AFGE has reached an agreement with the Social Security Administration (SSA), allowing 42,000 SSA employees nationwide represented by AFGE to enjoy new workplace rights and protections.
AFGE and SSA agreed on updates to six articles of the contract, originally ratified in 2019, covering such issues as employee training and career development, employee rights, child care and elder care, disciplinary and adverse actions, and employee details to alternative duty stations.
The entire contract also will be extended until Oct. 25, 2029. The new contract will take effect after it has been ratified by employees. The updated contract not only benefits employees but also the American public they serve as several provisions directly affect customer services.
A few highlights of the updated contract include:
“We are very pleased with the outcome of these negotiations,” said AFGE Council 215 President Rich Couture, who served as the union’s chief negotiator. “This truly was a team effort, from the folks at the bargaining table to the support we received from AFGE National and members of the public who rallied with us in support of our mission and the benefits we deliver to tens of millions of Americans.”
“The new terms in this contract will go a long way toward improving working conditions for employees, which in turn will result in better customer service for SSA beneficiaries,” said AFGE Council 220 President Jessica LaPointe, who also led the union's contract action team and mobilization efforts. “Now we have to turn our attention to making sure Congress provides us with resources and support we need.”
While achieving agreement on the updated contract was a significant victory, AFGE is still fighting to ensure SSA receives the funding it needs to carry out its mission. The House has proposed a $350 million cut to SSA’s operating budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, ignoring requests by the administration and AFGE to raise SSA’s budget significantly to address staffing shortages and backlogs that are affecting service delivery.
“If our spending is cut, a lot of what we want to do under this new contract to improve working conditions for employees and customer service for SSA beneficiaries will be completely undermined,” Couture said.
The contract covers employees represented by AFGE Councils 220 (field offices), 215 (hearings and appeals), 109 (payment centers), and 224 (quality review) and AFGE Locals 1923 (headquarters) and 2809 (operations center).
“I'd like to take a moment to truly thank Angela Digeronimo, Council 220 New York regional vice president, and John Pfannenstein, Council 220 Seattle regional vice president, for your hard work and extreme dedication in representing AFGE Council 220's interests at the table,” LaPointe added. “Thank you to Edwin Osorio for your steadfast role as the GC contract bargaining observer. Thank you to Rich Couture for leading as Chief with such courage and conviction.”
LaPointe also thanks the Contract Action Team, all the AFGE members who participated in surveys and showed up when asked to join this fight, Everett Kelley and AFGE National for joining the council in solidarity when they needed it the most.
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