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Vol.
III, No. 11, August 2002
Management
Gives Itself $100 Transit Subsidy, Denies it to Others
“The
Department will increase the maximum transit subsidy
for all National Office non-bargaining unit employees
from $65.00 to $100.00 per month” on October 1,
2002. So stated Assistant Secretary for Administration
and Management Patrick Pizzella in a “Memorandum
for all National Office Employees Outside the Local
12 Bargaining Unit” dated July 10, 2002. Pizzella
restates management’s position that it will not
raise the transit subsidy for employees represented
by AFGE 12 unless the Union comes to the table to renegotiate
the contract. This would put your rights and benefits
at risk.
“We
believe that both managers and employees should have
received the $100 transit subsidy back in January, as
required by Executive Order 13150,” stated Larry
Drake, President of AFGE 12.
“Management’s
continuing refusal to raise the subsidy to $100 for
the employees the Union represents is outrageous!”
exclaimed Drake. “Assistant Secretary Pizzella’s
use of the lack of contract negotiations as a reason
to not raise it for dedicated DOL employees is simply
a ruse to hide management’s defiance of the Executive
Order,” he continued. “We once again call
on Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao to immediately raise
the transit subsidy to $100 a month for ALL employees,”
emphasized Drake.
AFGE
12 Fights for You
“I urge all DOL employees who share our outrage
to actively support our campaign to get the $100 subsidy,”
declared President Drake. The Union is conducting informational
picketing every Wednesday from 12:00 to 12:30 PM on
the Constitution Avenue sidewalk in front of the Frances
Perkins Building. The Union invites all DOL employees
and other concerned citizens to participate. Green-and-white
lapel stickers and buttons reading “$100”
are available from Union officers and stewards. Please
wear them every Wednesday.
AFGE
12 also encourages employees to contact their representatives
in the Senate and the House to seek their assistance
in securing the $100 transit subsidy.
A
letter from Representative Frank Wolf (R-VA) to Secretary
Chao is reprinted on page 2. The Union would like all
of the other local members of Congress to write similar
letters. “I therefore ask all concerned DOL employees
to contact, on their own time and off the work site,
their Senators and Congresspersons to request their
assistance in this matter,” said Drake. The U.S.
Capitol Switchboard number is 202-224-3121.
Court
Ruling on Ozone Highlights Need for $100 Transit Subsidy
This is not just about traffic congestion. A recent
court ruling underscores the need for this region to
take all responsible measures to reduce air pollution,
such as increasing the transit subsidy to the legal
maximum.
“A
federal appeals court yesterday struck down an Environmental
Protection Agency decision that had given the Washington
area until 2005 to meet federal ozone limits, a ruling
that will force the region’s officials to take
more aggressive steps to improve air quality...The ruling,
which came during a week of sweltering heat and bad-air
days, was described by environmental groups as a precedent-setting
victory...The Washington region, encompassing the District
and 10 counties in Maryland and Virginia, had an average
ozone level of 0.132 from 1997 to 1999. The federal
limit is 0.12. ” (The Washington Post,
July 3, 2002, p. B1)
The
bottom line? The DC metropolitan area needs to do more
to clean up its polluted air. Will DOL step up and do
its part? Raising the transit subsidy across the board
to $100 would be a good start.
“Compassionate
Conservatism”?
When George W. Bush was running for President, he proclaimed
himself a “compassionate conservative.” Is
Secretary Chao’s continuing refusal to raise the
transit subsidy to $100 for bargaining unit employees
“compassionate conservatism” in action?
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