FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 03, 2019
June 03, 2019
Contact:
Tim Kauffman
202-639-6405/202-374-6491
[email protected]
AFGE Statement on House Committee’s 2020 Spending Bill
Categories:
Budget, AFGE National President
WASHINGTON – American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr. today issued the following statement:
“The House Appropriations Committee’s draft fiscal year 2020 spending bill would recognize the invaluable contributions federal employees make to our country by providing them with a 3.1% pay raise next year. The bill also rejects the Trump administration’s reckless proposal to dismantle the Office of Personnel Management, and takes steps to protect workers’ rights.
“Federal employees earn less today than they did at the start of the decade, due to years of pay freezes and incremental adjustments that have failed to keep pace with inflation. Many agencies are struggling to recruit and retain employees due to noncompetitive salaries that lag private-sector standards. This pay raise is a critical investment in our government’s most valuable resource – its workers. It also maintains the decades-long principle of providing equal pay adjustments to the government’s civilian employees and service members, since it matches the 3.1% raise the Trump administration has proposed for the military next year.
“The bill also rejects the Trump administration’s proposal to merge OPM with the General Services Administration and put the White House in charge of OPM’s workforce policy functions. This is a reckless and potentially dangerous proposal that would further the administration’s efforts to politicize the civil service and undermine our democracy.
“Thank you to House Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Nita Lowey and Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government Chairman Mike Quigley for their leadership on these important issues, and I look forward to working with all members of Congress to ensure our federal employees and agencies are provided with the resources they need to serve the American people.”
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