Internal NFFE News
August 1, 2023
In less than two weeks, the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) has been elected to represent three new bargaining units of federal land management employees. First, Saguaro National Park employees in Tucson, Arizona voted in favor of NFFE on July 18. Two days later, workers at Yellowstone National Park voted to unionize in historic fashion. Lastly, federal wildland firefighters in Wilmington, Illinois stationed at the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie elected NFFE on Thursday last week.
“Employees are contacting us daily to ask how they can organize,” said NFFE National Organizing Director Ethan West. “Our organizing team and national business representatives have been very busy this year. National Park Service and Forest Service workers in particular are increasingly aware unionizing gives them the strength at the bargaining table and in the halls of Congress needed to make positive change. I know I speak for all of us in NFFE, both in D.C. and across the country, we are extremely excited to welcome you to the NFFE-IAM family.”
On the heels of election wins at several National Parks and Forests this year, folks around the country who do not have union representation yet, but are eligible to join NFFE, have indicated they would like to start the process of unionizing with NFFE. We have heard from employees at both Grand Teton and Yosemite National Parks that they would like to join NFFE, and there are several eligible non-union National Forests that would benefit from NFFE representation. If you and your colleagues are interested in joining NFFE, please contact Ethan West at ewest@nffe.org.
“I am really proud of our current members who are spreading the word about the benefits of unionizing, as well as the new employees at each of these new bargaining units who have put in a lot of time and effort to organize with NFFE,” said NFFE National President Randy Erwin. “It is encouraging to see that so many dedicated workers in the federal government are passionate about their careers, but that they also want to make improvements for themselves and their colleagues. I look forward to working with these new units and to meeting all our newest NFFE members in the coming months.”