Send Well Wishes to Ft. Hood Hero, Sgt. Kimberly Munley: AFGE honors the service, courage, and commitment of Sgt. Kimberly Munley, the civilian police officer who took down the gunman who opened fire at his fellow soldiers at Ft. Hood, Texas, last Thursday. You can send your well wishes to Officer Munley, who is a member of AFGE Local 1920, by going to AFGE's Web site at afge.org or follow the following link: http://www.afge.org/index.cfm?fuse=content&contentID=2064. We will compile your messages and deliver them on Friday, Nov. 20, 2009. AFGE has also developed a Facebook fan page for her.  Please sign up and send her a personal message at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sgt-Kimberly-Munley-AFGE/166536926403?v=wall#/pages/Sgt-Kimberly-Munley-AFGE/166536926403

Sgt. Munley and her partner were the first to arrive at the Soldier Readiness Center, where Army psychiatrist Major Nidal Hasan went on a shooting spree, killing 13 and injuring at least 38. Sgt. Munley managed to hit the gunman four times despite being shot herself.

"Sgt. Munley acted with great heroism as she and her partner were the first to respond to calls for help during the shooting rampage at Ft. Hood," said AFGE President John Gage. "As a part its family, we offer our thoughts, our prayers, our support and our strength to our brave soldiers and their families, and our brothers and sisters, who are affected by this senseless and pointless tragedy."

AFGE represents 1,700 civilian Defense employees at Ft. Hood, including civilians in the Soldier Readiness Center, employees at the base hospital, and officers of the installation's civilian police force.

House Panel Okays Removal of FEMA from DHS: The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee last week approved a bill that would remove the Federal Emergency Management Agency from the Homeland Security Department and return it to its independent, Cabinet-level status and report directly to the president. The 2009 FEMA Independence Act, H.R. 1774, was introduced in February by Rep. Jim Oberstar, chairman of the committee. Many lawmakers believe that being under DHS reduced the effectiveness of FEMA and led to poor performance as demonstrated when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Elevating FEMA as an independent agency will ensure a clear and direct chain of command from the president.

BOP Teachers Awarded 2 Years of Overtime Back Pay: Thanks to superb representation by AFGE, Bureau of Prisons teachers at the Federal Correctional Complex at Victorville, California, have been awarded two years of overtime back pay following an arbitrator's decision earlier this month. Siding with AFGE, the arbitrator ruled the teachers were improperly exempt from overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act. These teachers performed the exact same duties as Education Specialists, who are entitled to overtime pay. The teachers, who are members of AFGE Local 3969, were represented by AFGE attorney Michael Pazder.

AFGE has been told the overtime issue is happening at other locations. The union is asking its BOP Locals to contact the AFGE BOP Council for possible council-wide grievance.

Obama Promotes Job Opportunities for Veterans: President Barack Obama Nov. 9 issued an executive order establishing the Council on Veterans Employment as a way to promote job opportunities for veterans. The council will lead a government wide effort to increase the number of veterans employed by the federal government through improved recruitment and training. The council will be co-chaired by the secretaries of Labor and Veterans Affairs with the director of the Office of Personnel Management as its vice chair. The president also launched a Veterans Employment Initiative, which requires agencies to come up with an agency-specific plan for promoting employment opportunities for veterans and set up a Veterans Employment Program Office within 120 days. Agencies will identify key occupations for which they can train veterans to meet agency staffing needs. Agencies will also train human resources personnel to ensure they're giving veterans' preference. To view the executive order, click on the following link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-veterans-employment-initiative

Inside Government: Building a new economy that utilizes clean energy, a 21st century infrastructure and allows the U.S. to thrive on the global stage was the focus of last week's AFGE radio program, Inside Government. United Steelworkers President Leo Gerard and AFL-CIO Metal Trades Department President Ron Ault discussed how unions are vital to the success and growth of the U.S. economy. Gerard also focused on trade and infrastructure development while Ault analyzed the repeal of the National Security Personnel System. Former Maryland Governor Parris Glendening then shed light on his green jobs initiative through the Smart Growth Leadership Institute. Glendening also reflected on his work as governor, including bringing collective bargaining rights to state employees. Lastly, Alliance for American Manufacturing Executive Director Scott Paul addressed the need for American-made goods and keeping good manufacturing jobs in the U.S.

Inside Government, hosted by AFGE Assistant General Counsel J. Ward Morrow, is a one-hour weekly nationwide radio/Internet program dedicated to issues that impact federal and D.C. government employees. The show airs each Friday at 10 a.m. on Federal News Radio 1500 AM in Washington, D.C. and online at www.federalnewsradio.com. Programs are archived on the Federal News Radio Web site and can be heard on demand at http://www.afge.org/insidegovernment. Please note there will be a short advertisement prior to the start of the program. Listeners also can follow the program on Facebook ("AFGE Inside Government") and Twitter (afgeradioshow). For more information, please e-mail InsideGovernment@afge.org or go to www.federalnewsradio.com.