National Labor Relations Partnership Act of 2007

I really didn't think much of the partnership councils when we had them. We didn't do a lot of representation before and did less during partnership because how can you fight with your partners? We just agreed to disagree and not force issues … to the detriment of the employees we represented, especially ones in trouble.

Seems to me that before we try to help SSA run the administration and its programs, we should give ourselves a good grounding in Union fundamentals: grievances, arbitrations, negotiations. Heck! The AFGE General Committee has NEVER put out a newsletter, never distributes minutes of its meetings or conference calls. Can you recall the last significant mid-term MOU it negotiated that had an impact on our working lives and working conditions? Can you recall the last arbitration it won that gave us rights SSA was denying or put money in our pockets? Do you remember the last time some one from the General Committee asked YOU for input for a meeting it was about to attend?

Why would I want a secretive (at best) or inept-can't do (at worst) organization to meet with the top levels of the Agency where it could waive our rights and we'd never find out until it was too late. Why would I want an organization who doesn't value MY OPINION to have such power?
(It is okay to tell me that it will all work out in the wash since I value my own opinions so highly and am not the least bit shy about sharing them)!

Anyway, FYI.

I think it is a bit late in the legislative and election cycle to see these enacted by this Congress. Certainly, if passed, they would NOT be signed by the current President and there are insufficient votes to have the 2/3 necessary to override a veto.

I really wish AFGE would put more effort into enforcing the few rights we have left in our contract, into getting a better contract in 2009, getting our own financial and representational houses in order instead of chasing more chimera. Being effective Union leaders is not sitting down regularly with management to schmooze, to sip cappuccino, to nibble on biscotti and talk about how we are going to help management implement all its great plans for completely electronic services with fewer and fewer bargaining employees (but still plenty of managers and supervisors). Why do we think partnership is going to be any better in 2010 than it was in 1992? Some things don't get better with age. It is never time for some ideas!

In my humble opinion, partnership legislation is ONLY going to add several more high-levels of mucky-muck people on committees, eating up our limited official time and travel dollars who will compromise our ability to bargain, grieve and otherwise represent our members, while they, themselves, will NOT do any of the heavy representational, litigational and negotiational lifting!