December 28, 2005

F.O.P. Wins Special Consideration in NSPS Rule Changes

Chuck Canterbury, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, announced today that the Department of Defense (DOD) had agreed to the organization’s request to engage in separate talks directly with the F.O.P. regarding the implementing issuances for the National Security Personnel System.

“In early December, we drafted a letter to the Department of Defense reiterating the F.O.P.’s desire to have a separate consultative track on the implementation of the new personnel system in order because the current consultations taking place with other unions are focused overwhelmingly on the Department’s civilian workforce and the issues facing the Department’s law enforcement officers were going completely unaddressed,” Canterbury explained.

The F.O.P. had been meeting with DOD officials in conjunction with, but not as a part of, a large coalition of labor unions representing other DOD employees, to discuss the proposed human resources management system. Prior to the adoption of the NSPS, and at the outset of the implementation process, the F.O.P. argued that the NSPS does not take into consideration the unique and distinctive work performed by law enforcement officers employed by the DOD. In a recent letter to National President Canterbury, the Department agreed to the F.O.P.’s request to meet separately and thanked the F.O.P. for our positive, collaborative approach on the implementation process.

“This is an important breakthrough for us,” Canterbury said. “I convened a Federal officers’ summit in Washington, D.C. earlier this month, which was chaired by Lou Cannon of the Federal Officers’ Committee and J.J. Faro of the Federal Officers’ Coalition. Because of their leadership, the hard work by the National Legislative Office and the efforts of Labor Committee Chairmen S.K. Johnson and Art Penn, we can communicate directly with DOD about the issues facing law enforcement officers under the new system.”

“We have a responsibility to ensure that the new system serves the homeland security needs of the nation, as well as our members who are part of this vital workforce,” Canterbury said. “By separating ourselves from the civilian workforce in upcoming negotiations over NSPS implementation, the F.O.P. believes that we can meet this obligation.”

The Fraternal Order of Police is the largest law enforcement labor organization in the United States, with more than 321,000 members.