December 6, 2024

Chapter Members Ratify the new CBA!
On December 3, 2024, members of both WASO – NTEU Chapter #296 – and NCR – NTEU Chapter #336 – voted unanimously to ratify the new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between NTEU and NPS. Thanks to all members who attended the briefing meeting earlier this week and the ratification meeting yesterday to cast their votes. We thank everyone in management and the union who participated in the negotiations. We have attached a factsheet to describe the new articles in the contract, which covers both WASO and NCR. The CBA now goes to the Department for legal review and should take affect within 30 days.

Summary of major changes

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Negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) are underway.

• January 2023 update on negotiations 

 Our current CBA was completed in 2017.

Through past negotiations, NTEU secured the right to telework and gains in the areas of an improved child care subsidy program, holiday entitlement, overtime, compensatory time, leave, reassignments, training, and performance evaluations.

The past two years has shown that our workforce/workplace is in the midst of great change. Negotiating a good CBA will protect us from out-dated ideas (or managers with outdated ideas).

NOW is the time to get involved. Has anything happened in the past year or two or five that caused you to wish we had some additional protections?

• Do you feel the article on telework is sufficient? (currently article 11, page 35)
• Do you think the article on Health and Safety could use something else? (currently article 43, page 123)
• Article 8 defines work hours: core hours, 8 hour workday, alternative work schedules. Do these definitions fit with how we have been working for the past two years? In how we want to continue to work? 
• If you are teleworking more now, do you think the articles on performance evaluations (article 36, page 98) cover contingencies that you foresee?

Here is a good article from NTEU on the general process.

There are multiple ways to get involved:

1. Highest level (only for NTEU Chapter 296 members): you can be one of the people "sitting at the table." As Alexander Hamilton sang it, you can be in the room when it happens. (Or video call, we don't know yet.)

2. Middle Level (only for NTEU Chapter 296 members): join the Contract Action Team (CAT). This team looks at the survey we sent out for ideas and the responses we get and helps to establish ground rules for the negotiations.

3. Lowest Level - all members. If you're a member, you're involved. Only members get to vote on the contract, members' ideas will be given much greater weight in negotiations. If you want a concrete say in how our workplace is shaped, then become a member.

How to get involved:

Fill out the survey that NTEU sent out on April 28th, 2022. Titled "What do you want in your new contract?"

Send an email to nteuchapter296@nps.gov if you would like to be in the highest level or on the Contract Action Team.