February 22, 2021

Joint message from DAA Mary Erickson and NWSEO President John Werner

We are pleased to announce that NWS and NWSEO have reached an agreement on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Should these terms be ratified by the Union’s membership and approved on Agency Head Review in the coming weeks, we will have a CBA that better serves the needs of our workforce and the agency.

We launched this effort more than 5 years ago. Though negotiations were strained at times, and resulted in an impasse at one point, both sides remained committed to the need to reach agreement on a new CBA that better serves the needs of the agency and our employees. To that end, we re-engaged over the past year and refocused our negotiations in earnest over the past three months to reach agreement.

The next steps are editorial review, NWSEO ratification and Agency Head Review. We will make the new contract available to all employees once it is implemented, and we’ll work together to develop communications to walk you through the new CBA and answer your questions.

Congratulations and thanks to all who have worked diligently and in collaboration over the past year to effectively negotiate a CBA we can all be proud of; one that will help us become a stronger, smarter agency as we work together to build a more Weather-Ready Nation. Our joint goal in implementing this new CBA is to ensure that we honor, protect and maintain the highly skilled and dedicated NWS workforce, which is the key to our collective success.

August 28, 2020

In the July 16 NWS Labor update, we informed you that the Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP or the Panel) had resolved all of the remaining contract articles that were in dispute following last summer’s impasse in collective bargaining negotiations between NWS and NWSEO. The Panel ordered the parties to adopt the contract terms contained in its decision.

In accordance with the parties’ Ground Rules, NWS forwarded to the Union the 4 contract Articles that the parties had agreed upon prior to FSIP’s assertion of jurisdiction over the dispute, and provided the Union with an opportunity to submit the 4 Articles to a ratification vote by its members. On August 12, 2020, NWSEO notified NWS that its members had rejected the contract and requested that the parties resume bargaining over all of the proposals, including the contract terms that had been resolved by the Panel.

NWS has responded to this request, articulating NOAA and the DOC Office of General Counsel’s position that the Panel's Decision and Order of July 8, 2020 are final and binding and not subject to ratification by NWSEO's membership, since Ground Rule 19 does not apply to the contract provisions imposed by the Panel.  Consistent with this, NWS has made it clear we are prepared to resume negotiations on any or all of the 4 Articles at the earliest mutually agreeable date. NWSEO has proposed a Nov. 3rd start date. 

July 16, 2020
 

The National Weather Service is another step closer to establishing a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Earlier this week, the Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP) provided NWS with its decision on the remaining twenty-nine (29) articles in the CBA. We are currently reviewing FSIP’s decision and will provide more information once that review is completed. There are further steps required before the new CBA will take effect, however, we are appreciative of FSIP’s consideration, thoroughness and timely decision.

We would like to thank our NWS labor management team and negotiating team members: Ken Brown, NWS Chief Negotiator; Sally Johnson, MIC (WFO St. Louis); Michael Vescio, MIC (WFO Pendleton); Sam Albanese, MIC (WFO Anchorage); Michael Mercer, Chief, Environmental & Scientific Services Division (Alaska Region HQ); Ken Harding, Deputy RD (NWS CR); Steve Wilkinson, MIC (WFO Greenville-Spartanburg); Rich Okulski MIC (WFO Columbia), Harvey Rumeld, NWS Senior Attorney (DOC OGC) and David Murray, NWS Management Representative (NWS HQ) for their tireless efforts in championing this new contract.

April 17, 2020
 

Following our April 1, 2020 update, NWS and NWSEO exchanged final offers and made written submissions to the Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP) per their April 10 deadline. Through this exchange, the parties were able to reach resolution on four (4) more Articles which, when adding resolved articles prior to reaching impasse, brings the total resolved articles to eight (8) of 42. The FSIP will review the entire record and take whatever action it deems appropriate to resolve the dispute and impose final contract terms. There is no defined timeframe for FSIP to complete its review, although it is anticipated the review would be completed in a few months.

While we await a decision by FSIP, the parties may engage in discussions and may reach agreement on any of the Articles currently under review. NWS remains open to the possibility of working with NWSEO to narrow the issues in dispute prior to the issuance of FSIP’s decision as evidenced by the resolution on now 19% of the articles. NWS leadership is committed to continue building a productive working relationship with NWSEO leadership that will better support operational efficiency, our people, our mission and our strategic vision of building a Weather-Ready Nation.

April 1, 2020

National Weather Service Labor Update

As we have previously reported, NWS petitioned the Federal Service Impasses Panel (FSIP) to assist in resolving the CBA impasse between NWS and NWSEO. On March 13, FSIP notified NWS and NWSEO of its decision to assert jurisdiction over all 42 Articles and issues in dispute. The Panel will resolve the impasse through written submissions and ordered the parties to submit their final offers on the articles at impasse and a statement of position on the matters in dispute. After the parties exchange their final offers and submissions they will have an opportunity to provide rebuttal statements. Upon receipt of each Party’s rebuttal statements, FSIP will review the entire record and take whatever action it deems appropriate to resolve the dispute and impose final contract terms.

NWS welcomes FSIP assistance to help the parties resolve the impasse. While we are working toward meeting FSIP’s filing deadlines, we remain open at any time to the possibility of working with NWSEO to reach agreement on some articles prior to the issuance of FSIP’s decision.

We remain committed to reaching a new collective bargaining agreement that will better support operational efficiency, our people, our mission, and our strategic vision of building a Weather-Ready Nation. We will continue working with NWSEO leadership to build a productive working relationship, and to take additional steps to jointly support our workforce.

December 23, 2019

Joint message from DAA Mary Erickson and NWSEO President John Werner
National Labor Council (NLC) 12/10 - 12/11, 2019

NWS management and NWSEO national leaders met in Silver Spring to set a firm foundation for a future-focused labor management relationship. “Day 1” of the discussions was encouraging and productive, as we discussed how to continue to support the NWS brand. We agreed to work on improving communication and transparency, recognizing we may not always agree on specific issues.

We also exchanged information on staffing for science-based Impact-based Decision Support Services. PMO Director Jason Tuell reviewed Evolve progress, and all agreed on the importance of testing and evaluation of the Collaborative Forecasting Process for the Quantitative Precipitation Forecast. A verbal invitation was extended for NWSEO representatives to join the CFP testing and evaluation team. CFO John Potts and his new Deputy Director Mat Grow reviewed the current budget status, and provided data on the strong NWS Budget Execution rates, and the distribution of the NWS budget across portfolios and budget categories. We followed up on GS 5-12 staffing, discussing both the benefits and challenges. NWS clarified that the next GS 11/12 1340 MAP vacancy announcement should be out very soon. We will post that announcement on both the NWS Insider and the NWSEO web pages.

The parties discussed the numerous topics on the agenda and stayed late at the table to ensure all had a chance to be brought forward. Due to time constraints, the parties agreed to continue to explore the topics discussed in the upcoming weeks to determine a status for each.

To build on the “Day 1” theme, NWS agreed to provide a future briefing on the Dissemination portfolio, to be scheduled February 2020. NWSEO extended Mary an invitation to their National Convention in Las Vegas in October 2020. We will continue to use exchanges like this to build our relationship, prepare for the future and support the NWS.

December 19, 2019

Labor Page Update to Employees

The National Weather Service has reached an impasse with its employee union in negotiations to update the 18-year-old collective bargaining agreement to better support modern forecasting needs. NWS management has negotiated in good faith for more than two years, and over 146 bargaining sessions, even invoking the assistance of an impartial mediator, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS)

The current union contract is outdated and does not enable NWS to meet the modern needs of our stakeholders and customers through improved decision support services, as specified in the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act. While negotiations have halted at this time, we remain positive and focused on producing a collective bargaining agreement that will improve America’s National Weather Service as a public service agency and as an employer.

In accordance with procedures established by federal labor laws, the agency is petitioning the Federal Service Impasses Panel to assist in resolving the impasse. Seeking this assistance is the natural next step in the bargaining process. This impasse will not impact our mission or the communities we serve. We remain committed to reaching a new collective bargaining agreement that will better support operational efficiency, our people, our mission, and our strategic vision of building a Weather-Ready Nation. We are also looking forward to working with the new NWSEO leadership to build a productive working relationship.

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This website will be your resource for updates on this process and will continue to be updated after each discussion period as new information becomes available.

The Agency will work to reach agreement with NWSEO toward a CBA that reflects best practices in government and creates agility in the organization, to support those who live the NWS mission, day- in and day-out.

It has been more than 15 years after the contract was last opened for negotiations. The years since have brought tremendous change in our industry, in the tools and technologies we use, and how the National Weather Service provides weather, water, and climate data, forecasts and warnings to the nation.

Throughout these negotiations we will remain positive and focused on producing an excellent Collective Bargaining Agreement. NWS management wants the new Collective Bargaining Agreement to work for NWS employees, for the agency, and for the American public. Please refer back to this page often as it will be updated as negotiations take place. While negotiations may take months, we’ll work hard and do our best to reach agreement at the bargaining table for a strong contract for NWS that promotes our goals for building a Weather-Ready Nation.