05/05/09 Communique

GAO Union Membership Ratifies 2009 PBC Pay Agreement
The GAO Union and GAO management reached a tentative agreement on the 2009 Performance-based Compensation (PBC) pay on April 16, 2009. The tentative agreement then went to the Union membership for ratification and the voting period ended last Friday, May 1. 72.3 percent of eligible Union members cast a ballot in this ratification vote. Of those who voted, 86.2 percent voted to "Accept" the tentative agreement and 13.8 percent voted to "Reject" it. The 2009 PBC Pay agreement is now ratified. For details of the 2009 PBC pay agreement, see the information on the Union web site.

GAO will be working with the National Finance Center to process this performance-based pay as quickly as possible. We will provide updates as we learn them.

Union to Testify Before House Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Branch Subcommittee
Ron La Due Lake, president of the GAO Union, will testify before the Legislative Branch Subcommittee of the House Committee on Appropriations in a Public Witness Hearing on Tuesday, May 5th at 10:00 a.m., in room H-144 in the Capitol. In addition to addressing GAO's FY 2010 appropriation, Ron's statement will include an update on the relationship between the Union and GAO management; the recent negotiations over employees performance-based compensation; comments on GAOs plan for following up with the Ivy Study; and the Unions input regarding the selection of the next Comptroller General.

Here is the schedule for the public hearing order of witnesses: Mary Alice Baish, American Association of Law Libraries; Ron La Due Lake, GAO Employees Organization; Dennis Roth, Congressional Research Employees Association; Alvin Hardwick, GPO Police Labor Committee; John Pare, National Federation of the Blind; Saul Schniderman, Library of Congress Professional Guild; Thomas Susman, American Bar Association.

Unlike last year, this hearing will not be webcast. We will post the written statement on our website (gaoanalysts.org) after the hearing. For further information about the public witness hearing, see the Subcommittee website.

PAST COMMUNIQUES:
04/27/09:  Vote to Ratify 2009 PBC Pay Agreement
04/20/09:  GAO Union Reaches Tentative Agreement with Management
04/13/09:  PBC Pay Negotiations Continue
04/03/09:  PBC Budget Factor Negotiations Begin Next Week
03/30/09:  GAO dispute resolution and grievance process discussion
03/16/09:  Selecting the new Comptroller General—Submit your comments for Congress
03/02/09:  GAO Employees Develop Alternative to SRS for 2009 Performance-Based Compensation
02/20/09:  FMA Assembly Delegate chosen, Union Assembly Officially Takes Office
02/02/09:  Management announces policy to streamline reports
01/27/09:  New Look Communique
01/16/09:  Assembly Election Schedule; Join the Union by January 30th to Vote
12/17/08:  Officer Election Results
12/15/08:  GAO Presents Initial 2009 Pay Proposal