Federal prison official killed in Puerto Rico drive-by shooting as he drove home after shift

Wednesday, February 27, 2013
By The Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A supervising corrections officer who worked at Puerto Rico's lone federal prison was killed in a drive-by shooting after his shift ended, authorities said Wednesday.

Lt. Osvaldo Albarati Casana was shot late Tuesday while driving home along a busy highway in the northern municipality of Bayamon, the FBI said in a statement. The killing shut down the highway for about eight hours.

Albarati worked in the investigative branch at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Guaynabo, just west of the capital of San Juan, prosecutor Lorna Colon told reporters.

She said Albarati was responsible for investigating crime within the prison, including drug smuggling and illegal cellphone use. She said Albarati had a wife and children and previously worked for the Puerto Rico police department.

No one has been arrested in the killing, although the FBI said they are looking for a dark sedan with tinted windows believed to be involved in the shooting.

"We are not going to tolerate the murder of any public official in the middle of a highway," said FBI special agent in charge Carlos Cases. "We will find those responsible."

Inmate kills guard at federal prison in northeastern PA

Inmate kills guard at federal prison in northeastern PA

Written by The Associated Press and Megan Lello | Feb 26, 2013

(Waymart) -- An inmate has killed a guard at a federal prison in northeastern Pennsylvania, marking the death of the first federal corrections officer killed on the job in nearly five years.

Prison officials say it happened last night at the Canaan penitentiary in Waymart, about 20 miles northeast of Scranton. Authorities say 34-year-old Correctional Officer Eric Williams was working in a housing unit when an inmate using a homemade weapon attacked him. Other prison staff restrained the inmate.

Williams was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:30 p.m.

Williams was from Nanticoke. He began his career with the Bureau of Prisons in September 11, 2011.

The high-security prison has been placed on lockdown and an FBI investigation is under way.

Officials did not immediately release details of the attack, including the inmate's name, the kind of weapon, or what, if anything, led to the attack.

An FBI spokesman in Philadelphia declined comment, saying details would be released when the inmate is charged. It wasn't immediately clear when that would happen.

Warden David Ebbert calls it "the darkest day in our institution's short history'' and says he's in shock over what he calls a "senseless loss.''

At least three inmates have been killed at the prison, which houses 1,350 high-security male inmates. A satellite camp houses 136 minimum-security inmates. The complex opened in 2005.

The Bureau of Prisons says the last time a guard was killed on the job was June 2008 in Atwater, California.

Peter J. Smith, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, has issued the following statement about Williams' death:

"The staff at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania extends its condolences to the family of Officer Williams, his coworkers and staff of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility at Canaan, Pennsylvania. This matter is under investigation by the FBI, with the cooperation and assistance of the Bureau of Prisons. Attorneys from the U.S. Attorney’s Office have been assigned to the matter.

We have no further comment at this time."

Pennsylvania Republican Congressman Tom Marino, whose district includes the Canaan penitentiary, has also issued a statement:

“Last night’s tragedy is a devastating reminder of the dangers our federal prison guards confront every day. They work in some of the most dangerous and hazardous conditions to keep the rest of us safe. My thoughts and prayers are with the family and loved ones of Correctional Officer Eric Williams, who was killed in the line of duty at United States Penitentiary-Canaan. As a former county and federal prosecutor, I mourn with the entire federal law enforcement community and offer my deepest condolences, particularly to those at the Bureau of Prisons.

I will work tirelessly with the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Prisons through my capacity on the House Judiciary Committee and meet with local officials in Pennsylvania to fully investigate this incident and find solutions to prevent future tragedies.”

Marino represents PA's 10th Congressional District, which includes Juniata, Mifflin, Snyder, and Union counties, and parts of Northumberland and Perry counties.

*This article has been amended to include updated information about Williams' death, as well as a statement from United States Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Peter J. Smith.

FCC Tucson in the News - Federal Employees React to Sequestration

Federal Employees React to Sequestration

KVOA News 4



TUCSON - Drastic changes could be coming if there's no political deal to stop spending cuts set to start next Friday.

Congress approved sequestration two years ago in case they couldn't come up with a budget.

With the deadline approaching, local and federal agencies are preparing for the worst.

Congressman Ron Barber says more than 49,000 Arizonans could lose their jobs. He held a news conference and asked local leaders to talk about the direct impact sequestration was going to have on their agencies.

Bill Carnegie of the Community Food Bank says they are already down 2% in contributions.

"So we're struggling," he said. "We're almost at a point where we are maxed out in our ability to respond to hunger in this community."

Matt Sherman works at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. He's looking at a 20% pay cut.

"Sequestration in an atomic bomb that was not intended to be detonated," he says. "It was a poison pill that was never intended to be swallowed. It must be stopped."

Brad Hoyt and Walter Shannon are federal employees at the Bureau of Prisons. They are concerned about mandatory furloughs.

"Working in a prison in inherently dangerous as it is, this only makes it worse for us."

Walter Shannon and his wife both work at the prison so they're taking a double hit.

"Why does this budget have to come down to federal employees and furlough federal employees why does this have to come on our backs? That's what we want to know."

Ron Barber wasn't in Congress in 2011 when they voted on sequestration and is proposing another bill.

"It says quite clearly if congress does not pass a budget by April 1st this will impact the sequestration issue it should not get paid."

Monday, Congressman Barber returns to Washington where he hopes both sides will come to an agreement before March 1st.

AFGE Week in Review - Feb. 22, 2013 - AFGE: No Furloughs

Feb. 22, 2013 AFGE: No Furloughs! Sequestration to cut agency budgets starts March 1 and furloughs of federal employees will begin late March or April. Check out AFGE’s Sequestration Central page for complete information. Alternatives to Sequestration Bad House Majority Leader Eric Cantor Suggests Cutting Federal Employees’ Retirement Benefits to Avoid Sequestration: In another display of disdain for federal employees and working families, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor this week suggested that to avoid sequestration, the government should slash federal employees’ pension to generate another $21 billion on top of the $122 billion federal employees have already contributed to the deficit reduction. The Virginia congressman came up with a list of programs that need to be cut, none of which were subsidies to oil and drug companies or big corporations. Much better Van Hollen, Murray Introduce Bills to Stop Sequestration: House Budget Committee ranking member Chris Van Hollen and Senate Budget Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray introduced bills that would replace sequestration – at least until 2014. The Van Hollen bill would delay sequestration by one year and replace the $85 billion cuts in 2013 with a mix of tax increases and spending cuts. It has the so-called Buffett rule that would require a minimum tax rate of 30% for those earning more than $1 million a year. It would repeal tax subsidies for oil and gas companies, eliminate direct payment programs to farmers, and increase flood insurance premiums. Most of these taxes and spending cuts would be spread out over 10 years. The Murray bill calls for new savings of $120 billion, half of which would come from tax hikes on the wealthy. The bill would raise $55 billion in revenues from closing loopholes for oil companies and corporations that ship jobs overseas. Families making more than $1 million a year would have to pay at least 30% of their income on federal taxes. On the spending side, the bill targets defense spending and direct payment to large farmers in order to generate $55 billion in savings. These spending cuts would spread out over time from 2014 until 2021. The remaining $10 billion would come from interest savings. And those wanting to have their cake and eat it too: As Congress is still far apart on how to deal with the manufactured crisis of deficit reduction, many assume the across-the-board cuts will happen, and so they are out lobbying the administration and agencies to divert cuts from their districts. Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, for example, asked the Army Corps of Engineers to spare water projects along the Mississippi River. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine asked the Navy to protect the ship building industry at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. “Maine is a state that contributes heavily to our national security,” she said. “Its largest employer is Bath Ironworks, which builds naval destroyers. You can’t build a half a ship.” It’s ironic that some lawmakers talk about making “tough decisions” that will devastate everyone else, but those tough decisions should never be made in their own backyard. 8 in 10 Americans Prefer Combination of Taxes and Cuts to Reduce Deficit: The majority of Americans prefer President Barack Obama’s approach to deficit reduction. According to a new poll conducted by the Pew Research Center, 76% of those surveyed say Congress should focus on a combination of spending cuts and tax increases to reduce the budget deficit. Only 19% believe tax increases should be off the table, an approach preferred by many House lawmakers, who reject any plans that would stop sequestration but include a tax hike. AFGE Members Raise Concern with Sen. Carl Levin’s Staffers on His Vote to Cut DoD Workforce by 5%: AFGE activists were in town last week for the legislative conference, and they went to Capitol Hill to meet with their representatives to discuss our issues. It’s not easy to confront lawmakers who voted wrong, but this Local did it. AFGE Local 1658 members led by Local President Paul Veselenak met with staffers of Sen. Carl Levin to voice our concern over the Michigan senator’s recent vote in support of a measure authored by Sen. John McCain that requires the department to eliminate up to 37,000 civilian jobs by 2017. They made it clear that AFGE members were very upset that Sen. Levin voted against us.  D.C. Renames Labor-Management Council in Honor of Late AFGE NVP Bowman: D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray last week announced that the District of Columbia Labor Management Partnership Council (DCLMPC) Strategic Plan would be renamed in honor of AFGE’s former national vice president for 14th District Dwight Bowman, who passed away unexpectedly on January 16. This Week in Labor History: Feb. 19, 1975 – The U.S. Supreme Court decides in favor of sales clerk Leura Collins and her union, the Retail Clerks, in NLRB v. J. Weingarten Inc. The case establishing that workers have a right to request the presence of their union steward if they believe they are to be disciplined for a workplace infraction. This Week’s Blog: In 'And the Oscar Goes to...the Sequester!', writer and producer Gavin Shulman compares the sequester to the latest sequel to a movie no one wanted to see. “Washington is officially the new Hollywood. Turning out thrillers straight monthly. I mean, how sick was The Fiscal Cliff? I watched it at least three times over Christmas break. That scene with the Republicans caving. It was even better than The Debt Ceiling Debacle. When the Democrats got destroyed. And as psyched as I am for The Sequester, I already can't wait for the next big blockbuster, The Continuing Budget Resolution. The trailers for that look amazing. Not to mention all the potential spin-offs, like The Austerity Bomb and The Bully Pulpit. We're living in the golden age of spinema.”  This Week’s Tweet: “If everybody agrees sequester is a mistake, instead of arguing whose idea it was, why not repeal and revert to regular budget process?” @davidfrum Hot on YouTube: Project Glass. What’s it like to wear a computer on your face? Hot on WWW: Incarcerated dog to be reunited with owner after story goes viral. Inside Government: A special presentation from the union’s Legislative and Grassroots Mobilization Conference originally aired on Friday, Feb. 15, is now available on demand. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa of Hawaii detailed federal employees’ value as the government’s best investment and the long-term consequences of freezing federal pay. Clayola Brown, president of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, addressed the importance of union organizing and why unions are needed now more than ever. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) President Lee Saunders detailed the need for workers to voice their concerns to Congress. Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe shared his vision to improve transportation systems and education in Virginia. Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland talked to AFGE at our joint rally for jobs with AFSCME. Listen LIVE on Fridays at 10 a.m. on 1500 AM WFED in the D.C. area or online at FederalNewsRadio.com. For more information, please visit InsideGovernmentRadio.com. Quote of the Week: Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah on how he supports self-inflicted sequestration even though it would be devastating to our nation’s readiness. From the Salt Lake Tribune on Feb. 20: "I’m for sequestration," Hatch said, if Congress can’t cut spending. "We’ve got to face the music now, or it will be much tougher later." With across-the-board spending cuts set to kick in next week, Hatch said sequestration would lead to an economic disaster in Utah as two-thirds of civilians working at Hill Air Force Base would be furloughed. He said it would be "devastating to our nation’s readiness." American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO 80 F Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 | Tel. (202) 737-8700 | Fax (202) 639-6492 | www.afge.org Click here to subscribe Click here to unsubscribe

Where is Mike Now? - 3 Arizona Facilities - FCI PHoenix, FCC Tucson, and FCI Safford

I'm in Arizona this week visiting FCI PHoenix, FCC Tucson, and FCI Safford.

As is always the case, each institution, and each Union Local, have unique challenges.

While at each institution, I'll be meeting with Local 3954 President, Daniel Beauchamp; Local 3955 President, Walt Shannon; Local 2313 President, Robert Stauffer; Union Executive Committee Members, employees, and Prison Executive Staff.

AFGE Week in Review – House Lawmakers Vote to Deny Pay Raise for Federal Employees in 2013

Feb. 15, 2013 House Lawmakers Vote to Deny Pay Raise for Federal Employees in 2013: In another shameful display of disdain for workers who keep this country moving, the House of Representatives on Friday passed H.R. 273, a bill that would extend the pay freeze for federal employees for the rest of 2013. The pay freeze, which has been in effect since 2011, is scheduled to end in March. The 261-154 vote was largely along party lines. “These lawmakers are not interested in creating jobs. They’re more interested in destroying jobs,” said AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. “And they have no shame in robbing the middle class so that their wealthy buddies can get a tax break.” The Senate is not expected to pass a similar bill, but it’s still unclear whether the pay freeze language will appear in appropriations bills after the short-term continuing resolution expires March 27. The White House issued a statement Wednesday night opposing the bill, arguing that federal employees have been subjected to a pay freeze since 2011. President Barack Obama has called for a 0.5% pay raise for feds for the remainder of 2013. He also proposed a 1% raise starting 2014. “Federal civilian employees are central to the federal government’s success in serving the American people,” the statement said. “They assure the safety of this country’s food and airways, defend the homeland, provide health care to the nation’s veterans, search for cures to devastating diseases, and provide vital support to our troops at home and abroad.” Our Future Is on the Line and Everyone Needs to Step Up: That’s the take home message for hundreds of AFGE leaders and members who gathered in Washington, D.C. for the union’s annual legislative conference on Feb. 10-13. As many in Congress have declared war on federal employees by cutting their pay and threatening their jobs, it’s up to every AFGE member to take on the job killers and let them know we’re not going to sit back and take the assaults. AFGE has more than 280,000 members across the country, but when we send out an action alert, only about 10 percent of the recipients respond. “Our future doesn’t depend on me, President Cox or NST Hudson. It depends on you,” National Vice President for Women and Fair Practices Augusta Thomas told the crowd. “Our future is on the line,” said AFGE National Secretary Treasurer Eugene Hudson. “It’s time to rise to the occasion.” And the time is now. As agencies are bracing themselves for the automatic across-the-board cuts scheduled to take place in March, federal employees are facing unpaid furloughs of 22 days, which equals a 20% pay cut, not to mention a third year of pay freeze, which will reduce their retirement income. Congress has so far robbed $122 billion from your pay and benefits so that big corporations can continue to get their tax breaks. These corporations and service contractors are not being asked to contribute a dime. It’s outrageous that federal employees are being punished for something they didn’t cause. “Did federal pay raises cause Wall Street to go bankrupt and led to the financial crisis? AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. asked. “No! We need to stop the sequestration madness now!” “We are a heavy-duty, all-purpose, scapegoat punching bag,” AFGE Legislative Representative John Threlkeld observed. “They don’t think our jobs are important. When they talk about no cuts to DoD, they talk about weapon contractors for the most part, not us.” National Vice President for District 11 Gerald Swanke, who chairs AFGE’s Legislative Committee, said we need to better educate the public about the impact of federal employees’ jobs on every American and how cuts to, say, Border Patrol or Bureau of Prisons budgets are essentially attacks on national security. “We need to get the public to care,” he said. “Unless we do that, Congress won’t care.” Plan of Attack: NP Cox laid out a three-part plan of attack at the conference. He asked every AFGE member to see their lawmakers, explain to them what they do exactly – not “I’m a federal employee” but more like “I’m protecting you and our community from criminals; I’m protecting our borders; I won’t let people hijack the planes – and ask them to stop the cuts that would hurt everyone in America. NP Cox asked members to push for cuts from service contractors, who make hundreds of million doing the same work federal employees do but costing twice as much. Members should also fight at the bargaining table. If agencies want to furlough federal employees, make it the most painful for them; everybody needs to share the pain equally. Cutting Service Contracts Could Yield 70-90% Savings under Sequestration: To come up with $85 billion this year, sequestration guidance from the Office of Management and Budget and the Defense Department has focused excessively on reducing federal employee costs —through firing of temps and terms, freezing hiring, incentivizing retirement, and planning for furloughs so aggressively that hundreds of thousands of federal employees could see their income reduced by 20%. It shouldn’t be that way, considering the huge workforce of service contractors who are doing the same jobs federal employees are doing but costing twice as much. The Defense Department alone spent almost $200 billion on service contracts in 2011. Most managers want to cut back on service contracts but fear legal consequences. But according to Charles Tiefer, a leading expert in government contract law and University of Baltimore Law School professor, government contracting law provides managers with all the tools they need to reduce spending on service contracts. Agencies can generate between 70% and 90% of the savings required under sequestration by reducing their substantial spending on service contracts. Here are the four options managers should consider: Pauses of task orders: An agency has complete discretion to decide not to award new task orders provided that minimum order quantities have already been acquired. Partial terminations: Agencies have complete discretion to reduce current contracts and task orders through partial terminations for convenience of the government. For example, an agency may partially terminate a weekly janitorial contract so that services are rendered only in two of every three weeks, effectively terminating one-third of the contract. Deductive changes: Or minor reductions. There are no hard or fast rules, but deletions of more than 20% of the work scope will likely be considered partial terminations while deletions of less than 10% will likely be considered deductive changes. The method of calculating a price adjustment differs between deductive changes and partial terminations. It also shifts under varying circumstances. Bilateral modifications: Contracting officers and program managers have far more power than they realize. Instead of being subjected to involuntary partial terminations or deductive changes, most contractors would voluntarily agree to bilateral modifications for reductions, particularly if they can help to plan new arrangements. You can read Professor Tiefer’s entire paper here. You are also encouraged to talk to management about these tools that are available under the law. Tired of Being Hunted? Become the Hunter: AFGE Political Director Bob Nicklas said our success depends on the 282,000 AFGE members across the country. What we do makes a difference. For example, AFGE helped re-elected President Barack Obama. We also helped elect or re-elect pro-worker candidates, notably Sherrod Brown (Ohio); Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts); Claire McCaskill (Missouri); Tim Kaine (Virginia); Tammy Baldwin (Wisconsin); Jon Tester (Montana); Chris Murphy (Connecticut); Heidi Heitkamp (North Dakota); Joe Donnelly (Indiana); and Martin Heinrich (New Mexico). Labor efforts in 2012 increased the pro-working family majority in the senate by five senators. But we are also facing an unprecedented attack over the last two years from many in Congress who are bankrolled by anti-union corporations. Besides the pay freeze extension, requiring feds to contribute more to their pension, a 10% cut to the federal workforce, elimination of official time, there’s legislation that has been introduced in the House and Senate to take away payroll deductions of union dues for federal employees. “If that happens, we are gone,” Nicklas said. “It happened in Indiana and the public employee unions, the biggest of which is Lee Saunders’ AFSCME, have been decimated in terms of their union membership.” Nicklas said AFGE can’t win this fight alone. We need to reach out to our allies such as central labor councils, state federation of labor, other unions, community organizations that rely on what we do and bring them up to speed on our issues and how we can work together to address them. We also need to make grassroots mobilization a priority. In March, AFGE plans to hold actions in all 435 congressional districts to call for an end to sequestration. Our goal is to put a human face on what we do, who we are and what the cuts would mean for families across the country. “If you’re tired of lawmakers insulting you, if you’re tired of sacrificing which you have over the past two years, if you’re tired of being threatened with shutdowns and furloughs and lawmakers who won’t tax the rich and big corporations but will cut the hell out of federal budgets and the services we deliver, if you’re tired of that there’s a course of action. The wolf is at our door, right? Become the wolf. If you’re tired of being hunted, become the hunter.” Don’t Negotiate with Hostage Takers: AFGE Legislative Director Beth Moten said federal employees are under attack today because of a manufactured crisis. No group of middle-class Americans has been asked to financially contribute the way federal employees have – $122 billion. As the economy is still broken, she said Congress needs to focus on jobs, not the deficit, debt ceiling or national debt. They need to create jobs by investing in infrastructure and education, raising wages, and increasing economic security for workers. “Don’t negotiate with hostage takers,” she said. “There should be no negotiation – period – about whether to cause a default of the U.S. government.” But if Congress wants to address the deficit, it should close tax loopholes for Wall Street, drug companies, and the richest 2% of Americans. It’s Up to Us to Fix That: Speaking at the AFGE Legislative Conference on Sunday, Feb. 10, AFSCME President Lee Saunders expressed outrage over attempts to weaken unions at both state and federal levels, which have led to a decline in union membership and the race to the bottom. The right-to-work-for-less laws, for example, have been implemented in many states, including Michigan where the trade union was born. “It’s up to us to fix that,” he said. “We’ve got to look very closely at ourselves, what we need to do to change, to think outside that box to push the movement and energize people.” At the national level, Saunders singled out House Speaker John Boehner and House Majority Leader Eric Cantor and a few others for wanting to silence unions for good as we have shone the spotlight on their connection with billionaires such as the Koch brothers. Saunders said we need leaders who respect workers and their unions, leaders who work with us and not against us. “We’re sick and tired of friends who come to us during elections, stand with us behind closed doors but kick us to the curb in front of the cameras,” Saunders said. Injustice Anywhere Is a Threat to Justice Everywhere: Quoting Martin Luther King Jr., NST Eugene Hudson urged AFGE members to join private sector workers in the fight against right-to-work-for-less laws that are killing union jobs and the unions themselves. “We must be right there in their trenches,” he said. “Solidarity is something we need to practice every day.” Federal Employees Are the Best Deal in Town: It was Rep. Colleen Hanabusa’s first appearance at an AFGE legislative conference, but the congresswoman from Hawaii wowed everyone with her deep understanding of unions, federal employees and the issues we are facing. The following are some of her most memorable quotes: “Federal employees have been the topic of debate more than you should have been. Every time there’s a need for cuts, Congress expects federal employees to bear the brunt of that impact. I cannot support the balancing of the budget any more on your backs.” “I agree that we need to ensure that we continue to pay the federal government’s bills responsibly, but the mandates that limit federal hiring and reduce benefits for federal employees are not the way to achieve a balanced budget. The current approach ignores the specific needs that we have from our federal workforce.” “Let’s put everything in context. The federal government is the smallest it’s been in 60 years. The number of federal employees for 1,000 Americans has shrunk from 13 and 1,000 in 1962 to around 8 and 1,000 today. These are employees who go to work every day defending America from terrorists, tracking down and prosecuting child predators, maintaining infrastructure that our economy relies upon. But turning you, civil servants, into a political punching bag is a disservice not only to you but to the society and the American people.” “The A-76 [outsourcing] process is flawed…Their objective is one thing: they want to reduce the size of the government.” “Federal employees are the best deal in town. We get so much from you.” “Congress should focus on making the government the employer of choice. We need the best and the brightest.” 2,000 AFGE, AFSCME Members Rally on Capitol Hill: About 2,000 government workers gathered on Capitol Hill Tuesday with one simple message for Congress – Jobs, Not Cuts. As half of Congress appears to be willing to allow the irresponsible across-the-board cuts to happen, federal, state and local government employees who are AFGE and AFSCME members came to Washington to explain how the cuts would devastate America. “Without inspectors, meat processing plants will be shut down,” said Trent Berhow, a USDA inspector and a member of AFGE from St. Joseph, Mo. Sequestration could force his agency to furlough 6,000 food inspectors for two to three weeks. “Consumers would experience limited meat, poultry and egg product supplies, higher prices, and food safety will be compromised. I am here today with you, my brothers and sisters, to send a message to Congress: End this sequestration madness now!” Pam Baca, a Social Security Administration employee from Trinidad, CO, and an AFGE member, said 47 SSA offices have been closed in the past 18 months. The agency has also closed all 300 contact stations and has cut services by one hour four days a week. As of January this year, SSA offices close at noon on Wednesdays. If sequestration goes into effect, it’s going to hurt seniors and the disabled even more. Mishell Warner, an AFSCME member and nurse from Miami, said many of her patients rely on life saving care through Medicare and Medicaid. Her own son was born prematurely with a heart condition, but because of Medicaid, he now lives a happy life. “Congress can see the wealthy 2% but everyone else is invisible to them,” AFSCME President Lee Saunders said. “We will not be invisible! We're the ones who make this nation great! We need leaders that respect workers and their unions!” “One point five million jobs will be lost. We need to end sequestration madness right now!” said AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said sequestration is nothing but a word that hides a very bad idea that we can cut our way to prosperity. “Our leaders have a choice,” he said. “They can either choose us and jobs or unemployment lines.” Obama Proposes Raising Minimum Wage to $9: In his State of the Union speech Tuesday night, President Barack Obama proposed raising the minimum wage from $7.25 to $9 and indexing it to automatically rise with the cost of living. He said a full-time worker making the minimum wage earns $14,500 a year, and it’s wrong that a family with two kids that earns the minimum wage still lives below the poverty line. “Tonight, let’s declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty, and raise the federal minimum wage to $9 an hour,” the president said. “This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working families. It could mean the difference between groceries or the food bank; rent or eviction; scraping by or finally getting ahead. For businesses across the country, it would mean customers with more money in their pockets. In fact, working folks shouldn’t have to wait year after year for the minimum wage to go up while CEO pay has never been higher.” Americans have overwhelmingly supported raising the minimum wage. A national poll conducted last year found 73 percent of likely voters support increasing the minimum wage to $10 and indexing it to inflation. This Week in Labor History: Feb. 11, 2011: Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker announces he will call out the National Guard, if necessary, to deal with any "unrest" among state employees in the wake of his decision to unilaterally end nearly all collective bargaining rights for the workers. Hot on WWW: Watch Dr. Michelle Washington, an AFGE member, discuss on CBS how she has been punished for speaking out. AFGE is currently fighting for whistleblower protections for the post-traumatic stress disorder specialist who continues to face intense retaliation for testifying before Congress about mismanagement and lack of mental health care access for vets. Inside Government: Tune in now to AFGE’s “Inside Government” for a special presentation from the union’s Legislative and Grassroots Mobilization Conference. The show, which originally aired on Friday, Feb. 15, is now available on demand. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa (Hawaii) detailed federal employees’ value as the government’s best investment and the long-term consequences of freezing federal pay. Clayola Brown, president of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, addressed the importance of union organizing and why unions are needed now more than ever. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) President Lee Saunders then detailed the need for workers to voice their concerns to Congress, while Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe shared his vision to improve transportation systems and education in Virginia. Lastly, union members from across the country joined Rep. Chris Van Hollen (Maryland), AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. and others on Capitol Hill at AFGE’s joint rally for jobs with AFSCME. Listen LIVE on Fridays at 10 a.m. on 1500 AM WFED in the D.C. area or online at FederalNewsRadio.com. For more information, please visit InsideGovernmentRadio.com. Quote of the Week: At the AFGE Legislative Conference on Monday, Feb. 11, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine said one thing about federal employees that people rarely think of: “Most public employees work in jobs where perfect performance is expected, and they get attention only when something goes wrong.” American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO 80 F Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 | Tel. (202) 737-8700 | Fax (202) 639-6492 | www.afge.org Click here to subscribe Click here to unsubscribe

Where is Mike Now? - AFGE Legislative Conference and CPL President's Training - Washington DC

Yours truly, giving a video statement to AFGE Communications on the impact that sequestration will have on the American public.

I'm in Washington DC this week for the 2013 AFGE Legislative Conference and the Council of Prison Locals President's Training.

In order to continue moving forward with policy negotiations with the BOP, we scheduled another Collaboration and Alternative Dispute Resolution Office meeting at FLRA headquarters yesterday.  The meeting was attended by CPL Policy Chairman and Mid-Atlantic Regional Vice President, Dwayne Person; Greg Shadowens from USP Marion; and me.  We successfully negotiated 2 more proposals on the Staff Search policy, and will be returning to FLRA headquarters today for more negotiations.  Our goal is to have a good policy that has minimal impact on staff, is easy to understand, and easy to follow.  We are also doing everything we can to write a policy that management will be unable to use to abuse their authority.

This week, I'll be meeting with Hawaii's folks from Congress and I'll be teaching some classes, too.

Michael Meserve, Greg Shadowens, and Dwayne Person working on the Staff Search Policy
at FLRA Headquarters in Washington DC 

UPDATE: Pay Freeze Vote Wednesday

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The House is about to vote to extend the pay freeze on federal workers. We are rallying RIGHT NOW on Capitol Hill but we need you to join us. Call your lawmaker at 1-888-775-3148 and tell them to strongly oppose H.R. 273. Michael, we said it would come back and it has. The House is going to vote Wednesday on extending the pay freeze through at least 2013. We need you to call your Representative immediately – this is your chance to make a difference before they vote. Call your Representative right now at 1-888-775-3148 on your personal phone and tell them: Vote NO on H.R. 273, the federal pay freeze extension bill. This vote is about the working and middle class Americans who take care of our veterans, guard our borders, maintain our military's hardware, and keep our environment and workplaces safe and healthy. It will determine whether or not hardworking people like you receive a belated and modest 0.5% pay increase after more than two years of frozen pay. The total sacrifice by federal employees so far is $103 billion over ten years. Aren't you tired of being an ATM machine? Please make your call right now, by dialing 1-888-775-3148. You'll be connected to your Representative's office. Urge them to Vote NO on H.R. 273. Tell them that the attack on hard working, middle income Americans must stop. This vote is about a GS-3 nursing assistant in a VA hospital psychiatric ward who has now gone over two years without a pay raise, while a defense contractor still makes $750,000 a year. It's time to turn the tables and ask contractors to pay their fair share. The loyal Americans who make up the civilian federal workforce have already done more than their part to address the budget deficit. Please take a moment to remind your Representative of that before they vote. Sincerely, J. David Cox, Sr. President, AFGE Please do not reply to this email. If you would like to unsubscribe from the AFGE list, you can visit your subscription management page.

FDC SeaTac in the News - Overcrowding, budget cuts a risky mix for federal corrections officers

Overcrowding, budget cuts a risky mix for federal corrections officers

Early on January 3 of last year, Shabazz lashed out at a veteran corrections officer. Video obtained by the KING 5 Investigators shows Shabazz and another inmate waiting casually at a table as the officer moves from cell to cell unlocking doors.

When the officer is close enough, Shabazz leaps to his feet and starts beating the officer over the head with a pipe he ripped from the sink in his cell. Shabazz continues delivering full-strength blows as the officer flails on the ground.

“You can see him struggling to get away,” said corrections worker Michael Meserve, who watched the video at KING 5’s request. “He probably thought he wouldn’t walk out of this place alive.”

The attack ended only after two other inmates intervened and placed themselves between the officer and his attackers.

“Those two inmates that stopped that assault saved that officer’s life,” said Meserve, who noted the delay in response from other corrections officers. “They’re running a skeleton crew, there’s hardly any staff in the institution right now.”

KING 5’s investigation finds that federal prisons across the country face similar conditions that led to the assault at Seatac.

At many institutions there is a single officer who opens up the cells in each unit every morning, with no other officer acting as backup.

A pair of reports filed with Congress in recent months say the federal prison system isn’t keeping pace with the influx of inmates.

A January 22 report by the Congressional Research Service found that overall “the federal prison system was 39% over its rated capacity in FY2011” and that medium security male facilities are even more crowded – 55 percent over capacity.

A General Accounting Office report filed late last year made the reached the same conclusions. However, it also revealed a federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) “staffing shortage in excess of 3,200.”  Those are thousands of jobs that aren’t being filled because of federal budget cuts.

Meserve, who is vice president of union representing federal corrections workers, said the Seatac attack is one of many examples showing how dangerous conditions have become for workers in the federal prison system.

“More and more of these types of assaults are likely to occur,” said Meserve.

The Breakout

Corrections workers say the dangers they face are not always contained inside prison walls, citing a recent escape in Chicago as an example.

In December, two bank robbers escaped from the federal detention center in downtown Chicago, sparking a manhunt that put the public on edge.

The inmates climbed down the side of the high-rise prison building after they chiseled out a window in their cell.

“They braided sheets together into a rope and repelled 17 flights to the ground,” said Gary Mills, a corrections officer who works at Chicago’s Metropolitan Correctional Center.

Mills, who also serves on the Council of Prison Locals, said broken equipment and the same staffing issues present at Seatac contributed to the early morning breakout in Chicago.

“You had inoperable (surveillance) cameras (and) what we feel is an insufficient amount of staff working. It just creates a perfect storm for something to happen,” said Mills.

The Bureau of Prisons is in a difficult position. Congress has cut its budget, but the department has no authority to turn back the tide of inmates coming into its custody.

In an email to KING 5, a spokesman acknowledged that early morning shifts in many BOP facilities are staffed by only one officer.

“This level of staffing is typical for BOP institutions,” wrote Edmond Ross. “The safety and security of our staff, inmates, and the general public continues to be of the highest priority.  We remain committed to continually reviewing operations and procedures and making modifications as needed to ensure we are doing everything possible to reduce the risks associated with this inherently dangerous line of work.”

The union believes that if the morning ritual of opening cells was delayed by just 30 minutes or so, the full daytime staff could be on shift.

BOP did not respond to KING 5’s question of whether early morning staffing is under review following the Chicago breakout and the Seatac assault. A single officer continues to be responsible for opening cells at the Seatac facility.

Meanwhile, the officer who was injured at Seatac is unable to return to work.

“If the inmates are willing to conduct this kind assault tomorrow, this could absolutely happen again,” said Meserve. “And if the officer assaulted tomorrow doesn’t have inmates to intervene, they may very well lose their life.”

AFGE Week in Review – Lawmakers Name Programs Expected to Get Hit under Sequestration

Feb. 8, 2013 Lawmakers Name Programs Expected to Get Hit under Sequestration: Members of the House Appropriations Committee on Thursday issued a primary report detailing government programs that would get hit if the $85 billion across-the-board-cut for fiscal 2013 were to take effect on March 1. As lawmakers still disagree on whether or how to avert the automatic spending cuts, the likely results are as follows: Food Safety: USDA would furlough federal meat and poultry inspectors for weeks (6,000 to be furloughed, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack). Slaughterhouses and processing plants would be forced to shut down or operate fewer hours as they cannot operate without inspectors. U.S. Coast Guard: The agency’s operations would be reduced by 25%, jeopardizing the safety of the country’s water ways. U.S. Customs and Border Protection: Border Patrol agents and CBP officers would be furloughed for up to two weeks, jeopardizing the security of the nation’s points of entry. Law enforcement/BOP: About 1,300 Bureau of Prisons correctional officers and 1,000 federal law enforcement agents would be furloughed, endangering everyone in the communities. Air Traffic Control: 4,000 FAA employees would be furloughed, resulting in delays and economic losses. Medical research: More than $1.6 billion would be cut from the National Institutes of Health’s research projects aimed at finding treatments for diseases like cancer and diabetes. Disaster relief: More than $1 billion would be cut from FEMA’s disaster relief fund. Sandy assistance that has been approved would be cut by an additional $1.9 billion. Maternal and child care: Head Start and Early Head Start would drop 70,000 children. Up to 30,000 working parents would lose child care services. More than 600,000 poor children would be dropped from the Supplemental Nutrition Program, which would see a $353 million cut in funding. Embassy security: U.S. diplomats and embassies around the world would be less safe as they would face $168 million in cuts. Military operations: DoD’s operating budgets would be reduced by 20%, hurting the military’s operations and readiness. The department would also have to delay payment to TRICARE providers as its health program is facing cuts of $3 billion.  “This across-the-board cut will slow economic growth and job creation while cutting services and investments critical to the American people,” House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Nita Lowey and her colleagues said in the statement. “Sequestration comes on top of $1.5 trillion in discretionary cuts already enacted, the single largest cause of the economic contraction in the 4th quarter of 2012.” Anti-Job Lawmakers Push Bill to Cut Federal Workforce to Avoid Sequestration: Lawmakers in the House and Senate this week introduce a bill that would require federal agencies to hire only one employee for every three who leave the government as a way to avoid sequestration. The 2013 Down Payment to Protect National Security Act, which also calls for a 10 % cut in the federal workforce through attrition, would worsen the country’s unemployment, fatten defense contractor cronies, and unfairly put a burden on workers who have to shoulder more workload. Federal employees are once again being used to pay for a made-up crisis. The bill was introduced in the House by House Armed Services Committee Chairman Howard “Buck” McKeon of California. The Senate version was put forth by Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire. At a press conference where they introduced the bill, McKeon and Ayotte were joined by a few other anti-job lawmakers including Sen. John McCain, who authored separate legislation that has since become law and required DoD to cut thousands of civilian jobs. Contrary to the lawmakers’ false claims, the federal governments overall workforce, particularly in DoD, consists mostly of more expensive contractors. Over the last decade, DoD spending for service contracts has more than doubled, from $72 billion in fiscal year 2000 to more than $150 billion (not including spending for overseas contingency operations), while the size of the department’s civilian workforce has remained essentially unchanged. “If members of Congress want to reduce DoD, they should take on their weapons contractors cronies by reforming how we buy their products, reduce excessive layers of management bureaucracy, cap at $200,000 annually taxpayer subsidies to contractor compensation, and substitute reliable and experienced federal employees for ruinously costly contractors,” AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. said. “If lawmakers want to end sequestration, they should work together and with the president on revenue-raising offsets.” AFGE Seeks to Testify on Sequestration’s Effects on Federal Employees: AFGE has requested to testify on the impact of the irresponsible across-the-board cuts, known as sequestration, on federal employees during a Feb. 12 hearing held by the Senate Armed Services Committee. “The voice of federal employees has been too infrequently heard in discussions about how the department will adjust to new geopolitical and budgetary realities, which make significant downsizing inevitable,” said AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. in a Feb. 5 letter to committee chairman Carl Levin. “The result is bad law and bad policy, which impose uniquely arbitrary constraints on the size and abilities of civilian employees, thus increasing costs to taxpayers at precisely the time the department must maximize the value of its precious dollars.” NP Cox laid out issues he would like to discuss at the hearing: arbitrary downsizing of the civilian workforce; excessive spending on service contractors; possible illegal civilian-to-contractor conversions; extensive furloughs that equal a 20% pay cut for nearly every single civilian employee; expensive civilian-to-military conversions; additional arbitrary 5% cut in the civilian workforce; and excessive taxpayers-funded contractor paychecks. More Feds Retire in 2012 Than Previous Years: 2012 saw the largest exodus of federal employees from the civil service in years. As some lawmakers continue to force deep government spending cuts based on manufactured crises yet resulting in real hardship for federal employees – pay freezes, hiring freezes, cuts in retirement benefits – federal employees have had enough and decided to leave the civil service in droves.  At the end of 2012, 106,550 federal employees put in their retirement papers, compared with 104,810 in 2011 and 84,427 in 2010. “Attacking federal employees is not the way to recruit and retain the best and brightest,” said AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. “Yet some members of Congress continue to scapegoat federal employees, cut their pay and eliminate their jobs to fund tax breaks for big corporations. If this is not an outrage, I don’t know what is.”  AFGE Blasts OMB for Targeting Feds and Not Contractors: In response to a memo issued this week by the Office of Management and Budget that targets federal employees in the event of sequestration, AFGE J. David Cox Sr. said OMB has served up a buffet of cuts for agencies to make to the federal workforce while giving service contractors a free pass. “With respect to civilian workers, it seems that everything is on the table: hiring freezes, furloughs, terminating temporary or term employees and encouraging our most seasoned workers to separate or retire,” NP Cox said. “Yet OMB still hasn't given agencies any useful or explicit guidance for reducing spending on service contracts. According to this latest memo, OMB is still examining contracts, grants and other expenditures to determine where spending reductions might be made.” Cox said the Defense Department has already ordered the services and defense agencies to freeze civilian hiring and curtail a range of spending on administrative expenses, and AFGE fully expects other federal agencies to take similar steps. But OMB hasn’t ordered any companion cuts on the contractor side of the house, such as a freeze on new service contracts, freezing the exercise of contract options and freezing approval of contract modifications. AFGE to Hold Annual Legislative Conference and Your Attendance Is Crucial: AFGE is holding our annual Legislative Conference on Feb. 10-13 in Washington, D.C. and your attendance is critical in our fight against attacks on your pay, benefits and pensions. Besides various workshops on important workforce issues, we will march on Capitol Hill and hold lawmakers responsible for their vote to eliminate your job and cut your pay. It’s your chance to let your representatives know it’s not okay to scapegoat federal employees. Also at the Conference: The Women’s and Fair Practices Departments will be holding an AFGE Pride meeting for the first time. AFGE Pride is a new national program that is designed to support the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender membership as well as their allies and to educate all of AFGE on the issues facing this community within AFGE and the Labor Movement. The AFGE Pride Meeting will be held on Saturday, Feb. 9, from 6-8 pm. AFGE will again be hosting Y.O.U.N.G. AFGE (Young Organizing Unionists for the Next Generation) events at the 2013 conference. There will be a Y.O.U.N.G. meeting held on Sunday, Feb. 10, from 5-7:30 pm. We will discuss how to effectively build a mentoring program to encourage political and legislative action among young federal and D.C. government workers. The meeting will be followed by a happy hour at 8:30 pm. New Poll Shows Voters Want Higher Taxes for Richest 2%, Big Corporations: As Congress and the administration are drafting budget proposals that will affect everyone in America for decades to come, two in three Americans told pollers they want the richest 2 % and large corporations to pay more in taxes. The new national poll by Hart Research shows that 66 % of voters want the top 2 % to pay more in taxes while 64 % want big corporations to pay more. Fully 73 % of voters disapprove of allowing corporations to not pay any U.S. taxes on profits they earn overseas. Sixty six percent of voters want to use the tax revenue raised from closing tax loop holes and limiting deductions for the rich to reduce the deficit and invest in jobs, roads, bridges, schools. A majority of voters also reject by 54% to 38% a cuts-only approach for dealing with the deficit. “This poll shows voters are clear about what they want from Congress: Make sure the next budget agreement raises a lot more tax revenue from wealthy Americans and big corporations by closing tax loopholes and special-interest tax breaks. And do not use those savings to lower the tax rates of the richest 2 percent and big corporations,” said Frank Clemente, campaign manager of Americans for Tax Fairness which commissioned the survey. 6,000 Food Inspectors Could Be Furloughed If Sequestration Hits: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters this week that the across-the-board cuts could force the USDA to “furlough over 6,000 food inspectors for two to three weeks.” This would lead to chaos in the meat industry and higher rates of food-borne illnesses and diseases especially in children, pregnant women, older people and those with weak immune systems. USDA is responsible for the safety of domestic and imported meat, poultry, and egg products. It has about 8,400 employees inspecting 6,300 slaughtered houses and processing plants across the country. AFGE Local President Testifies before Congress Despite Threat of Retaliation: AFGE Local 2028 President Kathleen Dahl on Tuesday came to Washington to testify on the Legionaires’ outbreak at a VA medical center in Pittsburgh even though management had suggested she could ‘get sick’ in order to keep from testifying. The outbreak of the Legionaires’ disease has killed five veterans of the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System since 2011, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Speaking before the House VA Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, Dahl said she became aware of the outbreak of the disease on Nov. 16 but quickly realized that management might have learned about the outbreak much earlier than the union and employees were notified. As a result, preventive measures such as bottled water for patients and staff, and masks and other personal protective equipment for plumbing staff were not provided in a timely manner, violating OSHA requirements and VA policy. Upon learning of the outbreak, her Local immediately sprang into high gear to make sure that all employees were notified and encouraged to get tested by Employee Health and to ensure that management took steps to protect the plumbing staff and help front line nurses and other clinicians care for their patients under difficult water restriction conditions. Local 2028 also met with management a few days later to raise concerns over the delayed notification to the union and employees as well as management’s failure to link Legionella with employees diagnosed with pneumonia or exhibiting other respiratory symptoms. “I also asked [Chief of Staff] Sonel why management had not surveyed employees over recent absences and illnesses as required by OSHA. His reply was troubling and dismissive. He stated that employees were more likely to be exposed to Legionella in their own homes,” Dahl told lawmakers. VISN 4 Network Director Michael Moreland admitted at the hearing that he knew about the problem in the fall of 2011, which is more than a year before he informed staff about the outbreak. Rep. Mike Coffman, chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, was outraged at VA’s ‘culture of complacency’. “VA officials admitted under questioning that these deaths were preventable, and as testimony today from witnesses inside and outside VA made clear, it was a culture of complacency within VA at multiple levels that was the culprit,” he said. Coffman added that the subcommittee had requested the testimonies of VA officials directly involved in handling the outbreak, but VA refused to make them available. AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. praised Dahl for her courage to bring to Congress’ attention VA’s mismanagement on the issue. “Our members risk intimidation and retaliation when testifying before Congress or speaking to the media, but the union is here to protect them every step of the way,” NP Cox said. AFGE is currently fighting for whistleblower protections for a post-traumatic stress disorder specialist at the Wilmington, Del. VA facility who continues to face intense retaliation for testifying before Congress about mismanagement and lack of mental health care access for vets. AFGE 2012 ‘Heck of a job’ Award: The award goes to VA’s VISN 4 Network Director Michael Moreland who admitted that he knew about the Legionaires’ problem at a VA hospital in Pittsburgh in the fall of 2011 but did not inform staff or patients until November 2012. Five veterans have died of the disease.  This Week in Labor History: Feb. 5, 1993 - President Bill Clinton signs the Family and Medical Leave Act.  The law requires most employers of 50 or more workers to grant up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for a family or medical emergency. This Week’s Tweet: “This was the tweet in question he fired his spokesman over. He deleted it 14 seconds later. http://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/this-is-the-most-embarrassing-a-tweet-a-member-of”  ~@BuzzFeedAndrew (Rep. Raul Labrador of Idaho fired his spokesman Phil Hardy for tweeting 'Me Likey Broke Girls' from the congressman’s account during the Super Bowl) Inside Government: Tune in now to AFGE’s “Inside Government” for highlights from the Families USA Health Action 2013 Conference. The show, which originally aired on Friday, Feb. 8, is now available on demand. Common Cause President and CEO and former Rep. Bob Edgar of Pennsylvania discussed efforts to reform the Senate filibuster and the need to balance the budget, reform the tax code, and invest in infrastructure. Bob Weiner, former spokesman in the Clinton White House, then analyzed the recent GDP decline and important provisions in the Affordable Care Act. Newsweek and The Daily Beast contributor Eleanor Clift also addressed the future of health care reform and its implementation at the state level. Lastly, Families USA Executive Director Ron Pollack detailed Medicaid’s expansion under the Affordable Care Act and the role of insurance companies going forward. Listen LIVE on Fridays at 10 a.m. on 1500 AM WFED in the D.C. area or online at FederalNewsRadio.com. For more information, please visit InsideGovernmentRadio.com. Quote of the Week: Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on sequestration: “If Congress stands back and allows sequester to take place, I think it would really be a shameful and irresponsible act.” American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO 80 F Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 | Tel. (202) 737-8700 | Fax (202) 639-6492 | www.afge.org Click here to subscribe Click here to unsubscribe