SSA leadership required less than fifteen years to convert the federal government’s

rated best place to work into the third worst overall federal workplace environment,

according to Federal Employee Viewpoint Surveys (FEVS). Under the FEVS, SSA

Leadership scored last in the federal agencies under the categories of “Supervisors”

and “Work-Life Balance” while scoring next to last in the category of “Effective

Leadership.” SSA Leadership’s poor results are not surprising considering that staffing

has remained stagnant at approximately 62,000 total employees (27,005 total Field

Office and TSC employees in 2021) while the number of OASDI applications has

increased by 38.5% (from 45,417,470 to 62,906,222) from 2007 to 2019.

Increasing public demands, insufficient staffing, and SSA Leadership’s inability to

implement appropriate use of technology has derived from the Agency’s strict focus on

immediate output, and in turn, significantly reduced the quality of our Agency training

programs, unnecessarily denied opportunities for employees to take the leave for which

they are entitled, and failing to provide employees with even the most basic level of

respect by informing them that they might have potentially been exposed to COVID-19.

While working in a small-town office, I was under the assumption that the District

Manager (DM) had significantly more power than they possess. Our DM would (1)

send us home to change clothes if we did not dress to a banker’s standard, (2) only

permit us to wear blue jeans on Fridays so long as we contributed five dollars to an

unknown fund, (3) significantly cut overtime and availability of vacations in order to

improve our office’s DOWR, (4) conducted closed door meetings with my peers to call

them “racists,” and (5) once held an emergency office meeting to publicly ridicule a

coworker for coming to work wearing an Aggie jersey on the day of a Bowl Game.

The most disturbing part of this story isn’t that our DM was awarded the “Tommy Johns:

Manager of the Year Award” by the Dallas Regional Management Association while

engaging in this activity. It’s the fact that I was our office Union Representative at the

time– and I received no training, leadership, or support from Union leadership to help

me prevent our members from becoming victims to our DM’s unacceptable conduct.

Our Union has not worked to our true potential. I accept ownership of that.

Many of us were introduced to the Union through a lunch-and-learn involving some

random person offering us $100 to join, telling us that the Union’s life insurance is better

than our employer’s plan, and then giving us a slice of cheap pizza. We assumed that

a Union was a transactional relationship in which we paid dues in consideration for

helping us when we “got into trouble.”

Our leadership failed to share with us the most important tenant for a highly effective

Union: “Tell workers it’s their Union and then behave that way.”

Local 3184 not a fee-for-service. We are a collective experience of workers in struggle

for making positive changes with respect to working conditions. Our purpose is to

educate our members of their rights, provide support, and confront management when

necessary. As a union and as your coworkers, we share your anger (not your apathy)

concerning the continuing failing vision and leadership at SSA.

Together we have demonstrated strength. Since 2018, we have focused on supporting

our representatives through mentoring, training, and providing opportunities for our

representatives to excel in their roles. It is our priority to ensure that they have the

support that many of us never had. We have focused on informing our members

through social media, websites, emails, podcasts, and most recently a newsletter for

mobilizing our membership to file grievances, EEO complaints, Worker’s Compensation

claims, and contacting our Congressional members when necessary. We have worked

to overturn meritless suspensions, assisted members with getting money damages, and

have assisted offices in increasing holiday leave approvals while continuing to meet

public-service goals.

Our members want a better life-work balance, and I don’t blame them. Leadership has

had fifteen (15) years to ruin SSA’s reputation with the public and its reputation with its

employees. It doesn’t have to be this way, but to change it--we need your knowledge,

skills, and abilities for building OUR union for reclaiming our workplace conditions.

This will be the first of hopefully man and regular monthly newsletters that we will be

sending out. Please share it with your fellow Union members. Particularly those who

are not on social media.

In solidarity,

Joel D. Smith

Sometimes you have to forget what’s gone, appreciate what remains, and look forward to what’s coming next. #Duckwordoftheday

With the vast majority of the SSA workforce returning to the office starting March 30th, 2022. Although we can all see the unforced error that the commissioner is committing by charging headlong into this ill-conceived and reckless policy, none the less, we shall report back to the office en masse. With everything going on we have to ensure we have protective measures in place in case we become affected by the COVID-19 virus.

Workman’s Compensation better known as workman’s comp is a program that is available to you as federal workers if you get injured or sick on the job and that injury or illness precludes you from working. If you are in the office and you become positive for COVID-19 within 21 days of being in the office, then the Agency has already accepted responsibility for you getting it while on the job. Showing you were injured while on the job is much easier then showing that you got sick on the job, but in this case the Agency has already stated that if you were in the office and came down with it within 21 days, they accept that it is job related.

Important timeframes to know. Obviously if you catch COVID-19 you have to show you were in the office within 21 days of testing positive. The first day that they count will be the first day that you felt ill and had to stop working or the last day that you were in the office prior to getting ill/testing positive, this is referred to as the date of injury and all timeframes are from this date. Caution: you can feel sick and without knowing if you have COVID-19 request workman’s comp but if you are negative you will have to use your own leave.

There are forms your doctor can complete but it can vary in what you present the agency. You can get up to 45 calendar days of Admin leave if you can show you can not work because of the sickness (long COVID). Unfortunately, some people have long lasting effects from getting COVID-19 if you happen to fall in this category after 45 days you will deal with the Department of Labor and their workman’s comp section. The Agency can deny you for workman’s comp if it isn’t submitted in a timely fashion.

If you have any questions about the actual process of applying, please reach out to your Union Representative. For the Union Reps please be aware that management is to report workman’s comp issues to the Union.

There are many reasons that people chose to join the Union: some joined for the protection that AFGE brings, some joined for the built-in brotherhood, others joined simply to have a voice in the workplace. There are no bad reasons to have joined; The important thing is that you’re here.

When you joined AFGE, you opened up a whole new world of benefits that are available to you through the Union. These benefits range from travel discounts to education programs, life insurance policies to death benefits, home ownership, travel and everything in between.

An overview of member benefits can be found at AFGE.org under the “member benefits” section. This link highlights hundreds of programs that can be used by AFGE members. But this does also pose a problem: with the sheer number of benefits available to AFGE members, it can be hard to figure out which of these programs would be best for you. Enrollment can also be daunting. Because of this, AFGE Local 3184 wants to make sure its members are aware of the help that’s available in explaining these programs to you in a way that is easily understood.

Many of you already know Donny Elder, who is the Union Benefit Specialist for Local 3184. For those who don’t already know Donny, we want to introduce you to him. Donny is the person who can answer all of your questions regarding the union benefits that are available to you, as a union member. He has been in this job since 2005, is very knowledgeable on the various benefits and programs offered through AFGE, and he can also walk you through the enrollment process. Donny said that his favorite part of his job is getting to meet union members and helping us by connecting us with the benefits that are available.

Donny will be working with Local 3184 to talk to us in depth about one benefit each month. This is YOUR newsletter and we want the information that we provide to be tailored to YOU! If you have a specific benefit that you would like for us to cover in detail with Donny, please send your requests to CBolton3184@yahoo.com.

Union members who would like to discuss benefits individually with Donny can contact him on his cell phone at 832-472-2400, or by email at benefits@donnyelder.com.

**If you would like for Donny Elder to explain a specific benefit in depth on the next Local

3184 newsletter, please email your requests to CBolton3184@yahoo.com.

Article 10 Appendix A-19 :

An employee may earn up to three (3) credit hours per workday. Credit hours may be earned in one-quarter (1/4) hour increments. An employee may accrue up to 28 hours during a pay period, however, only a maximum of 24 credit hours may be carried over from the prior pay period.

This means :

In other words, you can earn MORE than the 24 hours they claim. You can earn 28 but it has to be spent down to below 24 before the pay period ends. Which means if you start off a week with 24, work 4 hours of credit, and then the following week you have 4 days (32 hours of leave) assuming you use all the credit, you will only be expending 4 hours of annual leave.

Truth Leonard-Kinnard

Katelyn Barnhart

Brooke Weber

Roshanda Roy

Johnnie Garcia

Nathan Bollin

Dewuan Colbert

Ebony Towers

Angelique Conway

Megan Moseley

Ed Perez

Brenda Florez

Angel Martinez

Alejandra Chi

Brandon Hobratschk

I have been employed with SSA since 08/21/2007. I am located in the Houma, LA (DO807) field office. Initially, I started with SSA as a CS. Then, I was promoted to a CR in 2016. In 2019, I was selected for crossover training. Currently, I work in the capacity of Generalist. I have been with the Union since 2019. My primary reason to get involved was to ensure that all employees were treated fairly; regardless of race, ethnicity, sexual preference, religion, etc.

Throughout my work tenure (civilian and military), I have witnessed unfair treatment among hard working individuals. As an Army Combat Veteran and a person, I value human and civil rights deeply. All people should receive equal treatment. I sincerely believe “the greater way to make a change is to become apart of the change”. In my opinion, words can only do so much but actions are much more productive.

I am also appreciate and grateful for the fact that Labor Unions give the power to negotiate more favorable working conditions and other benefits through collective bargaining. I am also appreciative for my union leaders and peers who also work diligently to ensure all employee rights are protected.

The guarantee of decent raises, job security, and fair treatment are the reasons I would encourage anyone to join the Union. This is warranted to the fact that we, as workers, join together to negotiate pay and working conditions rather than leaving this solely up to managers. In return, this ensures that we are treated with respect and fair. Further, this process not only makes sure that our working conditions are favorable; But, the Union ensure they remain that way.

EMI GARCIA E45 GEORGETOWN, TX

MICAELA INSCORE 00Y AUSTIN, TX

ANGELICA HAM 815 SAN ANTONIO, TX

DINA TORREZ E44 SAN MARCOS, TX

DELIA TREVINO 838 TEMPLE, TX

IVY SEALS 838 TEMPLE, TX

JUAN VASQUEZ 00N SAN ANTONIO,TX

DANIELLE LOMBARDO 813 AUSTIN, TX

LIZA BAZALDUA-MIRANDA 852 SAN ANTONIO, TX

RASHID HILLIARD 880 SAN ANTONIO, TX

VERONICA RODRIGUEZ 815 SAN ANTONIO, TX

MARY HARKER 861 GALLUP, NM

FRANCISCO BARRAZA E24 EL PASO, TX DT

NICOLE WILLIAMS 800 NEW ORLEANS, LA

LENARD DORSEY 855 HOUSTON, TX NW

SHELITA GRAINGER-SMITH 807 HOUMA, LA

McAllen Wins:

(1)

An employee was in the middle of an interview, when he learned that the customer he was interviewing was a relative of his coworker. He immediately stopped the interview, talked to his supervisor about the fact that he did not feel comfortable completing the interview since the customer was an acquaintance of his. The supervisor told him to complete the interview, so he did. Subsequently, he was given an oral warning for “interviewing a friend.”

Despite this preposterous situation, the OS refused to revoke the oral warning at the step 1 grievance. The District Manager also refused to revoke the oral warning at the step 2 grievance. However, at the step 3 grievance, the Area Director agreed to have all memory joggers removed from the employee’s file and to ensure that the management team did not refer to this situation again, thus restarting the employee at step one of progressive discipline.

(2)

An employee, who qualified for Work at Home by Quarantine (WAHQ), was asked by her Supervisor to submit a leave slip since she could not go into the office to work. When she put in her WAHQ request, the Supervisor called her to let her know that she did not qualify for WAHQ. The union representative stepped in to clarify the WAHQ rules for both the employee and the Supervisor. Following this, however, the Supervisor displayed intimidating and harassing behavior toward the employee. At the step 2 grievance, the District Manager agreed to put the Supervisor through training to teach her communications, ethics, anti-bullying, the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and COVID WAHQ procedures.

Angleton win:

A three-day suspension was proposed against an employee, who was accused of violating the telework agreement. Despite no prior discipline, the Assistant District Manager proposed bypassing the first three steps of progressive discipline, and immediately proposed a short-term suspension. After meeting with the deciding official, the three-day suspension was overturned and the employee did not have to serve this suspension.

Please check out the great trainings we had during the COVID-19. Our trainings will be consistent and available for all of our members. Ensuring that each member is well informed and understand their rights is of extreme importance to us.

Click link below and see what we have done so far.

(note : you need to register on the website for you to receive access to its information.)

AFGE Local 3184 |

Also, check out to see what we Council 220 is doing on a National Level.

AFGE Council 220 (afgec220.org)