Call on FLRA to cease all planning for closure, allow Congress to review and approve any plans for reorganization

Washington (May 1, 2018) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today led a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators in calling on the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) to immediately cease efforts to close its Boston regional office until Congress can review and approve any plans. The FLRA’s mission is to safeguard the rights of federal employees, including resolving disputes over bargaining units, unfair labor practices, and other matters important to federal employees. The FLRA uses its seven regional offices around the country to develop relationships with workers, and closure of the Boston office would impact approximately 250,000 federal employees and leave the closest regional office for workers as Washington, D.C. In their letter, the Senators point to Congress’s responsibility to review and approve any plans for FLRA reorganization to ensure that such actions are the best use of taxpayer funds.

“Closing regional offices would place FLRA staff farther away from those who rely on their services,” write the Senators in the letter to FLRA Chairman Colleen Duffy Kiko. “With a two-year budget agreement now in place, federal agencies should focus on delivering the most effective services for their constituencies rather than harmful cuts that will reduce responsiveness.”

A copy of the letter can be found HERE.

Other Senators signing the letter are Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Angus King (I-Maine), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Jack Reed (D-R.I.).

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