It is with sadness that we report the murder of the daughter of a fellow Union member, Agnes (Sue) Chaney. Pam Bullock, representative at NARA's Dayton Federal Records Center, has asked me to bring to your attention the situation affecting a long-time member of AFGE Local 2578.

The deceased’s mother Agnes (Sue) Chaney has been an employee of the Dayton Center since 1985. She is a dedicated and hard working employee. She was one of the first employees at Dayton to sign on with the Union. As you can imagine this tragic act of violence has devastated family and friends; she desperately needs financial assistance. Efforts are underway at the Chicago and Dayton facilities to collect donations to provide for burial costs; costs that the family is unable to afford. In a collection conducted August 27-30, members at Washington, DC ,area facilities generously gave $170.00.

An article concerning the incident can be found on the Dayton Daily News web site at http://www.activedayton.com/ddn/local/0822slaying.html. Pamela Dunn (age 34) was preceded in death by her father Ted Chaney. She is survived by her children Dakota and Rodney, her Mother Agnes (Sue) Chaney and brother Timothy. The funeral was held August 26.

Representative Pamela Bullock reports that in Dayton they continue to collect donations. That facility is in the planning stages of holding a HUMONGOUS garage sale on September 21. NRDD employees will be donating items to sell with all proceeds going to the Pamela Dunn (Chaney) family. Anyone wishing to make a contribution should contact Pam by email or at 937-225-2852, or send to Pam at

Excerpted from the AFGE Press Release of August 28, 2002 http://www.afge.org//Index.cfm?Page=Home&File=2002_08_28.htm

Good morning and thank you for coming.

Our message is really quite simple and has only two parts: First, federal employees stand solidly behind President Bush in the fight against terrorism - and they are determined to make the new Department of Homeland Security the very best it can be. But Second, we can't achieve that goal if the President continues down the path he's on. You can't build an effective new department by destroying the civil service system our nation has spent 125 years developing.

And you can't defend our American way of life if you start by destroying due process, one of the freedoms we seek to defend.

The issue should come to a head soon after Labor Day, when Congress finishes the Homeland Security bill. The House, under the strong urging of the President, has already passed its version. The Senate has yet to act on a far better bill, S. 2452, which retains Title 5 of the Civil Service Act and preserves a federal employee's right to due process of law.

President Bush says he needs more "flexibility" to structure the new department. That was his theme in

pushing a bad bill through the House. We're here to show you the President has all the "flexibility" he needs.

Specifically, we're here to release a new report from our union, the American Federation of Government Employees. In more than 80 examples taken from federal law, the Civil Service Act and case law, it shows you the tremendous flexibility federal managers already have. As you'll see in the report, it is a very flexible system in hiring, in promotion, in transfers, in discipline, and everywhere in between. Surprisingly, the Bush Administration touted almost the exact same management prerogatives in a message to its new appointees last year. …

What does this report prove? With all of the management authority that is spelled out in this report, what does President Bush really mean by "flexibility?" It looks as if he wants the secretary of homeland security to have absolute power to decide all personnel matters on the basis of political patronage, not merit. Flexibility is nothing less than gutting the civil service merit system and busting employee unions.

The civil service laws came about because federal managers had too much flexibility. They could hire their cronies, use promotions as payoffs for political favors and use demotions or firings to punish whistleblowers. Muzzled federal employees couldn't talk with investigators, the media, or with Members of Congress. President Bush talks about a 21st century personnel system, but is seeking a 19th century structure.

Neither union membership nor civil service rights have ever interfered with the government's ability to carry out its mission. Most of all, federal employee protections have never jeopardized national security. Only with a secure workforce - protected from politics - can our homeland be secure. Denying federal employees their basic freedoms at work will not make the U.S. safer - just less democratic.

AFGE Council 260 representatives Jim Cassedy and Greg LaMotta, and Chief Shop Steward John Powers will give slide presentations on their trip to Havana, Cuba, for a conference hosted by the Confederation of Cuban Workers Union. Their trip was first reported in the June 2002 edition of Your Union News. This presentation is sponsored by the public programs unit of the Office of Records Services-Washington DC in recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month. The presentation will be held September 16 at noon in Lecture Room D, Archives II, and on September 17 at noon in the Archivist’s Reception Room, Archives I.

The next monthly meeting of AFGE Local 2578 will be held Tues. September 24, 2002, in room 5220, Archives II, and room 503, Archives I. As agreed at the June meeting, the proposed constitution will be read into the record. Lunch, consisting of pizza and soft drinks, will be provided to attendees at that meeting. A vote on the proposed constitution will be held at the October meeting.