IFPTE Welcomes Biden-Harris Administration’s Steps to Remove Barriers to Union Membership and Organizing Federal Employees

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OPM Sends Guidance to Agencies to Increase Union’s Access to and Communication with Federal Employees, Improve Employees Ability to Join Unions, and Ensure Federal Managers Remain Neutral During Organizing   

WASHINGTON, DC – The executive officers of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) issued the following statements in response to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issuing guidance to agencies to remove barriers to union’s access to represented employees and members, improve federal employees’ access to union dues deduction and union membership forms, and  include labor relations training for federal managers and supervisors that stresses maintaining neutrality during union organizing campaigns. The guidance follows recommendations put forward by the White House Task Force for Worker Organizing and Empowerment.

IFPTE President Matthew Biggs:

“IFPTE applauds President Biden, Vice-President Harris and OPM Director Kiran Ahuja for issuing guidance to agencies based on recommendations made by the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment. These are significant steps that, when followed in good faith by agencies, will help federal employees who what to join and participate in unions, provide federal employees better access to information about their union, and educate agencies’ management to remain neutral during organizing campaigns. We know there’s more work to be done by the Administration and by Congress, including confirming nominees to the Federal Labor Relations Authority and Merit Systems Protection Board, passing key legislation that protects a merit-based civil service, and instruct agencies like the Social Security Administration to implement all of the Task Force’s recommendations, including properly classifying workers who are eligible to be represented by a union. IFPTE looks forward to continuing our engagement with the Biden-Harris Administration in support of their goal of making the federal government a model employer.” 

IFPTE Secretary-Treasurer Gay Henson:

“Our union commends the Biden-Harris Administration for putting forward OPM guidance that will remove barriers to union membership for federal employees. The OPM guidance takes strides toward meeting the Administration’s commitment to making the federal government a model employer by supporting federal employees’ voice at work through their union. All workers, including federal employees, should be able to exercise their right to organize and join unions without employer interference or cumbersome barriers. This Administration understands that collective bargaining is a public good in the federal sector and in every sector of the economy and we are confident these recommendations will not only help federal employees exercise their union rights, but also support productive labor-management relations that benefits federal workers, federal agencies, and the public.” 

Across the United States and Canada, IFPTE represents 90,000 highly skilled workers in the federal, public, and private sectors. IFPTE is an affiliate of the AFL-CIO and the CLC. More information can be found at www.IFPTE.org.

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Download a PDF of this Press Release here.

Read OPM Director Ahuja’s remarks on the issuance of guidance here.