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Washington, D.C. –  Federal employees and their agency supervisors would collaborate regularly to make government more efficient and resolve workplace issues under new legislation to restore a national council on labor-management relations.

The proposed Federal Labor-Management Partnership Council would convene top officials from the executive branch, senior agency executives, and representatives from federal employee unions every quarter to promote constructive dialogue between frontline civil servants and their managers. Similar councils would also be established within each agency.

“Labor-management councils are a simple, common sense way to open the lines of communication between federal employees and their bosses,” said Tony Reardon, National President of the National Treasury Employees Union. “The discussion forums are an ideal place to cordially resolve workplace issues and brainstorm ways to better serve their customers, the American taxpayers.”

The legislation would restore the councils that were dismantled by a September 2017 executive order. In the Senate, the sponsors are Sens. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii; Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio;  Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass; and Ben Cardin, D-Md. In the House, the bipartisan measure was introduced by Reps. Elijah Cummings, D-Md. and Don Young, R-Alaska.

“Thanks to these lawmakers, we have a chance to return valuable workplace forums to agencies across the federal government,” Reardon said. Under the proposal, NTEU would be one of the two federal employee unions with a seat on the national council.

NTEU has a long and successful record of participation in labor-management councils because they give employees a voice in agency operations and produce reforms that directly benefit the public. At the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, for example, NTEU and FDIC leadership have a six-year record of collaboration that has improved employee morale and led to positive workplace reforms.

“Prompting labor and management to meet regularly and talk honestly about their agency operations is a smart way to make the federal government run more smoothly,” Reardon said.

NTEU represents 150,000 employees at 32 federal agencies and departments.