Internal NFFE News
July 13, 2023
In late June, approximately 150 workers employed by BI Incorporated, a federal contractor and subsidiary of the GEO Group, chose the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE-IAM) as their union. These newest NFFE-IAM members work at a call center as technical specialists, who are tasked with monitoring parolees, probationers, pretrial defendants, and individuals involved in the immigration process.
Union organizers from both NFFE and IAM traveled to the facility to discuss the benefits of unionization, and a majority of employees at the center expressed their wish to join NFFE-IAM by signing new membership forms. Shortly thereafter, the union demonstrated to the company that a majority of the workers wanted to be represented by NFFE-IAM, and the company voluntarily recognized NFFE-IAM as these workers’ collective bargaining representative.
Many in the unit were convinced by NFFE-IAM’s ability to help negotiate local agreements across the country at other GEO facilities, which establish important rights, increase wages, and give employees a strong voice in their workplace.
Employees in Aurora were excited to join NFFE-IAM because of the opportunity to improve their pay and workplace policies. By joining the union, all employees at the call center will be covered by the historic NFFE-GEO nationwide collective bargaining agreement, which raises the standard for management’s ability to terminate or discipline workers, among other employee rights. In addition, the BI employees in Aurora will soon negotiate their own local bargaining agreement, where they plan to negotiate pay raises for all staff and bargain for increased special pay for multilingual employees. Workers at the Aurora facility, which has not been assigned a Local Lodge number yet, also aim to change policies related to leave and vacation time, and to upgrade workplace infrastructure, among other things.
“The workers in Aurora are excited to set up their local leadership and to begin negotiating their local agreement,” said NFFE National Business Representative Roosevelt Littlejohn, Jr. “In our conversations with BI employees, we know they have a lot of important issues that they now have the chance address through NFFE representation. Without organizing and joining the union, they would not be able to make much change in the workplace. I am excited to see what this local will accomplish moving forward.”
“I am so proud to welcome these BI workers to our union family,” said NFFE National President Randy Erwin. “It comes as no surprise that when these workers saw the benefits that this union has provided for other similarly situated employees, they took it upon themselves to organize with their coworkers to form a union. I look forward to working with employees at this facility to establish their local leadership, who I am confident will provide a powerful voice for every worker at the center.”