A coalition of 20 federal unions is encouraging its members to pressure lawmakers Tuesday against cutting their jobs, pay and benefits as part of a deal to avert the fiscal cliff.
The Federal Workers Alliance — which includes unions such as the National Federation of Federal Employees, International Federation of Technical and Professional Engineers and Professional Aviation and Safety Specialists — wants its members to visit lawmakers in person, call their offices, e-mail them and spread the word via social media that when it comes to federal employee cuts, “Enough is enough.”
“Federal workers have already seen $103 billion in cuts to their pay and benefits, but many in Congress still don’t get the message,” said NFFE National President Bill Dougan, who is also the chairman of the union coalition. “We’re encouraging our members to contact their elected officials in any way they can and tell them, ‘The bank is closed.'”
Reports surfaced over the weekend that House Speaker John Boehner had proposed limiting federal retirees’ pension cost of living adjustments by adopting a new measure of inflation called the chained Consumer Price Index.
4 Comments
Republicans cannot see their way to any tax increases on their wealthy buddies, but have no problem at all with cheating federal workers out of the pensions that were agreed to and have been earned. This is not “saving” money, this is nothing more than looting the pension fund. Any private sector company tried this and the CEO would be looking at a few years in the slammer.
The sad thing is that the Republicans really want to be leading the government. That is why they spent so much money trying to get Romney elected. Yet once they do get into power their success as leaders will as it always does, depend upon motivating those they lead to excel. How can you be an effective leader to people that you have consistently tried to cheat out of their just compensation? Any truly effective leader knows that to be a success, you have to win the hearts and minds of your followers.
Retirees and federal workers do not put republicans in power rich people do money talks.
Unions are worthless. The Union “workers” (if you can call them that) in Cleveland are fat and lazy. They hide out in their room, accomplish nothing, but feel they are entitled to everything. There’s a reason why Government workers have a bad reputation, its because some use the self-serving union as a crutch. Half shouldnt even be employed because their work ethic is that of a Sloth.
Why are so many federal civil service jobs being filled now as ‘term’ jobs, i.e., “for a year, then it may or may not be extended to four years”? The ‘term’ jobs are not secure?