Union News Archive

04/21/2009
In February, President Obama signed the $787 billion economic stimulus package into law. Included in that package was an increase in the monthly public transit benefit allowance which went into effect on March 1. The SEC, however, has yet to increase the public transit benefit available to SEC Employees. 
The new legislation permits employers to subsidize their employees as much as $230 per month, or $2,760 per year, in public transportation benefits. Currently, SEC employees are eligible to receive the former maximum of $120 per month, or $1,440 per year.
The collective bargaining agreement... Read more ...
04/20/2009
This week, Chapter 293 launched the next generation of its website here at www.secunion.org. The new site has been redesigned for ease of use, and contains a wealth of news and content for SEC employees on benefits, compensation, legislative matters, and more.
Please take a moment to check out the features on this new site, and provide any comments or suggestions that you might have to Chapter 293 President Greg Gilman at gilmang@sec.gov.
03/29/2009

One of the most important NTEU services that your union dues make possible is the union's tireless Congressional lobbying work on your behalf – and in particular its legislative work to obtain better pay and benefits. This critical work is accomplished in conjunction with Chapter 293’s Legislative Committee, which has been headed from the beginning by Chairman Bill Friar at Headquarters. As but one example of this work, please consider how those efforts brought you Pay Parity, greatly increasing your compensation.

In January of 2002 the President signed into law the Investor and Capital... Read more ...
03/29/2009
Do you know what you can and cannot do under The Hatch Act? Back in 1939, the enactment of The Hatch Act was hailed as a critical step toward cleaning up government and ending political patronage. Its goal was to ensure a qualified, stable work force free from coercion and the constant threat of job loss for no reason.
Since that time, the federal workplace has changed a great deal and in 1993, The Hatch Act was reformed to reflect these changes. The law officially changed on February 3, 1994. Listed below you will find the guidelines for activities allowed and prohibited under the current... Read more ...
03/25/2009
3/25/09: Today the House Budget Committee included language calling for pay parity in its budget resolution. The resolution calls for an equal level of pay increase in fiscal year 2010 for both military personnel and federal civilian employees. While the budget resolution needs to go though the committee markup and reporting process, this is an early victory for NTEU. NTEU will continue to push the language until it is reported by the Budget Committee and passed by the House of Representatives, hopefully in the upcoming weeks.
The budget submission to Congress by the administration had called... Read more ...
03/25/2009
3/25/09: NTEU national President Colleen Kelley today applauded the markup by a key House subcommittee of a bipartisan measure to provide federal workers with four weeks of paid parental leave for the birth or adoption of a child.
President Kelley, who has long promoted the idea of providing paid parental leave for federal employees, welcomed the markup of H.R. 626. “Many of the country’s top companies already offer a paid benefit and the federal government needs to do the same,” President Kelley said. “Besides helping to ensure that every federal worker has the ability to adequately care for... Read more ...
03/19/2009
3/19/09: A key House committee yesterday marked up legislation containing provisions to improve the treatment of federal retirees covered under different retirement systems, a step applauded NTEU national President Colleen Kelley. The bill also contains other provisions addressing in positive ways matters important to the federal workforce.
The retirement provision in H.R. 1256, the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Bill, would permit those covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) to get credit toward retirement for their unused sick leave. It would match a right... Read more ...
03/18/2009
3/18/09: U.S. Office of Personnel Management Acting Director Kathie Ann Whipple today announced the appointment of NTEU Senior Deputy General Counsel Elaine Kaplan as the agency’s General Counsel.
With Kaplan’s appointment, OPM gains the expertise of an individual with more than 25 years of legal experience in the fields of federal sector labor and employment law who is uniquely qualified to serve OPM in its role as the President’s chief advisor on federal human resources issues.
Kaplan began her legal career in the Solicitor’s office of the U.S. Department of Labor, first in the Employee... Read more ...
03/13/2009
3/12/09: Yesterday President Obama signed into law the FY ‘09 Omnibus Appropriations Act which contains funding for key NTEU-represented agencies as well as important NTEU- supported provisions on contracting out.
The bill provides a total of $11.5 billion in funding for the IRS, including $5.1 billion for enforcement and $2.3 billion for taxpayer services. The $11.5 billion in overall funding represents an increase of $428 million above FY ’08 levels. In addition, the package provides an additional $352 million for the Food and Drug Administration, $37 million for the Securities and Exchange... Read more ...
03/11/2009
3/11/09: The Senate has joined the House in approving a fiscal 2009 Omnibus Appropriations bill containing a one-year government-wide moratorium on new public-private job competitions for federal work.
The measure, which now goes to President Obama for his signature, also requires agencies to establish guidelines for bringing back into the hands of federal employees government work currently being performed by private contractors, in line with a broad outline contained in an Obama administration memorandum on contracting issued March 4.
“These are two very positive steps for taxpayers,” said... Read more ...
03/09/2009
3/9/09: The chairman of a key House subcommittee dealing with federal employee issues last week promised prompt action on a measure to provide paid parental leave, and left the door ajar for potential changes in the administration’s recommendation concerning federal pay in 2010.
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) addressed these subjects and others in remarks before several hundred members of NTEU, gathered in Washington for the union’s Legislative Conference. Rep. Lynch is chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on the Federal Workforce, Postal Service and the District... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/27/09: NTEU Chapter 293 President Greg Gilman and new SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro met this week at SEC Headquarters in Washington. During the meeting, Gilman and Schapiro discussed a broad range of topics concerning the SEC's future, compensation and benefits, the merit pay system, personnel issues, and labor management relations at the agency.
"It was a very positive meeting," Gilman remarked afterwards. "I told Chairman Schapiro that SEC employees are pleased that she is here and eager to make improvements on a number of fronts and move ahead with the agency's mission. I'm looking forward... Read more ...
02/28/2009
New Benefit! As part of NTEU Chapter 293's ongoing work negotiating additional benefits for you, the union recently obtained an agreement permitting SEC employees to join the Treasury Department Federal Credit Union (TDFCU). Thanks to Chapter 293 Steward Pat Copeland in D.C. for all of her hard work to make this happen! TDFCU was founded in 1935 by United States Department of Treasury employees. It is a full service financial institution, headquartered in the Treasury Annex in Washington, DC. With assets in excess of $150 million, TDFCU currently serves over 25,000 members nationwide.... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/26/09: NTEU national President Colleen Kelley said today that she will seek discussions with the administration on the proposed federal pay raise and expressed disappointment that the budget does not reflect the long-standing tradition of parity in pay raises for federal civilian employees and members of the military.
The administration proposed a military pay raise of 2.9 percent for next year, and an increase of 2 percent for the federal civilian workforce.
 
“We understand that these are tough times, but we are very concerned about breaking the historic linkage of civilian and military... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/26/09: NTEU national President Colleen Kelley today characterized as very positive her initial face-to-face meeting with new agency chair Mary Schapiro, during which they discussed ways in which the agency workforce can contribute to the successful accomplishment of its mission.
“I found the new chair to be personable, forthright, knowledgeable and determined to restore the credibility of the SEC and get employees into the daily conversations of how to turn the agency around and restore its greatness,” said Kelley. “This was a very good first meeting,” she said of this week’s occasion.... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/26/09: NTEU national President Colleen Kelley yesterday applauded House approval of a fiscal 2009 omnibus appropriations measure that would take definitive steps to rein in runaway federal contracting.
The House-passed bill contains a one-year government-wide ban on new public-private job competitions for federal work under Office of Management and Budget contracting rules, and would require federal agencies to establish guidelines for bringing back into the hands of federal employees government work currently being performed by private contractors. “These provisions are the clearest sign... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/20/09: Congressman Barney Frank appeared at the SEC at the invitation of NTEU Chapter 293 to speak to SEC employees on Thursday, February 19. His appearance was telecast to Headquarters and all of the regional offices at the agency. Congressman Frank spoke on a broad range of issues related to regulatory reform and fielded a number of questions from employees. He encouraged SEC employees to "hang in there" in the face of recent criticism from a number of quarters.
In his remarks, Frank reviewed his goals for regulatory reform, placing the current financial crisis into a broader historical... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/11/09: A House measure introduced yesterday to provide annuity credit for unused sick leave to federal employees covered under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) would be an important step toward employee equity in the government, said NTEU national President Colleen Kelley.
President said the union is ready to help Congress deliver for FERS-covered employees the same credit for unused sick leave already provided to their Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) colleagues. The bill was introduced by Rep. James Moran (D-Va.).
“I commend Rep. Moran for his leadership in working to... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/2009: Congressman Barney Frank has accepted the invitation of NTEU Chapter 293 to speak to SEC employees on Thursday, February 19, from 1:00 to 2:00 PM EST. His appearance will be telecast in the Headquarters Auditorium. Regional office employees should ask their local steward for the location in their office.
Representative Frank is Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, which oversees all components of the nation’s housing and financial services sectors, including banking, insurance, real estate, public and assisted housing, and securities. This important committee has... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/9/09: During a speech at the SEC Speaks conference last week, new SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro announced the end of two policies of former Chairman Chris Cox in the Enforcement Division.
First, she has ended the two-year "penalty pilot" experiment. The staff will no longer be required to seek advance approval of penalties from the Commission in connection with settlement discussions. Second, she is moving back to routine review and approval of formal orders, to ensure that enforcement investigations can move forward more quickly.
Here is an excerpt from Chairman Schapiro's speech:
As a first... Read more ...
02/28/2009
2/2/09: NTEU-supported legislation introduced in the Senate last week would provide federal employees with four weeks of paid parental leave for the birth or adoption of a child. The Senate bill matches legislation previously introduced in the House of Representatives.
NTEU National President Colleen Kelley, who has been a strong proponent of providing federal workers with paid parental leave, said the measure is a useful tool for boosting retention in the current workforce as well as with the recruitment of younger federal employees. “Paid parental leave is an important benefit for the... Read more ...
01/25/2009
1/23/09: Last week, Chapter 293 President Greg Gilman and SEC Associate Executive Director of Human Resources Jeff Risinger signed a memorandum of understanding on a number of diversity iniatives at the agency. This agreement followed the broader settlement agreement regarding the Merit Pay system which was signed late last year, and which resolved national arbitrations involving discrimation against African-Americans and employees over the age of forty in the administration of the SEC's pay for performance system. The new agreement provides for the following new diversity initiatives at the... Read more ...
01/25/2009
1/23/09: Last week, Chapter 293 President Greg Gilman and his wife Julie made the trek to DC with millions of others to attend the Inauguration of President Barack Obama. "This was a historic event that we just didn't want to miss," Gilman recently remarked. "We were fortunate enough to obtain purple tickets on the Capitol grounds, but we still needed to get up at 2:30 in the morning to get in line at the gate to be sure that we would be as close as we could to see the swearing in and listen to the President's speech. It was extremely cold, even for hardy New Hampshirites like us, but... Read more ...
01/25/2009
1/22/09: A bipartisan measure introduced this week in the House of Representatives would provide federal workers with four weeks of paid parental leave for the birth or adoption of a child and bring the government’s approach to this key benefit closer to that of the private sector and many other industrialized nations, said NTEU National President Colleen Kelley, who applauded the bill’s introduction.
President Kelley has long argued the importance of providing paid parental leave for federal employees. The 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for... Read more ...
01/25/2009
1/21/2009: This month, NTEU joined with a number of organizations in the FAIR coalition in sending a letter to President Obama expressing the position that future White House initiatives to reform the nation’s health care should not unintentionally jeopardize the integrity of FEHBP. The FAIR coalition is comprised of a number of organizations that represent current and retired federal employees and postal workers. Click HERE to review a copy of the letter. It essentially makes the following points which NTEU has supported for some time:
Opposition to opening up FEHBP without strict firewalls... Read more ...

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