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Washington, D.C.—The president of the nation’s largest independent union of federal employees today urged both the House and Senate to give final approval to the $17.1 billion fiscal 2002 Treasury, Postal Appropriations Bill, approved by conference committee and containing several provisions important to government wide recruiting and retention efforts.

President Colleen M. Kelley of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) said the action of the House-Senate conference committee in approving a 4.6 percent pay raise for federal civilian employees and for making permanent a program of child care tuition assistance, along with other provisions, “signals a growing recognition in Congress” of the need to make federal employment more attractive.

“A lot of steps need to be taken to help make federal service more competitive with the private sector, including improving workplace conditions,” Kelley said. “Final approval of the Treasury Appropriations Bill would be just one such step—but a very important one.”

Kelley, who is a member of the Federal Salary Council, has been the leading advocate for closing the continuing gap between pay in the public and private sectors, which runs between 13 and 33 percent, depending on job and location.

The administration proposed, and continued to urge the House and Senate to adopt, a 3.6 percent pay raise for federal civilian employees in 2002.

Kelley praised House and Senate negotiators for making permanent the two-year pilot program to provide child care tuition assistance. The current legislative authority for agencies to use appropriated funds to help employees cover the cost of child care in on-site federal facilities or licensed child care centers has had to be approved every year.

NTEU was the leader in winning approval of the child care pilot program, initially authorized in September, 1999, and has worked successfully with a number of agencies to put such programs in place.

“We need to remember that public employees have the same broad range of responsibilities in their personal lives as do others in our nation,” Kelley said. “I’m pleased to see that members of the conference committee have agreed that helping them with child care expenses makes as much good sense for federal agencies as it does for federal workers.”

The conference committee bill provides $9.437 billion for the Internal Revenue Service, an increase of $548 million over fiscal 2001; and $2.079 billion for the Customs Service, an increase of $200 million over last year. Kelley emphasized the “critical importance” of adequate funding for these and other federal agencies, and said that fiscal 2002 funding for both the IRS and Customs “continues to fall short” of what is needed.

House and Senate negotiators also agreed on a provision instructing federal health care plans to provide coverage for most prescription contraceptives.

As the largest independent union of federal workers, NTEU represents some 150,000 employees in 25 agencies and departments.