December 3, 2009
DHS Secretary Defends Collective Bargaining at TSA
Echoing NTEU's long-held beliefs about federal employee rights, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano told the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee yesterday that granting collective bargaining rights to TSA employees nationwide can be accomplished without "sacrificing one layer of security," according to media reports.
| DHS Secretary
Janet Napolitano, pictured above,
has said that collective bargaining at TSA would not threaten national security. |
|
|
Many frontline federal security employees have full collective bargaining rights by law, including the 24,000 employees within the NTEU-represented bargaining unit at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
In discussions with DHS Secretary Napolitano, DHS Deputy Secretary Jane Holl Lute and key members of Congress urging the quick extension of collective bargaining rights to TSA employees, NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley has pointed to CBP's ability to successfully carry out its critical mission without impediment due to union representation.
"Collective bargaining will provide TSA employees with a meaningful seat at the table where decisions are made that impact their day-to-day work lives," President Kelley said. "President Obama has indicated his support of collective bargaining rights for TSA employees and I believe they will be granted in the very near future." More
The Push to Confirm Southers Continues
Working in response to a reported “hold”
on the nomination of Erroll Southers by Sen. Jim DeMint
(R-S.C.), NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley has sent
a letter
to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.)asking
him to schedule time on the Senate floor before the
end of the year to consider the nomination of the
man expected to be the next TSA Administrator.
Mr. Southers already has won the approval of two Senate committees to lead the agency. "Clearly, this is a man well-qualified to be TSA Administrator,” President Kelley wrote. "Our members at TSA have been disheartened by the actions of some Members in their attempt to stall this action."
NTEU believes that the hold was placed only because Sen. DeMint lacks the votes to defeat the nomination outright. A “hold” is a procedural tactic that allows a senator to delay a nomination. Mr. Southers is one of several Obama administration nominees currently caught in the same situation.
“TSA is an agency in need of a leader … Its workforce struggles under arbitrary rules and regulations, a performance system that does not measure the work they do, a pay system plagued by cronyism and obfuscation, and a training program that is ill-funded,” President Kelley said.
NTEU
is ready and willing to help.
 If
you have questions, call toll free
1-866-591-5735 or e-mail
TSA@nteu.org.
Spread the word. Subscribe to our TSA Update.
It’s free and keeps TSA employees informed about important issues. Sign up for your own copy here.
|
