FederalDaily - February 28, 2006

Unions Declare Victory in Suit against NSPS

A judge ruled on Feb. 27 to stop major parts of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) proposed personnel rules, called the National Security Personnel System (NSPS). A coalition of unions representing civilian defense workers sued against NSPS. Judge Emmet G. Sullivan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a ruling that “guts NSPS provisions pertaining to labor relations, collective bargaining, independent third party review, adverse actions and DoD’s proposed internal labor relations panel, the National Security Labor Relations Board (NSLRB),” according to the American Federation of Government Employees. Sullivan wrote that “the new rule fails to ensure that employees can bargain collectively…the NSLRB does not meet Congress’ requirement for ‘independent third party review’ of labor relations decisions and…the process for appealing adverse actions fails to provide employees with ‘fair treatment,’ as required by Congress.” The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) said the judge’s decision uses some of the same reasoning NTEU used in its suit against similar personnel rules at the Department of Homeland Security.

:: Back to Top ::

DoD Launches Domestic Violence Program

The Department of Defense (DoD) last week launched a program to increase awareness among servicemembers and their families about domestic violence. DoD is partnering with the National Domestic Violence Hotline for the campaign. One of the goals of the campaign is to connect servicemembers and their families to a 24-hour-a-day hotline. The hotline’s phone number is (800) 799-SAFE (7233), and the TTY line is (800) 787-3224. Educational materials about domestic violence will be distributed at military installations and in public places in surrounding civilian communities. The campaign also will include public service announcements in military media outlets. Domestic violence is a significant issue in DoD, as it is in society as a whole, said Gail McGinn, who is performing the duties of the principal deputy undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness.

:: Back to Top ::

USPS Wins Back Payments for Contractors

The Department of Labor (DOL) has announced an agreement with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) that will result in payment of more than $6.5 million in back wages to almost 900 pilots, co-pilots and flight engineers. The employees worked on several USPS contracts and subcontracts to transport mail by air between January 1996 and August 2001. This settlement resolves issues raised more than 10 years ago before DOL’s Administrative Review Board. The USPS contractors and subcontractors affected by this settlement are Ryan International Airlines, Express One International Inc. and Evergreen International Airlines Inc. Under the agreement, USPS will directly contact and make back wage payments to the employees who worked on the contracts and subcontracts. For more information, go to www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/esa/ESA20060266.htm.

:: Back to Top ::