CBP Violated Federal Laws Governing Work Schedules

[Big Sexy]

Case Law Update - CBP Violated Federal Laws Governing Work Schedules, Arbitrator Rules

December 4, 2007

Managers at the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) cannot set and change employee work schedules at will without violating federal law and regulations, an arbitrator has ruled. The decision was announced last Thursday by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU).

Union officials explain that under applicable law and regulation, employees are: to receive one week notice of their work shifts; to be scheduled so they receive two consecutive days off; to have schedules that provide for uniform daily work hours for each day of the week; and to be scheduled regardless of whether a holiday falls within the work week. By law, CBP is obligated to meet these requirements unless it "would be seriously handicapped in carrying out its functions" or that "costs would be substantially increased."

Despite these obligations, CBP - which based its scheduling decisions on a revised national inspectional assignment policy (RNIAP) it implemented in 2001 - changed employee work hours from one day to the next, failed to provide consecutive days off, changed schedules during weeks with holidays to avoid overtime premium pay, and otherwise failed to provide the protections embodied in law and applicable regulations, concluded the arbitrator.
"For the past six years, CBP has run roughshod over an employee's right to be governed by sane scheduling practices," said NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley. "Many CBP employees are being forced to work with split days off, different daily shifts within the same work week and arbitrary changes to their working hours with little notice. This decision, which tells CBP it must follow the dictates of federal law and rules - that are also contained in the NTEU-CBP labor agreement - is welcome and long-overdue."

The arbitrator's ruling affects only officers from CBP's legacy Customs Service, since the grievance leading to the arbitration was filed prior to the May 2007 certification and the related representation election in which NTEU became the representative for a new 21,000-employee CBP bargaining unit.

Kelley added that NTEU is exploring similar litigation based on a review of CBP's scheduling practices for the newly expanded bargaining unit that now includes officers from the former Immigration and Naturalization Service and Agriculture Inspectors from the Department of Agriculture.

Under the decision, the parties have 60 days to attempt to arrive at a voluntary settlement addressing the appropriate remedy. Kelley has said that not only will NTEU insist that CBP begin following the law immediately, but will seek to recover monies due employees as a result of CBP's illegal acts.

"CBP now has two choices," Kelley said. "It can recognize it erred in giving unfettered discretion to local managers for scheduling or CBP could file yet another appeal and continue to violate employees' legal rights."

http://www.fedmanager.com/article.php?ID=350

[Lazy Fed]

They will probably chose the latter

[Willowdared]

Is the staffing so critical that this has been allowed?

Or are they top heavy with asshole managers?

[Big Sexy]

They will probably chose the latter

You can always come to ICE/OI and not respond to Terms alien calls.

That's what BIG has all the SA's doing in North Cackalacky.