GovernmentExecutive.com

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Tuesday dismissed the lawsuit brought by the National Treasury Employees Union against the Homeland Security Department in light of the agency's recent decision to abandon a plan to implement labor relations rules as part of a new personnel system.

"There is no longer a case or controversy remaining in this case, and thus the case must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction," Judge Rosemary Collyer wrote in her decision.

Homeland Security and the Office of Personnel Management "will not revise the permanently enjoined regulations...at any time prior to the expiration of the agencies' authority to revise those regulations," the department wrote in a Friday filing with the court. "DHS will proceed with labor relations pursuant to applicable law."

"The successful conclusion of NTEU's lawsuit challenging regressive personnel regulations advanced by the Department of Homeland Security is a welcome end to a battle well worth fighting," NTEU President Colleen Kelley said.

Kelley and other union leaders opposed the labor relations rules because they would have allowed the department to scrap collective bargaining agreements.

"The labor relations regulations DHS wanted to implement -- and that the White House wanted to extend throughout the government -- were an effort to reduce employees' workplace rights and give managers the unfettered discretion to alter fundamental working conditions essentially at will," Kelley said.

The case's dismissal formally ends a protracted battle over the labor relations rules. Congress' fiscal 2008 omnibus spending package omitted funding for the personnel system, effectively preventing Homeland Security from putting it in place. In 2006, the Court of Appeals said the labor relations rules would illegally curtail collective bargaining.

Kelley said NTEU planned to continue its battle against the personnel system as a whole and fight to win collective bargaining rights for Transportation Security Administration employees.

COMMENTS

• As I said before in a different comment thread, I smell a rat. Now that they have abandoned this portion of MaxHR, it suddenly made me think. They still have the authority to override any and all negotiated agreements with a labor union in the event of a threat to national security. I think management at DHS simply gave up on this to give us the appearance of a victory; however, I can see the scene at the bargaining table now... NTEU: Now on to the issue of facial hair... DHS: Sorry, but we invoke the threat to national security issue. Terrorist wear beards so employees will not wear beards. NTEU: But... DHS: Sorry, national security. Next issue. NTEU: O.K., now about last minute shift changes... DHS: Sorry, but we invoke the threat to national security issue. We want to keep overtime cost down because we want to put that money into bonuses to managers that cut the money. They have the experience we need to combat terrorism and we want to keep them around. NTEU: But what about the people actually on the border performing the work? DHS: You think they are the ones stopping terrorism? It's our great leaders sitting behind desks making decisions they have no experience with that are keeping our country safe. You union guys are so crazy! Hahahaha!!! Rob Posted February 24, 2008 11:11 AM
• Don- I have heard from LR types that NSPS employees at one site are actually being converted back (In Name Only) to GS so that a RIF can be run with GS employees. With the protections that GS employees have with a RIF verses NSPS, the NSPS employees would have been harmed. IT Specialist Posted February 21, 2008 1:55 PM
• It will take a democrat to dismantle DHS, because McCain, although has never really been a part of the republican club, but for the loyalty of his party he will not support the dismantling of DHS. Hillary has said that she will roll back all the faailures that this administration has implemented, and she is whom I am voting. 1811 Posted February 21, 2008 12:19 PM