National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) President Margaret L. Baptiste today praised the House of Representatives and Senate for approving the final Fiscal Year 2010 Defense Authorization bill, which includes several civil service improvements long sought by NARFE. 

The bill approved yesterday by the Senate, and cleared for the White House, would allow federal agencies to re-employ federal retirees on a limited, part-time basis without offset of annuity; permit Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) workers to initially credit half, and later all, of their unused sick leave toward retirement; and provide for retirement equity for federal employees in Hawaii, Alaska and the U.S. Territories.  The legislation is expected to be signed by the president.

“During the past several years, NARFE has played a leading role, along with other federal and postal employee organizations, in overcoming many obstacles to achieve passage of these needed civil service improvements,” Baptiste said.   “For example, absent NARFE’s persistence, legislation sponsored by Senators  Susan Collins, R-ME; Herb Kohl, D-WI; and George Voinovich, R-OH, (S. 629) to allow federal retirees to be re-employed by the government would not have been included in the final Defense bill.  Many federal retirees continue to make critical contributions to our safety and well-being during this time of national need, when work force shortages have deprived some agencies of employees with critical and specialized skills,” Baptiste said.  “This is a victory for active and retired federal employees.”

Baptiste was particularly pleased that a compromise was reached on the FERS sick leave legislation by phasing in the allowance. When Congress created FERS in 1986, the benefit of allowing workers to apply their unused sick leave toward retirement was traded off for other FERS benefits not available under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS).  “However, with the benefit of 23 years of hindsight, we recognize that the inequity in the treatment of accrued sick leave between FERS and CSRS has hurt productivity and increased agency costs.”   Baptiste said, “For that reason, we have strongly supported the concept that all federal civilian retirement programs credit unused sick leave toward retirement.”

The NARFE president specifically lauded Rep. James Moran, D-VA, for introducing his own FERS sick leave equity bill (H.R. 958) and for being a long-time champion of the issue. Baptiste also commended Reps. Edolphus Towns, D-NY; Stephen Lynch, D-MA; and Senators Joseph Lieberman, I-CT; Susan Collins, R-ME; Daniel Akaka, D-HI; and James Webb, D-VA, who served as the Defense bill conferees, for helping to persuade their colleagues to include the civil service provisions.  In addition, she thanked Reps. Steny Hoyer, D-MD; Chris Van Hollen, D-MD; Frank Wolf, R-VA; Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-DC; Gerry E. Connolly, D-VA; John Sarbanes, D-MD; Donna Edwards, D-MD; Elijah Cummings, D-MD; and C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger, D-MD, for the significant role they played in this victory on behalf of NARFE and the federal/postal community.

“NARFE commends the Congress for approving this important civil service legislation and urges the president to sign it into law as soon as possible,” Baptiste added.

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NARFE, one of America’s oldest and largest associations, was founded in 1921 with the mission of protecting the earned rights and benefits of America’s active and retired federal workers. The largest federal employee/retiree organization, NARFE represents the retirement interests of nearly 5 million current and future federal annuitants, spouses, and survivors.