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AFGE National Council of EPA Locals #238
AFGE Locals within the U.S. EPA formed the AFGE Council 238 to promote unity of action in all matters affecting the mutual interests of the membership of the affiliated locals and to provide maximum service to the membership by providing a concerted voice of strength in unity. Membership in the Council includes the following fourteen (14) locals:
The Council is run on a day-to-day basis by an elected Executive Board comprised of: Charles ("Chuck O") Orzehoskie, President; Thomas E. ("Tom") Link, Executive Vice President; Edward J. Guster, III, 1st Vice President; Stephen Hopkins, 2nd Vice President; Russell W. Wiener, Secretary; John J. O'Grady, Treasurer; and Janette L. Graves, Sergeant-at-Arms.
AFGE Council 238 has been designated a bargaining council by AFGE National and has been delegated the authority to deal directly with the Agency on collective bargaining agreements and negotiations. The Council also deals with Council-wide arbitrations, grievances, labor disputes and unfair labor practices, among other things.
AFGE Council 238 is the only union within the U.S. EPA that has a consolidated bargaining unit, which means that Council 238 can negotiate with U.S. EPA Headquarters on a nationwide basis covering the working conditions in all eleven AFGE / EPA Locals, representing over 10,000 bargaining unit employees. This has led to the Master Collective Bargaining Agreement ("MCBA"), which provides the same rights and protections to AFGE bargaining unit employees whether they work in Ada Oklahoma, Ann Arbor, Michigan, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, New York, Philadelphia, Research Triangle Park, Seattle or Washington, DC. Our National bargaining rights have also led to a number of supplemental agreements covering such items as Flexiplace , Leave Bank, and National Reasonable Accommodations Procedures. We have also been able to represent our members with the Agency over implementation of Smart Cards , Library System Reorganization, National Reasonable Accommodations Procedures (NRAP) , Financial Reorganization and Consolidation, the new five-tier Performance Appraisal and Recognition System or "PARS." So when an employee joins AFGE, not only do they have representation provided through their Local, but they also get representation through AFGE Council 238.
Finally, as a result of having a consolidated bargaining unit, it is also very difficult for the Agency or any person to "de-certify" any individual AFGE/EPA local since it would require a massive vote of all bargaining unit employees represented by Council 238.
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