1 min read

Season 4, Episode 53

VA found to be in violation of multiple negotiation complaints

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Guest Name:


Arnold Scott

Guest Website:


https://www.afge.org/districts/district6/ 

Guest Social Media:


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Arnold Scott, American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) District 6 Vice President appeared on the America’s Work Force Union Podcast and gave an update on the National Labor Relations Board’s decision regarding the AFGE’s contract negotiations with the Department of Veterans Affairs. He also spoke about President Joe Biden’s proposed 2023 budget and his hope for the reintroduced Richard J. Trumka PRO Act. 

Scott was surprised by the NLRB’s decision to find the VA guilty on all complaints filed by the VA Unions Negotiation Council. The most concerning issue filed against the VA was a claim of bargaining in bad faith. The union also filed a complaint as VA management sought to reduce the AFGE's bargaining rights down to collaboration rights. Furthermore, the VA was found to be in violation of the existing Ross agreement. 

As part of this Collective Bargaining Agreement process, the AFGE is seeking an 8.7 percent pay increase. However, in the President’s proposed 2023 budget, government employees will recieve only a 5.2 percent raise. Scott believes the best solution for all involved is for Congress to pass the FAIR Act, which would provide government employees with their desired 8.7% increase. He pointed out that government jobs pay roughly 23 percent less than similar jobs in the private sector.

Scott also touched on the reintroduced Richard J. Trumka PRO Act. Whether or not it gets passed, Scott wants politicians to pick a side on this bill. He hopes to see which politicians stand with workers and the working class and those who stand with the best interests of business. He hopes voters will hold those politicians who stand with businesses accountable at the polls during the 2024 election.

Listen to the entire episode to learn more.


America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.

America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.

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