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Washington, D.C.—Some 2,300 employees of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), an independent federal agency with key financial regulatory responsibilities, have voted for representation by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).

NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley said OCC employees voted 839 to 721 to become part of NTEU. The addition of OCC represents “a natural extension” of NTEU’s representation among agencies with financial regulatory missions, she said. Already, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) are among the 27 other agencies and departments where NTEU holds collective bargaining rights.

The favorable vote by OCC employees is a continuation of NTEU’s organizing successes this year. Earlier, the union concluded successful organizing efforts at the Department of the Treasury Departmental Offices and at the National Park Service headquarters.

“We welcome OCC employees into NTEU,” Kelley said, “and we look forward to their energy and enthusiasm, as well as to the development of a positive working relationship with agency management.”

The principal mission of OCC’s workforce, which includes both professional and support employees, is to examine federally-chartered banks for safety and soundness, giving them a key role in generating confidence among the public in America’s banking system.

An issue that helped fuel the successful organizing campaign, President Kelley said, was the desire by OCC employees for a more meaningful voice in their work lives, particularly in light of a recent move by the agency to reduce the number of its districts from six to four.

At the same time, she said, OCC employees saw that their pay and benefits trail those of NTEU-represented employees at the FDIC, even though the two agencies have similar regulatory responsibilities. The FDIC monitors state-chartered banks.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing more than 150,000 employees. When the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) certifies the OCC election results, it will become the 28th agency or department where employees are represented by NTEU.