The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is an American

labor union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

representing over 750,000 employees of the

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

, about 5,000 employees of the

District of Columbia Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

, and a few hundred

private sector The private sector is the part of the economy which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government. Employment The private sector employs most of the workfo ...

employees, mostly in and around federal facilities. AFGE is the largest union for civilian, non-

postal Postal may refer to: Places * The Italian name for Burgstall, South Tyrol in northern Italy * Postal, Missouri * Postal Square * Postal Museum (Liechtenstein), a postal museum in Vaduz, Liechtenstein People * Fred Postal, former co-owner ...

federal employees and the largest union for District of Columbia employees who report directly to the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

(''i.e.'', outside

D.C. public schools The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) is the local public school system for Washington, D.C. It is distinct from the District of Columbia Public Charter Schools (DCPCS), which governs public charter schools in the city. Composition ...

). It is affiliated with the

AFL–CIO The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is a national trade union center that is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 61 national and international unions, together r ...

History

AFGE was founded on October 17, 1932, by local unions loyal to the

American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States that continues today as the AFL-CIO. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions eager to provide mutual ...

(AFL) and left the

National Federation of Federal Employees The National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) is an American labor union which represents about 100,000 public employees in the federal government. NFFE has about 200 local unions, most of them agency-wide bargaining units. Its members wo ...

(NFFE) when that union became independent of the AFL (NFFE in 1998 became part of the

IAMAW The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is an AFL–CIO/Canadian Labour Congress, CLC trade union representing over 600,000 workers as of 2024 in more than 200 industries with most of its membership in the United S ...

, which is affiliated with the AFL–CIO). AFGE is a federation of local unions, with each local maintaining autonomy through operating under local constitutions that comply with the AFGE National constitution ratified originally during its founding in 1932. Federal employees' right to organize and bargain binding labor contracts was established in law by the

Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA) reformed the civil service of the United States federal government, partly in response to the Watergate scandal (1972-74). The Act abolished the U.S. Civil Service Commission and distributed its func ...

, which AFGE helped to draft, and which states that

collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and labour rights, rights for ...

in the federal sector is in the public interest while also barring the right to

strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) * Hobart Huson, author of several drug related books Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm * Airstrike, ...

. AFGE has played a crucial role in the struggle for

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

and

civil rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' political freedom, freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and ...

in the federal sector, and was one of the first unions to establish a Women's Department and a Fair Practices Department, with the officer over those departments holding a seat on the National Executive Committee (NEC) and with Women's and Fair Practices Coordinators elected in each AFGE district since the early 1970s. AFGE's December 2009 court suits stopped aspects of the

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

administration's "National Security Personnel System" (for DOD) and MAXHR (for DHS), and AFGE also won changes to law that make the contracting out process more balanced in regard to federal employees' interests. In 2010, the Obama administration issued an executive order for the federal government to focus on insourcing federal jobs rather than outsourcing them overseas or to contractors. AFGE's motto was established as "To Do For All That Which No One Can Do For Oneself". AFGE's original emblem was a shield with the stars and stripes and the words "Justice, Fraternity, Progress" and the current emblem is three workers supporting a globe with a map of the United States and the words "Proud to Make America Work". In June 2011, AFGE also won the historic largest single nationwide consolidated bargaining unit election of over 44,000 employees of the

Transportation Security Administration The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that has authority over the security of transportation systems within and connecting to the United States. It was created ...

, part of the

Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior, home, or public security ministries in other countries. Its missions invol ...

. AFGE is working for a change in law which will give them the same collective bargaining rights as other federal employees. In August 2015, AFGE at its national convention decided its official colors are blue and gold. All future insignia will meet as such.

Organization

AFGE is led by a National Executive Council, made up of National President Everett Kelley, a National Secretary-Treasurer, and National Vice President, Women's and Fair Practices, elected at a triennial National Convention, and 12 National Vice Presidents who oversee geographic districts and are elected at District caucuses.

Presidents

:1932: David Glass :1932: John Arthur Shaw :1933: Claude Babcock :1936: Charles Irwin Stengle :1939: Cecil E. Custer :1939: James B. Burns :1948: James G. Yaden :1950: Henry C. Iler :1951: James A. Campbell :1962:

John Griner John F. Griner (August 7, 1907 – April 22, 1974) was an American labor union leader. Born in Camilla, Georgia, Griner went to work on the railroads in 1925, and joined both the Order of Railroad Telegraphers and the American Train Dispatcher ...

:1972: Clyde M. Webber :1976:

Ken Blaylock Kenneth T. Blaylock (July 15, 1935 – October 10, 2018) was an American labor union leader. Born in North Carolina to a family with Cherokee origins, Blaylock became a plumber in Alabama. He served on the Maxwell Air Force Base, and became ac ...

:1988:

John Sturdivant John Leighton Sturdivant (born May 25, 1956) is an American former professional football defensive linemen who played five seasons with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at the University ...

:1997:

Bobby Harnage Robert L. "Bobby" Harnage (born 1940) is a former American labor union leader. Harnage attended Macon College and the University of Georgia. He served in the United States Air Force from 1959, then from 1963 was a civilian employee at Robins Air ...

:2003:

John Gage John Burdette Gage (born October 9, 1942) is a retired computer scientist and technology executive. He was the 5th employee of Sun Microsystems, where he is credited with creating the phrase '' The Network is the Computer''. He served as Sun's ...

:2012:

Jeffrey David Cox Jeffrey may refer to: * Jeffrey (name), including a list of people with the name *Jeffrey's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada *Jeffrey City, Wyoming, United States *Jeffrey Street, Sydney, Australia *Jeffreys Bay, Western Cape, South Africa Art ...

:2020: Everett Kelley

Secretary-Treasurers

:1935: Berniece Heffner :1953: Henrietta E. Olding :1956: Esther F. Johnson :1970: Douglas H. Kershaw :1974: Nicholas Nolan :1986: Allen H. Kaplan :1991:

:1997: Rita Mason :2000: Jim Davis :2006:

:2012: Eugene Hudson :2018: Everett Kelley :2020: Eric Bunn

Other

Labor relations in the federal sector are governed by the

Federal Labor Relations Authority The Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) is an independent agency of the United States government that governs labor relations between the federal government and its employees. Created by the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, it is a qua ...

, an independent federal agency, and federal sector unions have recourse to binding

arbitration Arbitration is a formal method of dispute resolution involving a third party neutral who makes a binding decision. The third party neutral (the 'arbitrator', 'arbiter' or 'arbitral tribunal') renders the decision in the form of an 'arbitrati ...

and to the Federal Services Impasses Panel to resolve impasses which might lead to a strike in the private sector.

Numbered "Councils of Locals"

For AFGE, collective bargaining responsibilities are delegated to numbered "Councils of Locals" at major agencies, including the following: * AFGE DEFCON * AFGE Federal Fire Fighter Steering Committee * AFGE Federal Law Enforcement Council *

Federal Protective Service Federal Protective Service may refer to: *Federal Protective Service (United States), a U.S. security police force responsible for the security of buildings owned by the U.S. federal government *Federal Protective Service (Russia) The Federal G ...

Council * The Food Safety Inspection Service (USDA) Council. *

National Border Patrol Council The National Border Patrol Council (NBPC) is a labor union established in 1967 that represents agents and support staff on the United States Border Patrol. It is an affiliate of the American Federation of Government Employees, and through that la ...

* National Council of Prisons Locals (C-33) * National Joint Council of Food Inspection Locals (C-45) *

Veteran's Administration The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing lifelong healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers an ...

Council. a.k.a. ''National Council of VA Locals (C-53)'' The VA Council is the largest and currently accounts for over one third of the federation's membership. Alma L. Lee is the current president of the VA council. * AFGE Council 73 *

a.k.a. ''AFGE TSA Council 100'' *

ICE Ice is water that is frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 ° C, 32 ° F, or 273.15 K. It occurs naturally on Earth, on other planets, in Oort cloud objects, and as interstellar ice. As a naturally oc ...

Council. a.k.a. ''AFGE Council 118 (ICE)'' *

CIS CIS may refer to: Computing * Card information structure, formatting and organization data stored on a PC card * Center for Internet Security, cybersecurity benchmarks, controls, practices and tools * Center for Internet and Society (disambiguati ...

Council (119) *

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...

Council. (120) * AFGE Council 162 *

Defense Contract Management Agency The Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) is an agency of the United States federal government reporting to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. It is responsible for administering contracts for the Department of ...

(C-170) * DFAS Council of DFAS Locals (C-171) * AFGE Council 172 * AFGE Council 200 * Midwest Council of Food Inspection Locals (C-202) * the Air Force Materiel Command a.k.a. ''Air Force Materiel Command Locals (C-214)'' * National Council of EEOC Locals 216 * National Council of SSA Field Operations Locals (C-220) ** National Council of SSA Field Operations Locals (Atlanta Region) (C-220) * HUD Council. a.k.a. ''National Council of HUD Locals (C-222)'' * AFGE Council 224 * AFGE Council 235 * EPA Locals (C-238) * AFGE Council 252 * Council of National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) Locals (C-260) * Smithsonian Institution, Local 2463. AFGE 1980s Cap

Membership

All union membership in the federal sector is entirely voluntary, as the law does not allow for the "

closed shop A pre-entry closed shop (or simply closed shop) is a form of union security agreement under which the employer agrees to hire union members only, and employees must remain members of the union at all times to remain employed. This is different fr ...

"; federal employees are barred from being candidates for partisan political office, and no dues money may be spent on partisan political campaigns.

References

External links

American Federation of Government Employees

AFGE National VA Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:American Federation Of Government Employees AFL-CIO affiliates Civil service trade unions Trade unions established in 1932 Trade unions in the United States Organizations based in Washington, D.C. Federal government employee unions in the United States