The President’s Voice: Upcoming Contract Negotiations

As I mentioned in a message last month to the membership our union continues to move forward towards contract negotiations with the Command. A number of steps have been taken including allocating funds in our union budget for negotiations, arranging for collective bargaining training for union negotiators, forming a Union Negotiation Team and proposing a set of Ground Rules setting forth how the negotiations will be conducted. Any such Ground Rules have to be negotiated and agreed upon by both parties.

Once again, there is no firm answer as to when these negotiations will begin and how long they will last since it is very important to keep in mind that those events are dependent upon both parties (the union and management). Moreover, there are events that cannot always be controlled or predicted by either or both parties. While we all want to complete these negotiations as soon as possible we also want to end up with a good end product – a better contract.

These negotiations will take into account the results of the survey conducted with our bargaining unit (BU) members last year. That survey indicated a number of issues considered to be more important for our BU members including: Telework, Unsafe Work Conditions, Wellness/Fitness Programs, and Duty Hours/Flex Time. I strongly urge our members to contact the union on an ongoing basis on issues you want us to consider during these negotiations. Your input is very important.

After our union completes negotiating changes to our Negotiated Labor Management Agreement (NLMA) any such negotiated changes will need to be submitted to a vote of our dues-paying union members for ratification. No negotiated changes to the current NLMA can be approved without the approval of our dues-paying members.

The union will keep you posted as to the general progress of these negotiations such as when they begin.

Paul Veselenak
President, AFGE Local 1658

Looking back at 2015, Looking Forward to 2016

The President’s Voice: Looking back at 2015, Looking Forward to 2016

As we enter 2016 it might be good to pause and reflect on the year which has just ended, 2015. Here are at least some of the notable events in 2015 which involved our union, AFGE Local 1658 and how those events may impact our union in the New Year of 2016:

1) Dues Increase Approved
Our union approved its first dues increase in many years in 2015, for both our ac-tive (non-retiree) and retiree members. This dues increase was approved in response to a per capita increase that the National AFGE Convention approved in August 2015 for the local unions, including our AFGE Local 1658. Both our local dues increase and the per capita increase which we will be paying to the national AFGE will be implemented in January 2016. Dues increases are always painful but the timely manner in which we were able to evaluate the impact of the per capita increase on our finances, come up with proposed dues increases for both our non-retiree and retiree members, and discuss and vote on these proposed dues increases in a democratic manner was an impressive accomplishment. Moreover, that timely response demonstrated the unity and strength of our union on a difficult and complicated issue. With the dues increases of $2.50 more per pay period for our non-retiree members and $15 more per year for our retire members our union’s finances are stronger and more stable than ever. We will also be able to effectively continue to serve our members and provide them the services they want as we enter 2016.

2) Delta Dental Contract
A new 2 year Delta Dental contract was negotiated and signed by our AFGE Local 1658 in 2015. This contract was negotiated based on the results of a survey of our members and included a variety of new or better benefits for our members in 2016 and 2017 including an increase in the maximum benefits cap for individuals of 25% and the elimination of the family benefits cap entirely.

3) Preparation for Contract Negotiations
Our union’s Pre-Negotiation Committee has been working hard through much of 2015 in surveying our bar-gaining unit membership regarding a wide variety of workplace issues, evaluating the input obtained from that survey and otherwise preparing for upcoming contract negotiations in 2016 to make desired and positive changes in our Negotiated Labor Management Agreement (NLMA). You can expect these contract negotiations to be a major event in 2016.

In summary, 2015 was a year of ups and downs and of major challenges. We were able to avoid a government shutdown which would have created financial hardships for our members but we are still struggling to overcome the legacy of pay freezes, furloughs and increased costs of our benefits which occurred in the last 3-4 years. The good news is that our AFGE Local 1658 remains financially strong and united as we enter into 2016 and the challenges that year will present to us.

Paul Veselenak
President, AFGE Local 1658