Friday, June 22, 2018
Washington, D.C. – This week, the National Federations of Federal Employees (NFFE) joined a coalition of labor organizations representing hundreds of thousands of federal employees in expressing their concerns about potential punitive actions against federal labor relations (LR) professionals. In a letter to Special Counsel Henry Kerner, NFFE and others advised the Office of the Special Counsel (OSC) to monitor the potential impacts of President Trump’s recent Executive Orders, including the evident possibility that LR professionals will be pressured to violate existing federal law.
“Having a professional relationship with management is crucial to the success of agencies’ missions,” stated Randy Erwin, NFFE National President. “President Trump’s attack on collective bargaining places this relationship at risk, as labor relations professionals may face consequences for continuing to engage in good faith bargaining,” he said.
The letter also emphasized the need to protect labor representatives who wish to negotiate “with a sincere resolve to reach a collective bargaining agreement,” as required by the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute (FSLMR). Special Counsel Kerner was also urged to encourage employees to blow the whistle on administration officials who pressure labor-management professionals to violate federal laws established 40 years ago to prevent inefficiencies and political exploitation within the Executive Branch
“It is truly unfortunate that President Trump has directed employees to disregard established law,” Erwin continued. “As we continue to fight these attacks on federal employees and the unions that represent them, NFFE will do everything possible to ensure that civil servants are able to their jobs ethically and without fear of political retaliation.”