AFGE Activists Heat up a Cold Afternoon on Capitol Hill

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) ^ | February 13, 2015 | The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE)

[mdittmar]

Chanting “What time is it? Union time!”, “AFGE! AFGE!,” “AFL-CIO!” the nearly 500 AFGE members who attended the union’s legislative conference marched to Capitol Hill to demand an end to attacks on the federal workforce and job-and-morale-killing sequestration. 

To remind Congress that our Government Works for America, they held signs that read, “Food Inspectors Keep Our Food Safe,” “VA Doctors and Nurses Serve Our Veterans,” “TSOs Keep Us Safe,” “BPAs Keep Our Borders Safe,” “DoD Employees Protect the Troops,” and “SSA Workers Support Our Seniors.” 

“We are here to tell Congress that they cannot lift America up without lifting you,” AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Liz Shuler told the crowd. “When Wall Street turned our economy upside down, who pays for it? Government workers!” 

Shuler was joined by Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, Rep. Chris Van Hollan of Maryland, Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota, AFSCME President Lee Saunders, National Association of Letter Carriers President Fred Rolando, American Postal Workers Union President Mark Dimondstein, and Public Services International General Secretary Rosa Pavanelli. 

“I feel warm here, but so many cold hearted people are across the street. That’s where it’s really cold,” Sen. Cardin quipped to loud cheers.  

AFGE members were fired up. 

“The main reason that we’re out here today is to get the tools necessary to do our job,” said James Swartz, a Veterans Benefits Administration decision-review officer in Cleveland, Ohio. 

“We have to maintain our prisons to keep our prisons safe, properly funded and properly staffed,” said

Glenn Dixon, correctional officer at the federal prison in Victorville, California. He took the families of Correctional Officer Eric Williams and Lt. Osvaldo Albarati who were killed in the line of duty to meet with members of Congress.

[mdittmar]

Maybe they will all go on strike;)

[Prospero]

Almost nothing is ever discussed about this union, the very embodiment of the principle that teaches institutional drift, the fact that all institutions invariably drift from their primary purpose toward self-continuity.

They represent rent-seeking behavior at its worst, certainly, but they are also a clear and present danger to the survival of a free republic.

You don't have to look far into the recent past to see where conservatives have succeeded in confronting this phenomena - the air traffic controllers early on in the Reagan administration, and failed terribly, both in perception and in reaction - the Homeland and TSA behemoth and general inflation of government "workforce" most recently over the course of (hopefully) the last Bush administration.

It is a failure to perceive and to discern, not a reluctance but a refusal to confront an evil, one that clearly will not go away.

Conservatives in representative government leadership have zero to gain by appeasement of this herd. They will inevitably be trimmed. The only question is whether they will continue to be aided in taking the republic with them when the metaphorical die off occurs.

[molson209]

Chanting “What time is it? Union time!

Same Sex Marriage ?

[mdittmar]

Almost nothing is ever discussed about this union

Don't know why,it's just a dinosaur union.

[snowtigger]

As a lifelong union member, I always opposed public employee unions. They already have the job security afforded by unions. It takes an act of Congress to get rid of dead weight.

They do nothing but slow work down to the point of stupidity. They cost us money by padding jobs with drones. They create non-working jobs in the form of "job stewards" who do nothing but create grievances to justify their positions. If your job requires a cord unplugged, shut the job down and wait for the electricians, plural. They always work in pairs. Nails to pull? Shut her down and wait for the carpenter, gotta keep everyone working.

My Dad was a plumber/pipe fitter in Civil Service. They were allotted 30 plumbers. He told me on many occasions that the job could be done by 10, easily by 15. They usually had 28, the foremen get more money for having more workers. By having ONLY 28,he could always cry he was short handed. The tax payers foot the bill. All the union does is generate money to keep Union officials overpaid.

Public employee unions should be outlawed.

[RFEngineer]

“demand an end to attacks on the federal workforce and job-and-morale-killing sequestration.”

Yes, one must have high morale so one’s facebook postings do not reflect poorly upon government service.

Even those tele-not-working federal employees deserve to be treated like the heroes they are instead of questioned by an ungrateful taxpayer