Today, NFFE received a notification that the Department of Defense (DoD) is extending its emergency telework policy until further notice. The extension is a result of advocacy from the Federal Workers Alliance, a coalition of 34 unions representing civil servants, including NFFE. The group sent a letter to both the Senate and House Armed Services Committees earlier this month urging members of Congress to request an extension from the DoD.

Today, the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) is urging Congress to vote on and pass the VA Employee Fairness Act of 2021 (H.R. 1948/S. 771), legislation that now has over 200 bipartisan cosponsors in the House of Representatives. Introduced by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), the bill ensures that Title 38 employees with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs have the same collective bargaining rights as other federal employees.

Earlier this week, the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) responded to correspondence from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack with a letter outlining solutions and next steps to help alleviate retention problems among federal wildland firefighters. The proposed solutions include permanent pay raises, increased funding and staffing, and the development of a robust occupational series, among other things.

The National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) is issuing a survey to better understand federal employees’ experience and satisfaction with the Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP). We invite all federal workers, members and non-members, from all agencies to take the survey.

Last week, the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force released updated guidance regarding COVID policies for federal employees and contractors. The protocols remain largely unchanged since the previous updated guidance released in mid-August.