Things You Need To Know


Know Your Rights !

NTEU Union Member Rights

You did not give up your basic rights the day you became a federal employee. Many rights are provided by law and additional rights have been negotiated. All are enforced for you daily by NTEU.

Your rights, under both the law and the NTEU/agency contract, are only words on paper until you claim them, assert them, and exercise them. Exercising your rights will transform hopes and aspirations for the future into a positive action program that will make a better tomorrow for federal employees.

You will never be alone in exercising these rights. NTEU--its members, leadership, and staff--stand with you.

The Federal-Labor Management Relations Act defines and protects your rights. As a federal employee, you have the right to:

    • join NTEU;
    • actively participate as a member of NTEU;
    • participate in the decisions affecting your work life;
    • file grievances through your NTEU representative;
    • be guaranteed protections in exercising your rights.

It is against the law for management to take any action against you because of your membership in, support of, or active participation in, NTEU.


Question and Answers

Do you have the right to have an NTEU representative present in a "formal discussion" between you and management ? YES - Any examination of an employee in the bargaining unit by a representative of the agency in connection with an investigation, including Internal Security or Inspection, entitles you to have an NTEU representative present if you reasonably believe that the examination may result in disciplinary action against you and you request representation.

Do you have the right to file grievances/complaints against the agency without fear of reprisal ? YES - It is illegal for the agency to discipline or otherwise discriminate against you because you have filed a grievance, complaint, or affidavit against the agency or its representatives.

Does the law state that the statutory protection of the right of employees to form, join, and participate in labor unions of their own choosing contributes to the effective conduct of public business ? YES - In addition, Congress has found, and the law thus states, that employees' participation in labor unions also safeguards the public interest and facilitates and encourages the amicable settlements of disputes between employees and the agency involving "conditions of employment."

All of the above are rights afforded to you in accordance with the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute. NTEU ensures that those rights are protected.

Congress guarantees your right, as a federal employee, to join NTEU. Some managers may not understand the law or have no respect for it. Make it perfectly clear to them that you know what your rights are, and that you plan to assert them, immediately. Take that important first step !


The Hatch Act

In 1939, the enactment of The Hatch Act was hailed as a critical step toward cleaning up government and ending political patronage. Its goal was to ensure a qualified, stable work force free from coercion and the constant threat of job loss for no reason.

Since that time, the federal workplace has changed a great deal and in 1993, The Hatch Act was reformed to reflect these changes. The law officially changed on February 3, 1994. Listed below you will find the guidelines for activities allowed and prohibited under the current Hatch Act law. If you are ever concerned about the legality of an activity, please contact NTEU's Legislative Office. You can call (202) 572-5500 or write to the NTEU Legislative Office at: NTEU Legislation Department, 1750 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20006.
Hatch Act DO's and DONT's

Employees May:
  1. Register and vote as they choose;
  2. Assist in voter registration drives;
  3. Express opinions about all candidates and issues, privately and publicly;
  4. Run for election to a non-partisan office;
  5. Contribute money to political organizations or attend a political fund raising function;
  6. Sign petitions, including nominating petitions;
  7. Wear political badges, buttons (except in government buildings);
  8. Run for office within party organizations and affiliate groups;
  9. Attend political conventions, rallies and meetings as an elected representative of a partisan organization;
  10. Take an active part in political management of campaigns;
  11. Solicit contributions to the political action committee of the organization to which both employees belong provided that the contributor is not a subordinate employee;
  12. Spouses and other members of an employees' family may engage in all forms of partisan political activities.
Employees May Not:
  1. Be candidates for public office in partisan politics;
  2. Use their official position to influence or coerce colleagues and election results;
  3. Wear political buttons in government buildings;
  4. Collect, solicit, receive, handle, disburse or account for contributions from the general public;
  5. Wear a government uniform or government insignia while engaged in political activities;
  6. Sell tickets to a political fund raising function to the general public.
Weingarten Rights

The right of employees to have union representation at investigatory interviews was announced by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 1975 case (NLRB vs. Weingarten, Inc. 420 U.S. 251, 88 LRRM 2689). These rights have become known as the Weingarten rights.

Employees have Weingarten rights only during investigatory interviews. An investigatory interview occurs when a supervisor questions an employee to obtain information which could be used as a basis for discipline or asks an employee to defend his or her conduct.

If an employee has a reasonable belief that discipline or other adverse consequences may result from what he or she says, the employee has the right to request union representation. Management is not required to inform the employee of his/her Weingarten rights; it is the employees responsibility to know and request.

When the employee makes the request for a union representative to be present management has three options:
  1. It can stop questioning until the representative arrives.
  2. It can call off the interview or,
  3. It can tell the employee that it will call off the interview unless the employee voluntarily gives up his/her rights to a union representative (an option the emplovee should always refuse.)

Employers will often assert that the only role of a union representative in an investigatory interview is to observe the discussion. The Supreme Court, however, clearly acknowledges a representative's right to assist and counsel workers during the interview.

The Supreme Court has also ruled that during an investigatory interview management must inform the union representative of the subject of the interrogation. The representative must also be allowed to speak privately with the employee before the interview. During the questioning, the representative can interrupt to clarify a question or to object to confusing or intimidating tactics.

While the interview is in progress the representative can not tell the employee what to say but he may advise them on how to answer a question. At the end of the interview the union representative can add information to support the employee's case.

On June 15, 2004, The National Labor Relations Board ruled by a 3-2 vote that employees who work in a non-unionized workplace are not entitled under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act to have a coworker accompany them to an interview with their employer, even if the affected employee reasonably believes that the interview might result in discipline. This decision effectively reversed the July 2000 decision of the Clinton Board that extended Weingarten Rights to nonunion employees.


Lautenberg Amendment

The Lautenberg Amendment to the Gun Control Act of 1968 became effective Sept. 30, 1996. The amendment makes it a federal offense for anyone convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence to ship, transport, possess or receive firearms or ammunition. Also, it prohibits the knowing sale or disposition of any firearm or ammunition to a person with such a conviction. While information contained in an employee’s Qualification Inquiry will not be used against an employee in any criminal prosecution for a violation of the Lautenberg Amendment, criminal prosecution or administrative action may be taken against an employee who knowingly and willfully provides false information.