LOCAL 1998
September 29, 2005
To: __________, Regional Director – Seattle Passport Agency
cc: __________, Assistant Regional Director – Seattle Passport Agency
__________, Chief Labor Management Negotiator - Department of State
Michael Garofano, Vice President – NFFE Local 1998
Steve Flory, Business Representative – National Federation of Federal Employees
Re: Sole-use/shared-use office space for Union President
In accordance with Article 20, Section 6 of the Agreement Between Passport Services and the National Federation of Federal Employees – Local 1998 (hereafter referred to as “the Agreement”), I am filing this Informal Grievance regarding a violation of Article 8, Section 1a.
Relevant Portion of the Agreement
Article 8, Section 1a of the Agreement states:
The Employer agrees to provide one desk or workstation per office for use by Union representatives who have not been assigned a permanent desk. The Employer agrees to provide the Union President sole use equipment as needed, including a telephone with voice mail, where available, and a computer with e-mail and a separate e-mail address. A sole use office for the Union President will be provided where available.
Bargaining History
In January 2000, the Union had
originally proposed that the Union President be provided with a sole-use office,
without any caveats or exceptions. Management’s response was that “Local
Management will attempt to make space available to the union president on a
temporary basis for meetings and other union-related business.” The parties
engaged in a series of discussions on this topic and modified proposals were
exchanged. The Union insisted that an office for the Union President was
necessary, and that this was a common requirement in the federal labor sector.
Management countered that some of the offices – specifically the Connecticut
Passport Agency (then the Stamford Passport Agency) and the Honolulu Passport
Agency – were so small that if the Union President were elected from one of
those two offices, there would not be any office space they could provide
without denying a senior manager his or her own office. The parties agreed to
the compromise wording that a “sole use office” would be provided “where
available”.
Not once during the bargaining history did Management assert that the words “where available” meant that a medium sized office like the Seattle Passport Agency would not have space for a sole use office. In fact, the Union President at that time, who was also at the bargaining table (Bill Beardall), worked at the Seattle Passport Agency and it was discussed at the table that as a result of this provision he would be provided with a sole use office upon the conclusion of the negotiations.
History of Article 11, Section 1 during the term of the contract
Upon the completion of the contract, then-Union President Bill Beardall was provided with a sole-use office on the 33rd floor of the Henry Jackson Federal Building. This was in addition to the cubicle he was already using. That cubicle was a larger sized cubicle, with higher walls for additional privacy, and considerably more storage space. He had been provided that cubicle previously, partly because he was the Union President and partly because he was the ___________. Mr. Beardall used the sole-use office from approximately July 2001 until May 31, 2002, when his term of office ended. There was no controversy or dispute over this provision of the contract at that time.
Upon being elected Union President, effective June 1, 2002, Passport Specialist Alex Allen of the New Orleans Passport Agency requested a sole-use office from ______________, then the Regional Director of that agency. His request was denied, so on June 28, 2002 he filed a grievance alleging a violation of Article 8, Section 1 of the Agreement. In that grievance, he noted that there was an office that was only occasionally used by visitors and pointed out that office would serve to meet the requirements of the Agreement. As a result of the grievance, a sole use office for the Union President was provided to Alex Allen.
Mr. Allen was selected as a supervisor in November 2003 and I became the Acting Union President on or about November 19, 2003. In April 2004 the “acting” status was removed when I was confirmed in an election, and I served out the remainder of Mr. Allen’s term until December 31, 2004. During elections held in November 2004, I was elected as Union President for a three-year term from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2007. Shortly after Mr. Beardall was no longer the Union President, the Union received notice that the office on the 33rd floor would be needed for PRISM/Data Entry/Other Processing functions. However, a tall, deep, four-drawer cabinet that is completely full of Union materials remains in that office.
The clear intent of the parties was to avoid just this state of affairs from happening. The Union President is called on to perform a wide range of representational activities and that was the reason for adding this provision to the Agreement. The Union President has the responsibility to represent all of the bargaining unit employees in Passport Services, who numbered approximately 600 employees when the Agreement was completed, but that has grown to almost 700 and may continue to grow to 800 and perhaps even 900 employees. By creating a situation where any employee who volunteers to serve as Union President would be so negatively impacted in the performance of his/her assigned duties, Management essentially discourages one from serving in this capacity {a violation of Article 6, Section 1, Article 7, Section 8, and also portions of 5 U.S.C. 7116(a)}. Contrary to the meaning and intent of the Agreement, there is no office space for the Union President to perform representational functions in a private, confidential, and organized setting.
All of the objections raised by PPT/SE Management are as if I have requested a sole-use office when in fact I have tried from the beginning to compromise and have asked only to share the use of an office. The PPT/SE Management’s proposed solutions are essentially the same as what HQ Management originally proposed during the contract negotiations – more cabinets and occasional/temporary use of an office on a case-by-case basis. This is an important point because what Management originally proposed during contract negotiations is much less than what Management eventually agreed to do, so this amounts to a violation and perhaps even a repudiation of the terms of the Agreement. The bottom line is that right now there is office space available for a sole-use office and therefore the Agreement requires that it be provided.
I respectfully request that Management comply with Article 8, Section 1 of the Agreement. Possible solutions:
Sincerely,
Colin Patrick Walle