HHS will recognize the collective agreement it signed with NTEU in 2010 and updated in 2014 until the two parties can negotiate a new contract, the ministry and the union announced Monday. In a joint letter dated July 29 to HHS employees, the department and the union described the new agreement as a “new beginning.” President Connolly, rank member Hice and members of the House Subcommittee on Government Operations thank you for the opportunity to share the thoughts of the National Union of Treasury Employees (NTEU) on how the government can build and support an effective workforce for the future. As the National Chair of the NTEU, which represents 150,000 federal employees in 34 agencies and departments, I appreciate the opportunity to submit this statement to today`s hearing. Telecommuting One of the keys to attracting and retaining the workforce of the future is to provide workers with flexibilities in telecommuting and other flexibilities in organizing working hours. Under your leadership, President Connolly, as well as Representative Sarbanes and many other members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, telecommuting has been brought to the forefront of discussions and federal employees have increasingly been offered the opportunity to participate in telework programs. In addition, the need to protect employees during the COVID-19 pandemic has shown that many federal employees can work just as productively from home or elsewhere outside the office. Yet today, as authorities plan to move forward after the pandemic, there are still significant opportunities to further expand the use of telework across government. Experience has shown that teleworking has many advantages. The use of telework in the federal sector has been a benefit not only for workers, but also for management, which can hire workers more efficiently without losing productivity, for taxpayers who save on ancillary costs for federal buildings and for the environment, which benefits from less pollution by commuters. Telecommuting saves energy, improves air quality, reduces congestion and stress on roads and bridges, and improves work-life balance and the quality of family life. In the thirty-four agencies represented by the NTEU, the agency`s implementation of telework programmes is mixed. NTEU has contractual agreements regarding telecommuting, or, as some agencies describe, Flexiplace, with many agencies, including the IRS, The Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Office of Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the USDA Food & Nutrition Service. to name a few.
Let me briefly touch on the state of telework programs in several of these organizations prior to the pandemic. NTEU represents support staff and trademark attorneys before the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (PTO). The Trademark Office serves as a model agency for telecommuting, with more than 85 percent of the Brand Boards from the Northern Virginia-based agency participating in telecommuting. Management provides participating employees with all the physical equipment they need, and employees follow a strict production schedule. PTO management has not raised any accountability issues and only employees with fully satisfactory performance are eligible to participate. NTEU first negotiated a telework agreement at the IRS in 1996. This program was maintained in all subsequent treaties and served as a model for the federal sector. The agreement clarifies both the responsibilities of employees and employers, as well as the criteria for participation in telework. Prior to the pandemic, approximately 24,000 employees in collective bargaining units and 6,500 employees without a collective bargaining unit were teleworking.
Several thousand of them worked full-time from a telework location. Not only does this contribute to employee morale and productivity, but it also leads to significant cost savings for the Treasury by saving on rent or office costs. The IRS program has worked well in part due to intense discussions between management and employees and their representatives prior to its implementation. But even at this level of participation, serious problems remain with management`s resistance to teleworking. Prior to the pandemic, there were instances where managers did not allow telework when IRS policy clearly allowed it. NTEU has filed numerous complaints on behalf of IRS employees who have been denied the opportunity to telework. Filing complaints is uneven across IRS offices, suggesting that the policy is applied differently depending on the office or office where an employee works. Our experience at PTO and IRS, as well as other organizations, proves that collaboration between work and management is essential for an effective telework program. The pandemic has proven once and for all the value of a strong telework and remote work (i.e., full-time telework) program in the federal government. Maximum telework policies have protected the health and safety of federal employees across the country and their families without compromising productivity. During the pandemic, many agencies have fully embraced telecommuting by expanding it to more employees and investing in the technology needed for its success.
Organizations with existing telework programs were best positioned to respond to the pandemic, while those that had resisted telework were unprepared and impacted government efficiency and service to the public. The success of telecommuting and remote work during the pandemic justifies their continued use. VA also announced its intention to recognize the agreement it had already signed with the union in 2011, and the ministry plans to negotiate a new contract with AFGE starting next year. However, NTEU said it had never recognized these HHS proposals as a true collective agreement and had filed charges of unfair labor practices with the Federal Labor Relations Authority. Other key factors impacting recruitment and retention now and in the future While flexible work schedules and expanded telework and remote work programs are critical to recruiting and retaining employees, it is also essential that the federal government provide employees with better-paying jobs and a strong benefits package, including strong retirement and health benefits, as well as benefits. Family leave – in addition to creating and supporting a work environment that is merit-based, values its employees and works with them and their representatives to gather feedback and address workplace challenges in a collaborative manner. For example, according to the president`s compensation agent, years of wage increases and wage freezes have pushed the wage gap between the federal government and the private sector to 23.11 percent, despite a 1990 federal law to reduce the wage gap to 5 percent. This has a significant impact. While many federal employees believe that the public service and the organization`s mission are often cited as the primary reason they work for the federal government, massive wage gaps with the private sector undermine efforts to recruit and retain skilled individuals who are attracted to the public service. Competitive compensation ensures that a professional and skilled workforce is on board and manages our country`s laws and programs. Like all middle-class American workers and taxpayers, federal employees face ever-increasing electricity, health, food, and college bills, as well as rent and mortgage obligations.
But unlike many others in the private sector, federal employees continued to look below market price increases. Years of wage freezes and reductions in wage adjustments, coupled with congressional measures to dramatically increase pension contributions for new federal employees since 2013, have already allowed federal employees to contribute about $200 billion to deficit reduction over a decade. I want to thank you once again, Mr. Chairman, for always fighting for federal employees to receive a fair wage increase. NTEU is proud to introduce its bill, the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates (FAIR) Act, H.R. 392, which provides for an average salary adjustment of 3.2% for federal employees next year. While we welcome President Biden`s proposal to give employees an average increase of 2.7 percent next year, we continue to call on Congress and the administration to support the higher amount of the FAIR Act given the increase in health insurance premiums in recent years and the lower wage increase during this period. All federal employees, regardless of their payroll system or occupation, deserve a reasonable increase comparable to that of their private sector colleagues. In addition to compensation, benefits such as retirement, vacation and health care also have a significant impact on the federal government`s ability to hire and retain public sector employees. As the country`s largest employer, the federal government provides benefits to more than 2 million federal employees, retirees and their families. For retirement, most federal employees are covered by the Federal Employee Pension System (BRS), a carefully designed retirement system that is an essential factor in recruiting and retaining in the federal government.
Unlike many public pension plans, the FERS is fully funded and financially sound, with no unhedged liabilities. In fact, irons is often referred to by a diverse group of retirement experts as a model for its deliberately constructed three-legged chair structure (defined benefits, defined contribution scheme (TSP) and social security). All three parts are necessary for a livable retirement. .