Transcript Master Agreement Training - National Federation of Federal

Rights and the Agreement
Article 4: Employee Rights
Article 5: Union Rights and Representation
Article 6: Management Rights
Article 7: Union Use of Official Facilities
and Services
Article 14: New Employee Orientation
Article 6 – Management Rights
Same as what is in 5 USC 71
With the addition:
The Parties may continue to address
Management rights issues under Partnership.
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Article 4.1 – Employee Rights
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The Parties agree to mutually establish and
maintain a safe, positive, and professional
work environment that
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promotes good workmanship,
values employees for who they are and what they
contribute,
ensures consistent treatment of employees, and
maintains high standards of employee
performance.
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Article 4.2 – Employee Rights
under Statute
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Statutory Rights -- Many rights listed in
Article 4 duplicate what is in the “statute.”
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Right to join a union, or not
Engage in collective bargaining
Right to have non-union representative for any
appeal not under the negotiated grievance
procedure
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Article 4.3 – Rights during
Investigations
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Weingarten Right (same as statute)
Annually during June, Management will notify all employees
of their Weingarten Right. This notification will include the
information sheet entitled “Employee Rights and
Responsibilities in Administrative Investigative Interviews” in
the annual “Weingarten” reminder notice to employees. The
information sheet will be provided to new employees and
posted permanently on the HRM website.
During an investigation, the employee may ask whether or not
they are being directed to answer and will be provided a
written statement of this, upon request.
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4.4 and 4.5: Rights to Representation
4.4 Right to meet and consult with Union officials
concerning working conditions.
4.5 Right to be represented by the Union at any meeting
to discuss a complaint concerning working
conditions.
4.6 Right to duty time to pursue rights under the Master
Agreement.
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4.6 – Employee right to time
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Right to a reasonable amount of duty time in pursuit of rights
under this Master Agreement.
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Employee must request release, including length of time needed and the
location where they will be.
Normally, workload will not preclude the release of the employee.
If the employee cannot be released immediately they will be released as
soon as the work requirement is met or other arrangements are made
If employee can’t be released that day, the denial will be given in
writing, along with the reason, and timelines will be extended.
Union reps should be sure employees they are meeting with
are aware of this provision.
Employees use TC = 01, not TC = 37.
This provision does not apply if employees are meeting with
the Union on their own time (e.g. lunch or break)
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Article 4: Other rights
4.7 Right to bring matters of personal concern to the
attention of Management. However, if the
discussion becomes a formal discussion, then the
procedures in Article 5.4 regarding Union
notification will apply.
4.8 Management will not take reprisal actions against
employees for the exercise of any appeal right
granted by law, rule, regulation, or this Master
Agreement.
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Article 4.9
Every individual has the right to
be treated with dignity and
respect that is normal in an
employer-employee relationship
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Article 4: Other rights
Employees have the right to:
4.10 engage in outside activities and employment, within
law and ethics regulations.
4.11 request reassignment.
4.12 to be informed of the rules, regulations, and policies
under which they are obligated to work
4.13 confidentiality when being counseled or disciplined.
4.14 appropriate disposal of records and to view documents
in their OPF within 30 days of request.
4.16 due process in debt collections.
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Article 4.15 – Electronic Communications
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All employees will have access to electronic
communication system, when practical
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Employees will be provided duty time to access electronic records
Employees will not be penalized for lack of profile
Management will not access profile unless required
for internal security purposes
Management will provide policy regarding tracking
hardware/software annually
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Article 5.1 - Union Representation
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Union has the right to designate its own
representatives
a. Designated officers of the FSC have right to represent within
the whole bargaining unit
Vice-Presidents (or their designees) have the right to
represent employees in the management units to which they
are assigned (that is Regions, Job Corps, Research).
Local officers and representatives may represent within their
Local.
b. NFFE Office may represent employees in lieu of, or in
addition to, Local and FSC representatives.
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5.1 – Union representation
c. Designation of Representatives:
1) FSC will provide list of FSC Officers to management
2) FSC Vice-Presidents are the designated officials at the
intermediate level
3) Local president is the designated official for each Local,
but additional reps may be designated for specific
matters, line organizations, etc.
4) Articles 9 and 11 have specific designated officials.
5) Union will inform management in writing of all
designated representatives. (Must notify within 14 days
of a change.)
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Designation of Representatives
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If you do nothing: Your Local President will
automatically be the point of contact for your whole
Local.
However, you may also designate reps for specific
topics, shifts, locations, work units.
Key: Communicate in writing as to who your reps
are.
Who do you communicate with? Use the PDL for all
supervisors/managers in your unit, if you can.
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Sample Designation by topic
To: Management
From: Sally Dogood, Local President
Subject: Designation of Union Representatives
NFFE Local 123 is hereby notifying you that the following employees have
been designated as Union officers:
Sally Dogood, President
John Steno, Recording Secretary
Mark Second, Vice-President
Cheryl Bank, Secretary-Treasurer
In addition, the following employees have been appointed as stewards:
Roger Stewart
Erin Abogado
The points of contact for management for issues that may arise are as follows:
Investigations:
Erin Abogado
Safety:
Roger Stewart
All other issues:
Sally Dogood
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Note:
The Local President is the initial point of contact
for management for
Article 9, Local Management grievances
and
Article 11 Initial negotiations proposals
You cannot change these initial points of contact for
management. However, once they send the Local
president a proposal or a grievance, the Union can
then delegate another official to work on the issue.
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Sample Designation
To: Management
From: Sally Dogood, Local President
Subject: Designation of Union Representatives
NFFE Local 123 is hereby notifying you that the following employees have
been designated as Union officers:
Sally Dogood, President
John Steno, Recording Secretary
Mark Second, Vice-President
Cheryl Bank, Secretary-Treasurer
In addition, the following employees have been appointed as stewards:
Roger Stewart
Erin Abogado
The points of contact for management for issues that may arise are as follows:
Supervisor’s Office:
Lake and Stream Ranger Districts:
Mountain Ranger District:
John Steno
Mark Second
Cheryl Bank
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Section 5.2
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Union has right to represent employees under the negotiated
grievance procedure in this Master Agreement.
The Union has the exclusive right to invoke arbitration.
Employees may present a grievance without representation
provided that the Union is given opportunity to be present at all
discussions.
Union has right to be present at any meeting between
Management and Bargaining Unit employee(s) where resolution
of any grievance is discussed.
Settlement agreements may not conflict with the terms of this
Master Agreement.
The Union will be given copies of all settlement agreements,
decisions, and correspondence related to Article 9 processes.
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5.3 –Obligation to be efficient: In providing
effective representation, Union representatives will
use the most economical and efficient efforts to
resolve representational matters including use of
current communication technologies whenever
practical in accordance with Article 7.
5.4 – Formal discussions: Same as provided for in
labor statute
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Article 5.5 – Official Time and Travel
a. Union Officials will be granted official time for
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Review Management's proposals
Receive, review, prepare, and present grievances.
Handle complaints, such as FLSA, MSPB, EEO, OSC, OWCP
Prepare for negotiations.
Negotiate. (This is in FSLMRS)
Prepare reports required by 5 USC7120(c)
Visit, phone, and write to elected representatives (only for FSC
officers or their designees)
8) Other representational and contract administration (such as:
times spent in meetings with mgmt, communicating with
BUEs, formal discussions, partnership, researching, etc.)
9) Contact other Union officers
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Article 5.5 – Official Time and Travel
b. Travel and Per Diem
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(1) Travel and Per Diem will be paid for representatives who
are the normally designated reps (as described in Section 5.1).
(2) Travel expenses for other reps will be determined by
whether the travel is necessary and promotes the efficient and
proper administration of this Master Agreement.
(3) Travel will be requested and approved prior to its
commencement pursuant to applicable governing
requirements.
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Article 5.5 – Official Time and Travel
c. Less than full-time employees (Permanent Seasonal) in offduty status who are needed to effectively resolve complaints
and Labor-Management issues will be paid appropriately for
the time spent administering this Master Agreement.
d. Pay rates applied to official time will include any shift
differentials otherwise applicable to the representative’s
agency-assigned work during that shift.
e. All official time, including travel to and from meetings or
Union sponsored training, will be excludable for
Administratively Uncontrollable Overtime (AUO) calculation
purposes.
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Article 5, Other Provisions
5.7 Membership Drives.
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Upon request, up to two membership drives at any location within a 1year period, up to 45-days duration each.
Management shall provide the Union with available, reasonable, and
visible space; tables; bulletin boards; and easels for use in drives.
Current government communication technologies shall be made
available in accordance with Article 7.
5.9 The Union will be invited to present their rights and
responsibilities to the law enforcement community at any
regional annual law enforcement meeting. The Union will
also advise all Bargaining Unit employees of their right to
Union representation at any other times they determine
necessary.
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Article 5.6 – Release Procedures
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Union official and supervisor are expected to
communicate:
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General nature of the matter (Sec. 5(a))
Approximate length of time
Location
A way to communicate with union official
Ongoing arrangements may made.
Request release as far in advance as possible. Extension
of time limits when official cannot be released for workrelated reasons.
Union officials must notify unit head or supervisor when
visiting other worksites
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Official Time
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You have the right to use official time for
representational purposes – USE IT!
Each Forest should probably have 20-40 hours
of official time each week, just for regular
business. More when there are “hot” issues.
Initial arrangements
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Try to get an ongoing arrangement of time each week to
take care of “regular” business such as e-mails, phone
calls, talking to BUEs.
Then request additional time for specific meetings or
activities.
Over time, you will get a sense of how much time, you
need and can refine the requests.
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Denial of Release (5.6b)
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If a Union Official cannot be released at
the requested time due to work
requirements, Section 5.6b applies.
“….If the Official cannot be released the day of the request,
the denial will be in writing and will include the reason
for the delay and when the Union Official will be
released (normally within 24 hours). If a delay in
releasing a Union Official involves a situation with a
contractual time limit, the time limit will be extended
equal to the delay.”
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On-going arrangement – Example 1
To: My Supervisor
From: Me
As you are aware, I am serving as a steward for Local 276.
In accordance with Article 5 of the Master Agreement, I
am proposing an on-going arrangement regarding official
time for representational functions. In order to perform
general representational functions, including e-mail,
phone calls, consultation with employees, and
researching issues, I am requesting release for 5 hours
per week. I will schedule this time around any urgent
work that needs to be accomplished. Any additional time
needed will be requested on a case-by-case basis.
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On-going arrangement – Example 2
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To: My Supervisor
From: Me
As you are aware, I am serving as a steward for Local 276. In
accordance with Article 5 of the Master Agreement, I am
proposing an on-going arrangement regarding official time for
representational functions. In order to perform general
representational functions, including e-mail, phone calls,
consultation with employees, and researching issues, I am
requesting release for 1 hour each day from 1-2pm. During
this time I will be in the Union office. Any additional time
needed will be requested on a case-by-case basis.
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Off-site Scenario
An union representative at PSW is working on a grievance that is
due next Wednesday. She COMMUNICATES to her supervisor:
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The general nature of the type of representational matter – grievance
The approximate length of time needed – two days: Monday and
Tuesday of next week.
The location - home
The supervisor and Union Official discuss the need in a general
nature. The supervisor (in writing) denies the request for
Monday and informs the employee they may be released on Tues.
and Weds. In the denial, the supervisor informs the employee
that there will be important visitors onsite on Monday and the
Union Official needs to be there. Grievance timeline is extended
one day.
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Time Coding
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For recording time on their T&A, Union representatives use
the following Transaction Codes:
 35 - Negotiations (limited to National-level negotiations)
 36 - Mid-term negotiations under Article 11 (all
Regional & Local level)
 37 - All contract administration and representational
activities (including partnership activities) except
negotiations, and grievances, appeals, complaints.
 38 - Representing the Union or employees in grievances,
appeals, complaints.
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Article 7.1 – Union office space
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Union is responsible for care of facilities, services
provided by the agency
Locals and FSC officers shall be provided reasonable
office space and equipment which is reasonably
private and provides for confidentiality.
Office space is subject to Local negotiations
considering space, cost, and union activity.
Management will retain access to any exclusive office
space it provides.
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Your office space
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What do you have?
What do you need?
Do you have what you need?
If not, what do you need to do???
Article 7:
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Upon request, each Local and each FSC Officer shall be
provided reasonable office space and equipment to conduct
representational functions.
Union office space shall be reasonably private and secure to
assure confidentiality of records and conversations.
Office equipment will include telephone service, computer
system and standard office furniture.
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Bargain for a Forest Service computer (not DOL).
Laptop? Especially if you expect to need to do some union work at
home.
Office space to be used by the Union is a subject for local
bargaining.
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Article 7.2 – Union use of electronic
communications (EC)
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Electronic communications include computer, fax, and
phone
Union officials may use Agency equipment for
communicating with Union officials and BUEs
Union officials may use EC for representational purposes
described in 5.5(a)
EC may be used for internal union purposes.
Communications that include internal business will be
clearly marked.
EC for membership drives must be requested in advance
EC may not be used for organizational drives
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Article 7 – Union use of services
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7.3 – Union may use internal mail and any other
mail or messenger service the Agency utilizes
7.4 – Posting information
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Union bulletin boards will be provided at locations
where there is an employee information BB
Union will be provided space on intranet
7.5 – Upon request, Union will be provided a list
of all unit employees including name, position,
title, grade and step, BUS code, FLSA code, and
duty station.
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Article 7 – Union use of services
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7.6 – Publications. Management will provide internet
access to FSM, classification standards, and other
publications.
7.7 -- Government-owned or -Leased Transportation.
Government tranportation may be used when:
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A transportation is available or a seat is available at no
additional cost and
The Union representative has made reasonable efforts to
resolve the matter through the use of current
communication technologies.
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Article 13 – New Employee Orientation
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New employees will be informed that NFFE is
the exclusive representative
Upon request, Union will be given list of all
employees added to the BU. (This can be a
standing request.)
Supervisors will arrange for new employees to
meet a local union official, when practical.
New employee discussions may be formal
meetings
Union will be given time to speak at group
orientation sessions for new employees
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