Overview of the NTEU Contract
The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), founded in 1938, is the largest independent federal sector labor union representing about 150,000 federal employees in 33 departments and agencies in the Executive Branch of the U.S. government. A major function of labor unions, including the NTEU, is to negotiate with employers on behalf of employees to improve wages, benefits, workplace conditions and other terms and conditions of employment. While many federal agencies recognize various labor unions, in 2017 NTEU negotiated a nationwide collective bargaining agreement with the Departments of Treasury and Homeland Security and several other federal agencies. Those agreements provide most federal employees represented by the NTEU a set of terms and conditions of employment , including a set of rights and remedies.
The NTEU contract establishes a number of rights and obligations for both management and represented employees, including rights and remedies on issues such as pay, promotions, working conditions, travel, discrimination, drug testing, and labor-management relations. In addition to establishing remedies for violations of contract terms, the NTEU contract provides procedures to address employee grievances and disciplinary actions.
These rights, procedures and remedies can be an important resource for employees when conditions of employment are not what they should be, including when employees are inappropriately subjected to a drug test that yields a positive result.
Provisions of the NTEU Contract
The National Treasury Employees Union, or NTEU, negotiates union contracts with the federal government that establish policies, procedures, and procedures for each government agency. The NTEU represents employees at Transport Security Administration (TSA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The main provisions of most NTEU contracts include:
Employee Rights
The NTEU contract has details concerning management rights and workplace rights. Employees know exactly what kind of treatment to expect, and can refer to the contract if they feel like they have been treated unfairly. This includes information on the employee evaluation process.
Work Conditions
The NTEU contract also covers the working conditions, such as the length of the workday, shifts, and paid time off. Many contracts have additional information about leave benefits, such as how many sick days employees are permitted to take each year.
Salaries
Salaries are not usually specifically listed in the NTEU contract as they are dictated by a General Schedule (GS) scale that is set for federal employees. However, the contract does sometimes have additional salary provisions, such as a step-increase for federal law enforcement officers.
Grievance Procedures
The NTEU contract will also detail grievance procedures concerning disciplinary actions. This can include issues from a verbal warning to something more severe.
The Negotiation Process of the NTEU Contract
The NTEU changes federal employee pay and working conditions through collective bargaining with the federal government. Under the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute, 5 U.S.C. ยง601, et seq. (the Statute), federal employee unions such as NTEU have the right to engage in "collective bargaining" with the federal government. Collective bargaining generally means negotiations between the NTEU and the federal government. The goal of the negotiations is to come to a contract (also called a collective bargaining agreement) on a variety of working conditions including pay, benefits, hours of work, leave administration, and many more important matters. After negotiations are final, the resulting contract will govern the employment relationship between the NTEU, the federal government, and the employees for the term of the contract.
Collective bargaining occurs in stages. First, the NTEU and the federal government make proposals on the terms of the contract. Second, both the NTEU and the federal government respond to one another’s proposals. Third, the NTEU negotiates with the federal government to try to come to terms on the proposed contract provisions. If agreement cannot be reached, mediation will occur. This means that the two sides ask a third party to help them reach agreement. Next, if agreement cannot be reached even in mediation, both sides will begin interest arbitration. Interest arbitration is the last resort to the parties. A panel of three arbitrators will hear the two sides and ultimately decide which sides’ contract provisions will go into the final contract.
In the end, the resulting contract must be approved by both the Office of Personnel Management and the congressional appropriations committees before it can go into effect.
Effects of the NTEU Contract On Federal Employees
The NTEU contract is coined a master agreement. Some sections are modified by the individual agencies’ supplementary agreements. On the whole, however, federal employees have seen a positive impact thanks to the NTEU contract.
First, the NTEU contract creates an independent grievance procedure at the agency level. It provides for pre-disciplinary procedures to ensure that employees have notice and opportunity to respond before being discipline. It also afford a separate and independent system of progressive discipline to non-bargaining unit employees.
Second, the NTEU contract provides for surveys of employee to determine the level of satisfaction with their work situations. Said survey results are then shared with the agency policy makers to improve the workplace. For example, NTEU surveys Hill Work Life balance, Health and Safety, Work-Life Balance, Diversity Programs, etc. Results should be made available to local NTEU chapters. NTEU has negotiated various MVPs and work rules that help maximize work efficiency and creativity, while allowing for increased job satisfaction . For example, employees have increased telework security and success to on-site daycare. NTEU has negotiated across the board increases and supplemental bonuses when there are surpluses in the budget. NTEU has negotiated in benefits in line with OPM such as the more generous TSP contribution matches and life insurance plan.
It is also important to note that with the NTEU’s influence, the federal government has been more inclined to be transparent in work life. Regulations require for NTEU to have advance notice of a proposed reduction in force, retirement buyout, reorganization, large transfers of work, mergers, etc. Such advance notice allows for discussion and input from union members to mitigate the possibles harms of an adverse action. The impact of the provisions of the NTEU agreement have even been realized by employees coming from the private sector because they feel as though they will be better represented than if they had chosen the private sector.
Recent Changes to the NTEU Contract
The National Treasury Employees Union contract has undergone recent changes and updates to its provisions. Many of the labor contracts conducted between management and NTEU are updated every few years, and the changes are normally made pursuant to agreements reached between management and the union. These changes impact a number of contractual provisions that have remained the same for many years. The parties have little control over the changes to mandatory provisions, which are dictated by federal law. However, changes to the remaining provisions are the products of agreement between management and NTEU. Over the years, the parties have carefully collaborated to improve the working conditions of employees.
These collaborative efforts have resulted in the addition and removal of a number of existing provisions, including: mileage and fleet use; off-site assignments; grievance and disciplinary procedures for non-bargaining unit employees and non-career or seasonal employees; settlement agreements and disclosure of information; temporary and modified work; changes to fair and equitable hiring, performance, and promotions; and changes to the use of appropriated funds.
The most notable change has been the revision to the employee travel provisions. A provision was added to further define the specific types of travel reimbursements and rates of reimbursement (including managed and unmanaged travel). The primary goal of this revision is to help ensure that management is complying with statutory rates when issuing travel reimbursements to employees. In doing so, the revisions will help assure employees receive the full amount of reimbursement to which they are legally entitled.
Summary: The Future NTEU Contracts
As federal employment continues to evolve, so too must the NTEU contract. Currently, the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Energy have moved away from the annual leave gaming, a practice that is addressed in several NTEU contracts. In addition, the GSA has negotiated alternative work schedules the last few years, although the parties never agreed on the specifics. The GSA has also agreed to a new telework policy. To date, there has been no movement on use of official time or technology issues. But any of these issues could change if a union continues to push the market and we see a more membership-driven or member-driven approach to collective bargaining.
While the future of NTEU , supports and limits to the regulations adopted by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in both the TSP and hiring arenas, there are future issues. For example, Entry Level Assessments and the effect(s) of the "D" grade for a "good hire" on the pay system. Future Collective Bargaining agreements will continue to move from a "traditional" negotiation model to a more collaborative model of ‘Problem Solving’ approaches to negotiations and problem resolution. We will see increased use of virtual bargaining. TFA, with a goal of unionism will become more varied and diverse. The future will see stronger labor management practices at the national level as it will and should be at the local level. Unions will be held accountable for their actions not just by the members but by the public as well.