Eeiiia!
Posted on 02/24/2005 10:45:18 AM PST by Former Military Chick
Ten labor unions representing 300,000 civilian employees of the U.S. Department of Defense filed a federal lawsuit yesterday against Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, saying Rumsfeld's department violated the law by refusing to negotiate changes in its labor-management system.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, comes after months of protests by the unions over proposals for a new National Security Personnel System, which Congress authorized for development in November 2003.
The unions say the system, which seeks flexibility in hiring and assigning workers for security reasons, is using threats to security as a way to diminish the union's ability to advocate for workers.
The Department of Defense's Web site said the new system was needed to replace outmoded human-resource practices and better support the department's "critical national security mission."
Bradley Bunn, the new system's deputy program executive officer, would not comment directly on the suit.
But he said in a statement that "the proposed NSPS regulations are the product of a collaborative effort across the department that... included a number of meetings with employee representatives involving extensive and fruitful discussions."
The lawsuit says the Defense Department had the right to establish changes in the department's labor-relations systems, but, by law, those changes would have to be done in collaboration with employees.
Instead, the suit says, "secret working groups" developed changes privately and did not provide unions with concrete proposals.
About 4,000 Navy employees in Philadelphia will be affected, said James Winward, an engineer and vice president of Local 3 of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers in Philadelphia. "This system threatens their pay, job stability and unions," he said.
The lawsuit asks the judge to restrain the Defense Department from implementing any new labor systems until it provides drafts of proposals and enters into meaningful discussion.
Among the unions filing suit were the International Association of Firefighters, the Laborers' International Union of North America, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and the American Federation of Government Employees. Besides Rumsfeld, the unions sued Dan G. Blair, acting director of the United States Office of Personnel Management.
Eeiiia!
When the AFL-CIO declared that they are nothing more than a subsidiary of the democratic party they lost all credibility and leverage. The unions represent the interests of union officials and long ago sold out the rank and file. Any actions, whether valid or not, can only be looked on as highly questionable.
Another reason for all to support the National Right to Work Act (see:nrtwc.org)
"Another reason for all to support the National Right to Work Act (see:nrtwc.org)"
Amen! and bump
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