From the November/December 2003 issue of the NTEUBULLETIN
There has never been a clearer indication than this congressional session of the importance of electing to the White House and Congress candidates who support federal employees.
As the session drew to a close, the administration was busy dictating the terms of various spending bills. So much so that Congress left town with a continuing resolution in force and an omnibus funding bill possibly stuck on the back burner until January. All the back and forth politics from the two ends of Pennsylvania Avenue over the appropriations bills made clear to me that federal employees simply are not a priority for many of these elected officials, and are a direct target of others.
Not only is a fair and competitive pay raise for federal workers being temporarily undermined by the president in spite of year-long documented bipartisan support, but some members of Congress caved in to unrelenting pressure from the White House and federal contractors and overturned a bipartisan agreement that would have provided federal workers a more level playing field in the administration's march to contract out 1 of every 2 federal jobs.
Add on to that the passage of legislation allowing the Department of Defense to revamp the personnel system for DoD civilian employees, legislation eerily similar to that passed a year ago allowing the same "flexibility" for the Department of Homeland Security, and federal employees have even more to worry about. Between the Departments of Homeland Security and Defense, nearly one-half of the entire federal workforce is no longer working under traditional civil service rights and protections found in Title 5. It won't take long for the remaining federal agencies to try and follow suit.
Federal employees were not the only American workers to lose out under this Congress and White House. Attempts to stop new Department of Labor regulations completely revamping overtime rules--and eliminating overtime pay for millions of Americans--from going into effect were stopped cold by the administration. Federal employees will feel the pain of these changes along with their private-sector colleagues.
So what can NTEU members do in the face of such a hostile political environment? One answer immediately springs to mind--change the political environment by electing to Congress and the White House candidates who support federal workers, NTEU, and the issues important to us.
We are 11 months out from the 2004 election. If that seems like it is a long way off--it's not. The time to get involved is now. If your senators and representatives do not support you, then start looking for other candidates who will. Early support of federal candidates who support federal workers can mean the difference between changing the current political environment or experiencing more of the current attacks on federal workers.
The NTEU web site offers a wealth of information on how current members of Congress voted on issues important to federal employees and NTEU. Members can check there to see if your senators and representatives support you and the work you do every day. If they do, then tell them that you appreciate their support and will help them retain their seat. If they don't, then explore other candidates.
But even if your current elected representative haven't been supportive of NTEU and federal employees, you shouldn't stop trying to work with them. NTEU members have been extremely successful in turning unsupportive members of Congress into supportive members of Congress, issue by issue. Often it's not that easy, and it takes repeated contacts and conversations with them.
However, they all need to hear from you. No one understands better than NTEU members how the decisions made in Congress affect the federal workforce and its ability to provide services to the American public. It is up to you to make the link between congressional action and the daily work of the federal government.
And if you don't think your voice counts, or the action or inaction of your elected representatives makes a difference, remember this telling example. In late October, an amendment offered on the floor of the Senate that would have stopped the implementation of the new contractor-friendly outsourcing rules lost by one vote. One vote. Truth be told, federal employees had actually overcome unbelievable and rigid opposition from the White House and Senate leadership who opposed the amendment and, for a brief moment, had won the vote. But strong-arm tactics by the White House led to one senator changing his vote--and the amendment failed.
It was only due to the effective grassroots work of all NTEU members that the vote was even that close. Many previously unsupportive senators were positively influenced by your contact with them. Keep it up while we look to the future. And remind your members of Congress that the election is only 11 months away.