Steward Team Updates
 
The Union has formally requested to bargain over remote and telework, we await an answer back from ELR. We will being using the telework/remote work survey results. We’ve attached a copy for you to review. If you have anything you wish to share please send us an email titled Remote/Telework.

 ELR stands for Employee Labor Relations and is a part of Human Resources. 

The stewarding team has been working on addressing appeals to ELR about returning to the office.  If you need more flexibility before you can return to the office. Please submit an official appeal using ELR's form.  Once you've submitted this form, please also notify the union, so that we can continue to review the process and timeline of appeals.​

Here is your steward team and for inquiries or questions, submit them here.

Please ensure your Union activities take place during non-duty hours, such as before or after work or during lunch. See Articles 6 and 22 in the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
 
    AFSCME LOCAL 3548

Union Corner Updates

Mike Black will temporarily be filling in for Genevieve as President while she is out on leave.
The Union in collaboration meets weekly with HR to discuss topics such as grievances, information requests, appeals to return to the office,  and collective bargaining
Union Membership continues to have a steady increase. If you are interested, please reach out to a steward for more information.
Let's celebrate each other! Happy Public Service Recognition Week!
Check out the newest page on our website: The Opportunities page  
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​Return to the Office
The Union wants to clarify that in the FAQs about Remote Work, posted by ELR, Question 9  has been corrected.
 
We thank the Remote/Telework committee that has been working diligently to secure this update. As well as all of the work this committee has done to push back against unfair policies and suggestions around Remote/Telework at Peace Corps.
 
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JLMC Review & Summary
 
Notes from this meeting will be shared in next month’s newsletter.  The meeting is scheduled for May 10th.
JLMC stands for Joint Management and Labor Committee. These meetings are held quarterly and the agenda and facilitation of meetings rotate.
 
To review past meeting notes, please review the Union folder, or go here. 
 
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Steward Team Updates
 
The stewarding team has been working on addressing appeals to ELR about returning to the office.  If you need more flexibility before you can return to the office. Please submit an official appeal using ELR's form.  Once you've submitted this form, please also notify the union, so that we can continue to review the process and timeline of appeals.
 
ELR and the Union have been making small steps toward building a more collaborative environment. We currently are working on 9 grievances, 1 Arbitration, and 3 information requests.
 
One steward also attend Federal Labor Relations Authority training and shared out about the training during our weekly meetings
 
Here is your steward team and for inquiries or questions, submit them here.
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Get involved in your Union: We are Stronger Together!

Union Weekly Lunch Meetings
The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend?
Email Us

Contact The Union
Concerned your rights may have been violated or have a question about what your rights are? Reach out to a Union steward or join us during our Thursday office hours (12:00-1:00pm EST)!

Dues-Paying Member
Want to become a dues-paying Union member? 
Join Us
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Membership Drive: Join the Union and become an active part of our growing team!
 
As staff return to the office, we encourage you to become familiar with the rights that are outlined in the CBA.  We also encourage you to become a dues-paying member of the Peace Corps union. Your contributions will go to trainings, cases, office necessities, etc.  You can ask for more information about this option during any office hours on Thursday.
 
Come meet members of the steward’s team and learn more about the many committees we have currently. We'd love to have your voice and perspectives as we create change here at Peace Corps.
 
Please also send in any concerns or recommendations to the union.
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Volunteer Opportunities & Upcoming Events 
 
The first event in the Work-Life Balance series happened on April 28th. The session reviewed and discussed boundaries and how to set them in your life. The next event is a collaboration with HR in preparation for the Mid-Year Review.   Review the PowerPoint at any time for more details
 
Consider Coaching at Peace Corps, to participate contact OSLD, or learn more by reviewing the SharePoint page linked here.
-available to all staff here at Peace Corps but supervisory approval is needed
 
Overtime pay vs. Credit Hours - What's the policy and what have you heard around your office.
Review the policies by checking out the Peace Corps Manuel. Section 625:  Premium Pay and Compensatory Time.
 
 
Upcoming Union Events
Prep for Mid-Year Review - May TBD
May Day Event - May TBD
 
 
 
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Policies Changes & Updates
 
The remote work agreement was due to HR by April 25th. If you're in VRS there was an extension granted to May 9th.
 
Remote Work Procedures
Remote Work Appeal Form
Telework Agreement
Amendments to MS 262 Peace Corps Medical Services Program
Amendments to Technology Advisory Board Charter
MS 261 Medical Offices and Peace Corps Medical Officers
New MS 624 Hiring Individuals with Disabilities
MS 240 Immunity from Disciplinary Action in Sexual Assault and Stalking Incidents
MS 652 Corrective and Adverse Actions
IPS 4-21 Peace Corps Overseas Post Operations during COVID-19 Response and Recovery
MS 340 Opening a Post
 
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Things Coming Up
Mid-Year Review- Skill Share  in collaboration with HR 
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Resources & Events Suggestions from other BUEs to consider
Everything you need to know about free college
OPM free webinar event in celebration of Public Service Recognition Week
 
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Please ensure your Union activities take place during non-duty hours, such as before or after work or during lunch. See Articles 6 and 22 in the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
 

    AFSCME LOCAL 3548

​Peace Corps Union 
Hello Peace Corps Union members!
We hope you are all keeping safe and healthy. We’ve heard your concerns about Return to the Office and have been diligently working behind the scenes to have your concerns addressed. 

Things Coming Up……..

• Constitution update and call for official vote by BUE's upcoming
• A huge kudos to all of our Bargaining Unit Employees who have worked on making return to service a possibility.  

Return to the Office
Return to work is right around the corner and fast approaching.  Return to the office Phase 2 is April 11th and Phase 3 is April 25th. If you have any questions about returning to work or issue that needs to be addressed. Please reach out the Peace Corps Union steward team. It is also important to begin letting supervisors know that you will  need additional time to return back to the office. Reminder:  It is better to get things in writing than verbal agreements. 
 
Appeals Form
To initiate this process, please document the concern with your supervisor in writing and email ELR at employeerelations@peacecorps.gov and include the Union inbox. If you have questions or need guidance about the appeals process as it relates to this change in your working conditions, please contact the Union

Remote Work Program
The Remote Work Agreement has been released. Please read through the agreement form. If you have questions or need guidance, continue to contact your Union. 
Remote Work Administrative Review Form
Remote Work Agreement Form

​

Volunteer Opportunities & Upcoming Events
​ 
The Evacuation Stories event was held on March 17th during Union Office Hours.  Many members came together to listen, share, and be in the moment together as we discussed difficult moments.  We heard stories from various places around the world highlighting what evacuation felt like to for volunteers at post. From Mongolia to the Philipines, and various other places.   If you enjoyed this event or missed it,  we encourage you to place a hold for some of our upcoming events in your calendar today!
 
Upcoming Union Events
Work- Life Balance  - April TBD
Prep for Mid-Year Review - May TBD
May Day Event - May TBD

Return to the Union Weekly Lunch Meetings 
​The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend?

Please ensure your Union activities take place during non-duty hours, such as before or after work or during lunch. See Article 6 and 22 in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. 

Thanks to all who participated in our recent election! To learn more about the members of our new Executive Board and Steward Team, visit the Our Team page on the website.
President: Genevieve Locksley                                       Vice President: Mike Black​
Secretary: Ashley Acosta-Fox                                         Treasurer: Joshua Castro
Events Coordinator: Josephine McGugan                     Membership Coordinator: Sakeena Ali
Chief Steward: Mathew Crichton

To encourage Bargaining Unit Members to take advantage of the 52 hours of leave available through the Employee Volunteer Program, we hosted 28 members for our first Volunteer Day on 10/19! Volunteers distributed food, transcribed documents for the Smithsonian and Library of Congress, and captioned educational video content.
 
Reminder: Make sure to check your annual leave accrual, because any annual leave in excess of 240 hours will be lost at the end of the year.
 
While we encourage all employees to take the time off that they have earned, if you have excess leave that will be lost, you can show solidarity towards your fellow workers by donating a few hours through the Voluntary Leave Transfer Program.

The Joint Labor Management Committee convened on 10/5 for our quarterly meeting. These meetings provide an opportunity for the union to raise concerns and improve communication with HR and agency leadership. We discussed issues around:

• merit selection,
• whistleblower protection and protected union activities,
• delayed promotions,
• telework and other policies.

We welcome your input for future topics to cover in these quarterly meetings.
Past JLMC meeting notes

​We here at the Union hope you are all enjoying your summer! As Peace Corps enters Phase 2 of Peace Corps Everlasting and begins to prepare for a new normal, one of our top priorities as a Union and as an organization must be to ensure a flexible and fair telework policy for all. So many of us have gone above and beyond with our work during the pandemic – and we simply cannot just go back to the way things were before.
 
Our recent telework survey led to a number of recommendations regarding the future of telework, which we have presented to management – you can review them here (also attached).  
 
We look forward to continuing to represent your voices in this important conversation. If you want to share your views with us, please reach out. 

​Over the past few weeks, the Union has added a number of new stewards to its ranks. Stewards represent and advocate for you as a member of the bargaining unit, and are your first point of contact for any concerns you have regarding your rights or your treatment on the job. The newest stewards are:

• Ryan Haefke
• Ryan Stannard
• Joshua Castro
• Sakeena Ali
• Josephine Pacheco

 
Stay tuned, as in the coming weeks we’ll be assigning stewards to each office to be your personal point of contact. Feel free to reach out to the new stewards or to the rest of the union team with any questions or issues. 

The Union Executive Board meets with the organization’s OHR leadership quarterly to discuss issues relevant to Peace Corps employees. We were joined by Chief of Staff Dave Noble at the last meeting. The minutes from the latest JLMC meeting on 6/29 are here.
 
Topics covered include:

• Telework policy updates & survey results
• Return to office planning
• Notification process for department/office restructuring

​Samantha Reisher, organizer for Council 20 (our DC-area parent union) joined us at our union office hours on 7/8 to discuss ways she and Council 20 can support our efforts to advocate for employees here at Peace Corps. You can review the notes from our conversation here. 

​The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend? 

Good afternoon, bargaining-unit employees! We’re coming to you after this afternoon’s quarterly meeting with HR leadership – which we spent advocating for safety and transparency as the organization plans our return to the office, as well as for your right to telework flexibility based on the results of the recent survey so many of you completed.
 
All of us who are involved with the union’s work have full-time jobs here at Peace Corps – we are recruiters, placement officers, IT staff, administrative specialists, and so much more – and our strength as a union is directly tied to the participation of our members. Which is why we want to take this opportunity to invite you to join us in our efforts to ensure that all Peace Corps employees receive fair treatment and to make our voices heard!
 
How can you get involved?

• Volunteer your time and energy by attending our weekly meetings, joining our working groups, and helping plan events.
• Step up and become a dues-paying member, providing support for the advocacy and organization work done by our regional council and AFSCME international (our parent union), as well as funding the activities of our local union here at Peace Corps.
• Become a union steward to represent and advocate for your fellow Peace Corps employees.*
• Serve in a union executive board role after elections this September.*

*Dues-paying status is required to serve in union positions per the union constitution
 
Want to learn more, or have questions we can answer?

• Feel free to drop into our weekly Zoom office hours each Thursday at 12:00pm ET to talk with active union members (calendar invite attached).
• Or come attend our weekly meetings on Zoom each Tuesday at 12:00pm ET – new agenda items are always welcome (calendar invite attached)!
• Are you ready to jump in? Or would you prefer to email us your questions? Reach out to our inbox here. 

Hi all! We wanted to build on the message Employee-Labor Relations helpfully emailed to us all on 4/1, and remind everyone that you have a right to have union representation at any interview or meeting that you believe could lead to disciplinary action against you.
 
You can always reach out to the Union and we will have a steward get in touch with you as soon as possible.
 
We’ve included a useful Weingarten reference here – feel free to save or print it out!

The Union Executive Board meets with the organization’s OHR leadership quarterly to discuss issues relevant to Peace Corps employees. The minutes from the latest JLMC meeting on 4/12 are here.
 
Topics covered include:

• Telework policy updates
• Domestic deployment of PCVs, and the participation of Peace Corps staff
• Facilitated discussions and letters of counseling for resolving worker-manager issues

​Join the Union for an informal lunch event in honor of May Day and in celebration of the 8 hour workday. We will take a guided tour through the history and current practice of Unions and Labor Laws in the US and some of our Peace Corps Countries.
Save the date: April 30 from 12-1pm Eastern Time. Invitation to follow.

​The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend? 

As we pass the one-year mark since the global evacuation of Peace Corps Volunteers, we also keep in mind all of the amazing work Peace Corps employees have been doing from their homes during this time.
 
Recently, we were able to support the placement team in ensuring they had the technology resources they need to do their jobs from home. The Union raised employee concerns with management, and as a result all placement team members will be receiving organization-provided cell phones to facilitate their work.
 
If we might be able to help advocate for you or your colleagues, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at union@peacecorps.gov. 

As noted in HR’s March 2021 email sent out on 3/11, you are eligible to request administrative leave to get vaccinated during working hours:
Peace Corps U.S. Direct Hire employees can use up to four hours of administrative leave per dose – for a total of eight hours of administrative leave for two Covid-19 vaccinations. 
Note that advance approval is required. You should reach out to HR or your supervisor with any specific questions you might have.

The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend?

​Hello Peace Corps Union members! As the annual employee appraisal process wraps up, we want to hear your thoughts so we can better advocate for everyone in our conversations with HR. Please take this anonymous 1 question survey to let the Union know if you are satisfied with the current annual review process.
 
Do you have specific questions or concerns regarding your own annual review that you want to discuss with a union representative? Please contact us at union@peacecorps.gov or drop by our Thursday office hours between 12-1pm EST.

The Union has been working towards improvements and standardization in order to better serve you. We are looking for interested members who can spare 1-2 hours a week (possibly less) to help working groups on: events/training, recruitment, democratization, improving our constitution, and other relevant issues. Most working groups should be complete within 1-3 months, with a possibility for extension based on need.
If you are interested or would like more information, please contact union@peacecorps.gov with subject line “Working Group – Help Wanted”. 

​The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend? 

​Hello Peace Corps Union members! As we all go through the annual review process, please keep in mind that you have rights regarding your appraisal, which are listed in Article 15 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
 
In particular, take a look at Section C – per our CBA, appraising performance is an ongoing process, so any performance deficiencies noted in the year-end review should not be a surprise – you should have received feedback in advance.
 
Additionally, you can review the section on performance appraisals in the Peace Corps Manual issued by OHR here.
 
If you have questions about the review process or are concerned your rights may have been violated, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Union for support. 

AFSCME, the international parent union that our union is part of, offers a number of benefits to dues-paying union members, including:

• College scholarships (for union members & their families)
• Free training and professional development
• And more

 
Feel free to reach out to us with any questions you might have. You can sign up to become a dues-paying member here.

The Union Executive Board meets with the organization’s OHR leadership quarterly to discuss issues relevant to Peace Corps employees. The minutes from the latest JLMC meeting on 12/17 are attached below.
 
Topics covered included:

• COVID-19 return to the office updates
• Conflict resolution between employees and their supervisors
• The upcoming administration transition
• Online resources for employees

​The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend? 

 Updated Website
 
Happy holidays! We wish everyone a relaxing holiday season as this year winds down.
 
The Collective Bargaining Agreement section on the union website has been updated with a collapsible table of contents to enable you to easily look up relevant information. The CBA is your contract with Peace Corps management, and we encourage you to use this easily-searchable resource to learn more about your rights as a unionized Peace Corps employee.
 
Looking for an overview of unions in general, or the history of the union you’re a part of? Check out this new section of the website here.

Union Retreat
 
Union leadership and stewards recently held a workshop to brainstorm ways the Union could better serve you. We invite you to share your ideas on the following by emailing the union:
 

• What training opportunities can we offer to Bargaining Unit employees? (that means you!)
• How can we empower everyone to have a voice in our Union?
• How can we bring in new members to ensure the Union’s crucial support for employees grows and continues despite Peace Corps’ turnover?
• What improvements could strengthen our Collective Bargaining Agreement and Constitution so the Union is well-positioned to advocate for employee rights in today’s work environment?

Union Weekly Lunch Meetings
The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend? 

Hello Peace Corps Union members! As we approach the end of the calendar year, we want to take a moment to highlight your rights to leave, which are guaranteed in Article 9 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
 
Make sure to check your annual leave accrual, because any annual leave in excess of 240 hours will be lost at the end of the year.
 
While we encourage all employees to take the time off that they have earned, if you have excess leave that will be lost, you can show solidarity towards your fellow workers by donating a few hours through the Voluntary Leave Transfer Program.

​Did you know that the Peace Corps authorizes 52 hours of leave every year for employees to volunteer at activities of your choice?
 
The request form for your supervisor is linked below, and more information about the program is available from OHR here.

From the CBA: Sick leave will be granted when an employee…is required to give care and attendance to a member of the immediate family who is afflicted with a contagious disease, or would jeopardize the health of others by presence at the duty station because of exposure to a contagious disease

We very much hope you and your family are staying healthy and safe, but you are entitled to take sick leave if you need to care for a family member, whether as a result of COVID or something else. See Article 9, Sections B and C of the CBA for further details.
​
Additionally, the CARES Act entitles all federal employees to 80 hours of additional sick leave before December 31 if you or someone you care for is under a quarantine order – see page 2 of this FAQ from OHR.

​The Union holds weekly lunch meetings on Tuesdays over Zoom. Want to attend?