Current Commissioner Michael J. Astrue was appointed in 2006 for a six-year term that began in February 2007. Out of respect for the country’s decisive vote last fall against the Bush policies and for restoring government to its rightful focus on the people’s interests instead of the monied interests, Commissioner Astrue should resign.
Any sense of decency should have led him to submit his resignation by this time. If he continues to try to hold onto his job, the Obama Administration should seek his ouster.
... [D]espite assurances at his congressional confirmation hearing that he would improve labor relations at SSA, Commissioner Astrue has cut off all communication with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the Association of Administrative Law Judges/ International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (AALJ/IFPTE), and refuses to recognize AFGE and the AALJ/IFPTE as the exclusive representatives of many bargaining unit employees at SSA. He refuses to meet and discuss important work-related issues with AFGE and the AALJ/IFPTE, adversely affecting sound labor relations and employee morale.
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Mar 6, 2009
AFL-CIO Calls On Astrue To Resign
The AFL-CIO, of which the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is a member, is calling upon Social Security Commissioner Michael Astrue, to resign. The AFGE represents most Social Security employees. Here are a couple of excerpt from the AFL-CIO Executive Council statement:
Give it up...as long as Asture maintains his primary focus on the claimants, he needs to go nowhere. AS far as employee relations go, follow your contract; meet and confer when prescribed by law...not when YOU want.
ReplyDeleteThe AFL-CIO needs to worry about GM, Ford and Chrysler going under.
ReplyDelete"Out of respect for the country’s decisive vote last fall against the Bush policies and for restoring government to its rightful focus on the people’s interests instead of the monied interests, Commissioner Astrue should resign."
http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/contrib.php?cycle=2008&cid=N00009638
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It strikes me as odd that this COSS "refuses to recognize AFGE/AALJ/IFPTE as the exclusive representatives of many bargaining unit employees at SSA." Am I hearing this right? To do so is a gross violation of the FLRA. I would appreciate any information you may have on this subject.
ReplyDeleteHow is Astrue's primary focus on the claimants? That statement baffles me. He has done virtually nothing that shows up in the field as helping the claimants. There are a few claimants that through QDD/CA get their award letters a little sooner before they die, but beyond that, beats me.
ReplyDeleteUnions: Safe havens for idiots and underproductive loosers, who probably had a family member get them a job.
ReplyDeleteI thought the idea of a fixed term for SSA commissioners was so that we didn't have to change commissioners every time we elected a new President? Over the long term it was supposed to make the position less political.
ReplyDeleteLast Anonymous--It was the intent to have the COSS be more independent, but as a practical matter, this was never possible. All agency directors or whatever the title resign sooner or later after a change in administration. In this case, my impression of this COSS is that he is way too much of a hot shot for the good old Gray Lady our SSA has always been. I am also not convinced that he is good for claimants. Not sure at all.
ReplyDelete