The Federal Employees Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act (FEFCWA)

Federal law establishes scheduling requirements for government employees, generally requiring federal agencies to set regular work hours over a traditional Monday through Friday workweek. These requirements, along with provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), impede flexible work arrangements (FWAs) for federal employees.1 The Federal Employees Flexible and Compressed Work Schedules Act (“FEFCWA”) removes these legal barriers for two specific types of alternative work schedules (AWS): flexible work schedules (FWS) and compressed work schedules (CWS). Under an FWS, an agency establishes core hours when all employees must be at work and allows employees to choose arrival and departure times around those core hours. Under a CWS, an employee’s bi-weekly, 80-hour work requirement is scheduled by the agency for less than 10 days (e.g., eight 10-hour workdays rather than ten 8-hour workdays)

The United Kingdom Flexible Working Act

In 2002, the United Kingdom passed new legislation granting employees with young or disabled children the right to request flexible work arrangements from their employers. The law does not guarantee a right to flexible working but seeks to increase flexibility in UK workplaces by requiring a process for negotiation between employees and employers. Stated simply, that process places the initial responsibility on the employee to propose a new work arrangement and explain its potential impact on the employer. The employee and employer must then consider the request together, and the employer may refuse the request only for certain business reasons

2008 Annual Report

[Excerpt] It has been a challenging year for labor relations in the United States. Workers experienced heightened concern for their personal financial situations and job security. Management focused intensely on competitiveness issues and the resources needed to weather a global financial crisis. Faced with intense global competition, many U.S. companies have moved to low cost off-shore operations. And the perilous financial conditions have caused other U.S. companies to downsize, dramatically increasing unemployment numbers in this country. Given the confluence of global competition and financial unrest, not surprisingly we have noted an increase in labor-management tension at the bargaining table. Negotiations have become more stressful and challenging

2005 Annual Report

[Excerpt] In this first decade of the 21st century, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) is positioned to play a key role in historic changes affecting our workplaces and our economy. With economic globalization has come the need for a flexible, mobile workforce. Free trade has engendered a new set of international competitors for U.S. companies. Health care and pension costs continue to rise, placing a significant economic burden on employers and employees. This year, the labor movement faced its own internal turmoil when the Service Employees International Union, the United Food and Commercial Workers, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and Laborers’ International Union of North America disaffiliated from the AFL-CIO

Fifty-Sixth Annual Report of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, Fiscal Year 2003

Federal Mediation and Conciliation ServiceFMCSFY2003_Annual_Report.pdf: 385 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

BLS Report On Labor Union And Employee Association Membership, 1973

Report about white collar employees belonging to unions and employee associations for the period 1976-1978. October 3, 1979

News Briefs: Congressional Review of EEO Reorganization Plan, 1979

Report on Presldent Carter\u27s proposed federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reorganization plan to consolidate most of the government\u27s enforcement programs into EEOC over the years 1978-1980. April 26, 1978. No 17

2006 Annual Report

[Excerpt] This past August, FMCS’ 13th National Labor-Management Conference brought more than 1,500 people representing labor and management interests together in Chicago. In addition to providing 60-plus workshops over three days, FMCS gave attendees the opportunity to hear the thoughts of some of today’s most important players in labor-management relations, including Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao, AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka, UNITE/HERE Hospitality Industry President John Wilhelm, NLRB General Counsel Ronald Meisburg, and The Permanente Company President and CEO Francis Crosson. The success of our conference illustrates precisely what FMCS does best: providing opportunities for labor and management to come together and discuss their common issues

European Company Survey on Reconciliation of Work and Family Life

[Excerpt] Demographic change requires an increase in labour force participation. This applies partic- ularly to those groups which have had relatively low participation rates in the past and those with family obligations such as child rearing or care for the elderly. With many companies already reporting difficulties in recruiting or retaining qualified staff, policies which aim to reconcile work and family life more effectively have become more attractive. Implementing work-life balance policies may therefore be considered a significant factor in the enhance- ment of corporate competitiveness and national prosperity. Governments together with the social partners at the national, sectoral and company levels must tackle the challenge of ensuring the competitiveness of companies while granting women and men equal partici- pation in work and family life. The European Company Survey on the Reconciliation of Work and Family Life 2010 provides a detailed description and analysis of family-friendly policies implemented by the firms in six European countries – Germany (DE), the United Kingdom (UK), France (FR), Italy (IT), Sweden (SE) and Poland (PL). These six countries account for approximately 63% of the popu- lation and 68% of the GDP in the EU-27. In autumn 2009, senior executives and the heads of human resources departments in over 5,000 companies were interviewed about how important they consider the issue of family-friendliness and the policies they have offered in their firms. In addition, they reported on their main motives for, and the most significant obstacles to, the implementation of work-life balance measures. The European Company Survey also allows an assessment of the institutional basis, such as statutory provisions, collective and works agreements, on which the policies adopted are ultimately based. It should be borne in mind, however, that the results do not allow a thorough evaluation of specific governmental programmes. Finally, the survey focuses on the impact of the economic crisis on the willingness of companies in the six countries to implement or maintain family-friendly policies