WORKSTATION MOVES – Selection Criteria

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

5.c
Moves

Agency proposes to only permit employees to move to a new workstation that is a significant improvement from their existing work station.. (sect#7.A,7.B)

NTEU counter-proposes that move eligibility criteria involves larger or windowed workstations and another criteria associated with improved performance in the new area. (5.2.2)

TELEWORK

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

54.e

WORK SCHEDULES

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

31.d

Agency counter proposes with a modified NewFlex program. (6/3/09)

NTEU proposes to implement the NRO NewFlex pilot work schedule for the entire agency expanding work hours and making schedules more flexible, step 31.11.

31.e

NTEU counters with 11:15 -1:45 based upon: 
5am earliest start plus 8hrDay+lunch making earliest departure=1:45pm, and
8pm latest departure plus 8hrDay+lunch making latest start 11:15am

Otherwise employees would have to alter their Wednesday start/departure time from other days in the week or work more than 8 hours on Wednesdays to cover the agency's proposed expanded core hours. (31.11.2)

PROMOTION – Competitive Selection

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

22.h
Merit Selection

Agency proposes to reduce the area of consideration to the office versus existing geographic area, prohibiting employees from changing offices in headquarters when the conditions warrant, i.e. such as when an office is over their FTE budget. (sect#9)

NTEU counters permitting this when promulgated from an external event not under agency control.   
NTEU supports existing practices allowing all employees in the geographic area to apply for a promotion.  
Offices could begin grating intra-office promotions, when at their office FTE ceiling, based upon the least agency impact from the promoted employee's previous position not being backfilled, thus not promoting the "most" qualified candidate.

22.i

Agency proposes three categories for the rating process:
<5 applicants - no rating, all go to selecting official
5-10 applicants - one rating official
>10 applicants - two rating officials (i.e. panel) sect#12

NTEU counters with:
<3 applicants - no rating
3-10 applicants - one rating official
>10 applicants - two rating officials (i.e. panel).
22.9.1

NTEU proposes that outside candidates considered under MD10.5 must be at least equally qualified with no lower rating score than internal candidates, step 22.16.3.

PAY / Benefits

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

57.a
Pay

Agency is considering

NTEU proposes the pay structure remain with 15 grades and 10 steps per grade. (57.1)

AWARDS

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

29.b
Awards

Agency is considering

NTEU proposes awards be directly related to performance appraisal rating scores which has been the past practice.  NTEU proposes an option for performance awards to be on a percentage of salary basis or fixed amount.  (29.2)

29.d

Agency is considering while being concerned of the privacy aspects for small divisions or groups.

NTEU proposes the agency provide the Union an annual list of performance award data.

29.g

Agency opposes

APPEALS - Grievance & Information Request

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

51.b

Agency proposes to eliminate  employee appeal of many situations:
-awards amounts (sect#4.A.11
-performance improvement program (sect.4.A.15)
-proposed discipline (sect#4.A.15)

NTEU counters to retain grievability for awards  and supports the past existing practice which has not generated a significant number of cases.
(not excluded in 51.4)

51.f

Agency counters by dropping the harsh termination for delayed meetings but still require the employee/steward to promptly appeal by the deadline after the lack of an agency timely grievance decision or be penalized with a terminated grievance, which would then prohibit arbitration.

NTEU proposes a grievance not be terminated when the agency fails to meet or render a decision within the specified agency time limits. (51.18)

51.h

Agency proposes to delay to Step 2, notice to the Union that a grievance is non-grievable. (sect#22)

NTEU permits this delayed notice only due to events that occurred between Step A and B which could not have been identified earlier by the Agency.  (51.23)

45.a
Information

Agency counters with language providing options to the supervisor to not communicate certain retained information promptly with the employee but delay sharing the information until right before the "use" of the information, (e.g. discipline action)

APPEALS - Arbitration

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

52.d

Agency proposes to eliminate arbitrator authority for:
-unsupported issues lacking reference to underlying facts & circumstances. (M4-52.5.4.6)

NTEU opposes since this proposal is based upon an allegation that NTEU stewards are not clear in their initial grievance filing.  Stewards are permitted to present the details and supporting evidence during the grievance meeting.

UNION ADMINISTRATION – Steward Time

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Agency Position

NTEU Position

8.i
Official Time
6/30/09