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John,

This was a stupendously busy week, but an extremely successful one for AFGE.

AFGE Virtual Legislative Conference

We started our virtual Legislative Conference on Saturday afternoon and continued through until Tuesday with council and district meetings, meetings with members of Congress and their staffs, workshops (including one focused on D.C. government), and addresses by numerous members of Congress including Speaker Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Schumer. We also had some fun with games and other opportunities for fellowship. We also got the chance to recognize locals and districts that are doing the best job on PAC and LEAF. It was an energizing, empowering, and educational experience for all!

I think everyone who attended will agree that given the constraints of having to do our conference virtually rather than in person, it was a truly excellent conference. AFGE is so fortunate to have staff who willingly worked practically around the clock for weeks to create a successful event. I urge all of us to make sure that you let them know how much you appreciate their talents and hard work. I am so grateful for all they do for our union. I will admit that I missed all the unplanned, casual meetings that occur at a normal legislative conference – when you bump into someone and they tell you about an issue that needs to be addressed, a member who needs help, or when they volunteer to take on something that needs attention. I miss making new friends and seeing old friends and I absolutely cannot wait to see you all again in person when it’s finally safe to gather.

Congressional Testimony

On Tuesday, I testified at a hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. On the Democratic side were AFGE, Janice Lachance (former AFGE Communications and PAC Director and President Clinton’s former OPM Director), and Anne Joseph O’Connell, a professor at Stanford Law School. The Republican’s sole witness was James Sherk, the author of the notorious 2017 White House memo laying out the strategy for destroying both private- and public-sector unions. That Sherk memo included the blueprint for the 2018 executive orders that President Biden revoked as well as the idea behind the Schedule F executive order. We’re told that Sherk was the one who rode herd on all the agencies, forcing them to implement the EOs as ruthlessly as possible.

The topic was how to revitalize the federal civil service in the wake of the damage done by the previous administration. Our testimony urged them to strengthen the statutory protections for both federal employee union rights and a civil service based on merit system principles. We discussed the need for higher pay, better and more secure benefits, and a strong, independent OPM with full appropriations for all its statutory functions – and asked them not to fall for proposals parading themselves as “good government” reform that actually reduce pay, benefits, and rights. We got some great press coverage and I think we’ve succeeded in letting all the lawmakers know that recruitment and retention isn’t going to improve in the federal government until employees’ rights are strengthened and our pay is raised and our benefits made more secure.

Post-Conference NEC Meeting

Finally, we had a post-Legislative Conference meeting of the NEC that allowed everyone to share their feedback on the Conference. It was unanimous – everyone loved the Conference and said they had lots of positive response from the members in their districts who attended. And finally, everyone agreed that the AFGE staff did a truly outstanding job and deserves lots of thanks and appreciation. None of them had ever done a virtual conference before and it wasn’t easy. They deserve all the kudos in the world.

Anti-union DoD Policy Revoked

Also on Wednesday President Biden issued another good executive order that included, among other things, a revocation of the January 29, 2020 Presidential Memorandum that gave the Secretary of Defense and his delegates authority to take away collective bargaining rights from DoD civilians on national security grounds. This was yet another union-busting effort of the past administration that, while never acted on, was meant to threaten and intimidate. We were all extremely happy to see it rescinded.

Washington's 250 Most Influential People

You all remember when AFGE’s fantastic Legislative Director, Alethea Predeoux, was recognized as one of Washington’s Top Lobbyists by The Hill newspaper back in December 2020? This week, Washingtonian Magazine named Jacque Simon, AFGE’s equally fantastic Policy Director one of Washington’s 250 Most Influential People. Our union is so blessed to have staff of this caliber who have chosen to make their careers focusing on the well-being of federal and D.C. government workers. Congratulations to both Alethea and Jacque – we are proud of them and most grateful to have them in the AFGE family.

Thanks to all and have a wonderful union weekend.

In solidarity,

Dr. Everett Kelley
AFGE National President

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