Resources
Master Agreement Highlights
It's important to know your rights, but the Master Agreement can be a lot to dig through in one go. See the table below for a quick reference to a few common topics.
|
Topic |
Where to find it |
|---|---|
|
Overtime, Hazard Pay, Per Diem, and more |
Article 19 |
|
Employee Rights |
Article 4 |
|
Management Rights |
Article 6 |
| Work-Life Balance |
Article 7 |
|
Promotions |
Article 16 |
|
Forest Service Housing |
Article 29 |
|
Leave (Annual, Sick, Parental, Military, etc) |
Article 20 |
Forest Wellness Plans
Memorandums of Understanding
While the Master Agreement covers the broad conditions of our workplace, Memorandums of Understanding, or MOUs, serve as addendums to the contract and cover specific subjects like telework, GPS tracking, and drug testing.
Boot Reimbursement
Check out Article 27, Section 8 in the Master Agreement for details on the boot reimbursement program fought for and won by NFFE-Forest Service Council. For more information regarding the 2020 increase in reimbursement, check out the link below.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/inside-fs/delivering-mission/excel/u...
IAM Retirees and Membership Assistance Department
These programs consist of an organization-wide network of “IAM Member-Exclusive” benefits and services.
The IAM continues to develop and refine program operations that provide resources and classes to include;
Retirees, Employee Assistance Program/ Addiction Services, Disaster Relief, Community Services, and Veteran Services. Help us make sure all members know about the programs available to them. Please visit our department’s programs below.
Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
The Forest Service is required by the Master Agreement (per Article 26) to provide and maintain an Employee Assistance Program. This program is completely voluntary and contains tons of great resources like free counseling, budget calculators, and disaster relief resources. Check it out at forestserviceeap.com and find login information here.
On the Hill
At the national level, NFFE is incredibly active in lobbying for improvements to and protections for the rights of federal employees. Check out https://nffe.org/advocacy/federal-legislative-issues/ to read more about what our Union is doing in Washington, D.C!
The Machinists Non-Partisan Political League is the political arm of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. It was created in 1947 to allow IAM members to gather individual contributions, coordinate political activity, and elect candidates who support IAM members and their families. FInd more information here or click on the image at the right.
The Broader Labor Movement
We should constantly remind ourselves that we are not alone in the fight to improve conditions for working class people. Here are a number of resources for those interested in learning more about the past and present of the labor movement in America and abroad. Let us know if you have a resource you'd like to add to this list!
NFFE News:
Sign up here to subscribe to the NFFE e-newsletter and internal updates from the national office of our Union!
IAM News:
Stay up to date with news from our siblings in the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
The Federal Unionists Network (FUN for short) is an informal association of federal unionists and our allies organizing to support each other in strengthening our unions, improving our agencies and building solidarity across the federal sector of the labor movement.
More information and sign up here: https://www.federalunionists.net/
Websites:
"Labor Notes is a media and organizing project that has been the voice of union activists who want to put the movement back in the labor movement since 1979.
Through our magazine, website, books, conferences, and workshops, we
promote organizing, aggressive strategies to fight concessions,
alliances with worker centers, and unions that are run by their members."
https://www.labornotes.org/about
Podcasts:
"Working People is a podcast about working-class lives in
21st-century America. In every episode you'll hear interviews with
workers from around the country, from all walks of life. We'll talk
about their life stories, their jobs, politics, and families, their joys
and hopes and frustrations. Working People aims to share and
celebrate the diverse stories of working-class people, to remind
ourselves that our stories matter, and to build a sense of shared
struggle and solidarity between workers around the country."
https://inthesetimes.com/podcasts/working-people
Work Stoppage is a weekly labor news podcast covering workers‘ struggles around the world. Supporters also get access to episodes with deeper analysis and labor history.
https://workstoppagepod.com/
Books:
From the Folks Who Brought You the Weekend: An Illustrated History of Labor in the United States by Priscilla Murolo and A.B. Chitty
Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor by Kim Kelly
The Hammer Power, Inequality, and the Struggle for the Soul of Labor by Hamilton Nolan