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Washington, D.C. — The leader of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) today applauded inclusion of a variety of positive provisions advanced by NTEU that are contained in a proposed fiscal 2008 omnibus appropriations measure.

These include a 3.5 percent pay raise for federal civilian employees—half a percentage point higher than backed by the White House—and language to extend government-wide rules providing federal employees with a more level playing field in the public-private competition for federal work.

“Starting with the pay raise and contracting out language, there is much that is positive in the proposed omnibus appropriations bill,” said NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley.

She called the 3.5 percent pay raise “welcome congressional recognition of the need for a fair and adequate pay raise,” adding that it is evidence of “the widespread understanding among members of Congress of the important role pay has in the ability of federal agencies to recruit and retain the talented employees needed to perform the increasingly complex work of serving the public.”

The NTEU leader noted, as well, that a 3.5 percent raise will match that previously approved for members of the military. “It is important to recognize that both groups of federal workers play vital roles in our nation’s security,” she said.

On the contentious issue of contracting out, Kelley welcomed the move to provide federal employees with the same rights to appeal agency contracting decisions that government contractors currently enjoy. And she said it is particularly important to prevent contractors, as this bill does, from gaining an unfair advantage by offering their employees substandard or no health or retirement benefits when bidding on federal work.

Along with the pay and contracting out provisions, the proposed omnibus contains a variety of other positive provisions, including those:

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Providing zero funding to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for MaxHR or any replacement personnel system—major parts of which are the subject of a federal court injunction won by NTEU;

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Calling for increased congressional scrutiny of the much-maligned merit pay system in place at DHS’s Transportation Security Administration (TSA);

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Prospectively granting a modified law enforcement officer (LEO) benefit to Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers; and

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Prohibiting laboratory closings by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA plan to close seven of its 13 labs across the country drew a firestorm of criticism, led by NTEU. The agency has since backed away from implementing the plan.

“For federal employees, this legislation stands as evidence of the importance to them on issues that impact their daily lives of electing to federal office candidates who both understand and respect the work they do for our country,” President Kelley said.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing 150,000 employees in 31 agencies and departments.