April 10, 2008
NTEU Continues Push for Increased
CBP Staffing
NTEU President Colleen M. Kelley made a strong case
for the need to provide adequate staffing at U.S.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in testimony
submitted yesterday to a key House appropriations
committee.
 New
Bill Would Boost CBP Ranks
NTEU is
supporting new legislation that would
add more than 6,000 new CBP employees
over five years.
The Putting
our Resources Towards Security (PORTS)
Act would authorize the hiring of 5,000
new CBP Officers, 1,200 agriculture
specialists and 350 new support employees.
H.R.
5662 would also provide an additional
$5 billion for the General Services
Administration to help address infrastructure
deficiencies at ports.
NTEU has
long argued for substantial increases
in CBP staffing. Inadequate staffing
and resources have resulted in high
turnover, low employee morale and unfair
scheduling policies.
For more
information, click
here or visit <http://cap
wiz.com/nteu/issues/alert/
?alertid=11221771&type=
CO>.
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The administration's fiscal 2009 budget
plan calls for an additional 539 customs officers
nationwide — fewer than two per port. But CBP's
own staffing model shows a need for as many as 4,000
more CBP Officers at the 327 U.S. ports of entry,
Kelley pointed out.
“For the sake of the nation’s security,
the dangerous cycle of inadequate resources for CBP
that has led to insufficient staffing agencywide has
to end,” she told the House Appropriations Homeland
Security Subcommittee. The morale problems, fatigue
and safety issues caused by inadequate staffing have
left CBP with severe retention problems, Kelley added.
In her testimony, Kelley also reiterated NTEU's continued
concerns with the Department of Homeland Security's
(DHS) personnel regulations, including the proposal
for a new pay-for-performance system. Along with undermining
employee morale, the regressive personnel rules jeopardize
DHS's recruitment and retention efforts, she said.
For the complete story, click
here or visit <www.cbpunion.
org/PressRelease/PressRelease.aspx?ID=1246>.
House Honors Contributions
of DHS Employees
Lawmakers are marking this year's
fifth anniversary of the creation of the DHS by honoring
the department's employees for their "extraordinary
efforts and contributions to protect and secure our
nation."
The
House yesterday approved a resolution
recognizing DHS employees submitted by Rep. Bennie
Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the Homeland Security
Committee. House Resolution 1038 praises DHS employees
who work "diligently to deter, detect and prevent
acts of terrorism and stand willing, ready, and able
to respond in the event of a terrorist incident or
other major emergency." It also recognizes the
sacrifices of DHS employees and acknowledges that
Americans rely on them to protect the nation's ports
of entry.
"This is an opportunity for us to praise all
of the thankless employees who, day in and day out,
are working hard to prevent another terrorist attack
on our soil, in our skies or in our waters, and also
to ensure that we’re prepared should a catastrophe
again strike," said
Rep. Chris Carney (D-Pa.), chairman of the House Homeland
Security Subcommittee on Management, Investigations
and Oversight.
President Kelley praised House members for this important
acknowledgment of the hard work and crucial mission
of DHS employees.
Kelley Pushes for CBP Staffing Increases in Port Huron
Newspaper
When an opportunity arises to advocate for increased
staffing and resources for CBP, NTEU seizes it. This
was recently the case when NTEU voiced its strong
support for new House legislation that would increase
CBP staffing levels (see article above) and President
Kelley penned a letter to the editor on the issue
published in a Port Huron, Mich., newspaper. Kelley's
letter responded to an article
about truckers' complaints of long wait times on the
Blue Water Bridge connecting Port Huron and Point
Edward, Ontario.
"Long and frustrating wait times not only are
an issue at Port Huron, but also at air, sea and land
ports of entry nationwide," Kelley wrote. "The
reason is inadequate staffing at U.S. Customs and
Border Protection. Until the problem is addressed,
it is likely to worsen."
To read the complete letter to the editor, click
here or visit <www.thetimesherald.com/
apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080407/OPINION03/804070317/1014/OPINION>.
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