups as well as several unions, including NTEU, assembled outside EPA headquarters today to let EPA employees know that they support their efforts, and decry recent attacks on science, federal employees, and the environment.
As a really nice thank-you, they also passed out tasty cookies and delicious Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Yum!
You can download their letter by clicking here, or read the entire text, below...
Read MoreVERAs & VSIPs
As a result of the repeated attacks on federal employees from Capitol Hill, a number of members have contacted us and asked what options the agency might have to reduce the size of the federal workforce. To be clear, we have no information that anyone is planning any of these reductions, but we are posting this information because of the inquiries we received.
In the past, the agency typically avails itself of a number of options before resorting to involuntary reductions in force or RIFs. Typically those options include:
- attrition through retirements and normal separations
- Voluntary Early Retirement Authorities (VERA)
- Voluntary Separation Incentive Program (VSIP)
Before you dismiss the impact.....
Read MoreThe Future of EPA
Vox recently posted an interesting article discussing the future of EPA. The article lays out several possible scenarios and the author's view on whether or not each scenario will come to pass. Scenarios include:
Read More