You've got rights in the workplace. As a federal employee and NTEU member, you have rights provided by law and negotiated in your contract. All of these rights are enforced on your behalf daily by NTEU.   

• Participate in meaningful ways in decisions affecting your work life.
• NTEU representation during investigatory interviews that may lead to discipline.
• Be treated with courtesy and tact.
• Training to do your job effectively.
• Have your job expectations explained to you
• NTEU assistance and representation in a dispute with your agency.
• Freedom from coercion in exercising your rights.
• Participate fully in the political process outside of work.
• Work in a safe and healthy environment.
• Join NTEU and take full advantage of your union membership.  

Any questioning of an employee in the bargaining unit by a representative of the agency in connection with an investigation, including an agent of your agency's Inspector General office, entitles you to have an NTEU representative present if you reasonably believe that the questioning or interview may result in disciplinary action against you and you request representation.  

In general, this means receiving advance notice of the specific allegations against you, the right to review the evidence supporting the claim, and the opportunity to respond to the allegations. This is followed by a final written decision based on your response, ass, as well as the right to challenge an adverse final decision. The Merit Systems Protection Board stated, "Due process is there for the whistleblower, the employee who belongs to the 'wrong' political party, the reservist whose periods of military service are inconvenient to the boss, the scapegoat, and the person who has been misjudged based on faulty information. Due process is a constitutional requirement and a small price to pay to ensure the American people receive a merit-based civil service rather than a corrupt spoils system."  

NTEU works to prevent such problems in the workplace through prevention and vigilance. However, if such situations do occur, your NTEU chapter is equipped to address these matters when they are brought to its attention. The NTEU-negotiated grievance procedure in your contract can not only help to stop the conduct but also ensure that the employee who is the target of such actions is protected from employment actions, such as poor appraisals or the denial of a deserved promotion. Our goal is to help you succeed in your workplace and be treated with dignity and respect. We work to ensure that workplace rules that make sense for employees and taxpayers, as well as your fundamental rights, are protected and enforced to the fullest.  

Family and Medical Leave (FMLA)

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) provides certain employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year. It also requires that their group health benefits be maintained during the leave.

FMLA is designed to help employees balance their work and family responsibilities by allowing them to take reasonable unpaid leave for particular family and medical reasons. It also seeks to accommodate the legitimate interests of employers and promote equal employment opportunity for men and women.

The FMLA applies to all public agencies, all public and private elementary and secondary schools, as well as companies with 50 or more employees. These employers must provide an eligible employee with up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year for any of the following reasons:

• For the birth and care of the newborn child of an employee;
• For placement with the employee of a child for adoption or foster care;
• To care for an immediate family member (i.e., spouse, child, or parent) with a serious health condition; or
• To take medical leave when the employee is unable to work because of a serious health condition.

Contact NTEU Chapter 228 

19901 Germantown Road    

Germantown Maryland 

NTEUChapter228@hq.doe.gov 

https://www.facebook.com/NTEUChapter228GermantownMD/