Congressional Research Employees Association

Open season for the federal long-term care insurance program (FLTCIP) is being held NOW until June 24, 2011. For federal workers who do not have long-term care insurance the open season allows you and/or your spouse to enroll under an abbreviated underwriting process (this means fewer health questions). These policies are complicated and can be expensive if purchased at older ages.

This CREA seminar will help identify the risks and costs of long-term care services and discuss the various benefit options available. The seminar is intended to:

• help you decide whether a long-term care policy is right for you; and
• help identify the most cost-effective combination of benefit options.

Who Should Attend: Federal workers who currently do not have a LTC insurance policy
When: Tuesday May 17th at 12:00 noon.
Where: LM 316
Presenter: Janemarie Mulvey, Ph.D., Specialist in Aging and Income Security, DSP

 
The CREA Scholarship and Loan Repayment Grant Committee is very pleased to report that every applicant in the latest round of the program has been offered funding.

Loan repayment grant recipients include Tony Andrews, Cheryl Beaver, Vanessa Burrows, Sam Garrett, Barbara Perkins, and David Pham.

Scholarship awards include $305 to David Pham for study at USDA and $1,000 to Hussein Hassan for study at Howard University.

CREA plans to conduct another round later in 2011. CREA encourages all members to review the program guidelines and consider applying in the next round.

On Tuesday, CREA and the other two Library unions reached agreement with the Library on a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with respect to the implementation and impact of a possible shutdown. Many of the questions addressed in the FAQs released by the Library Tuesday were raised by the unions in these discussions. The MOU contains some additional information. If you have any questions, please call the CREA office. During a shutdown, should it occur, CREA officials will be available during non-duty times (before and after normal work hours and at lunch).

 
Dear CREA Member,
The potential for a government shutdown has spurred both the management of the Library of Congress and the three unions representing Library workers to consult regarding the impact on employees. CREA has engaged with Library management to:

1) help clarify what the policy and procedures will be in the case of a government shutdown;
2) ensure that CRS employee voices are heard before decisions regarding essential staff are made; and
3) make certain that these decisions are not arbitrary.

CREA (in concert with the other unions) has submitted a proposed memorandum of understanding (MOU) regarding actions following a government shutdown to Library management; we await their response. This MOU would set out the procedures the Library will follow in a government shutdown and clarify the obligations of the Library and the employee with regard to maintaining job benefits, such as health insurance. The MOU also requires Library management to share its lists of ‘excepted’ employees and its basis for determining whether an employee is excepted during a government shutdown.

As CRS Director Mulhollan has stated, a current government shutdown will be different than previous ones. While all government employees were made financially whole following the most recent government shutdown in 1996, statutory language ensured that this occurred. CREA has been informed by Library management that, absent direct action from Congress, employees who are not excepted and therefore not required to work during a government shutdown should not expect to be paid for the time the government is closed. Thus, the determination of excepted employee is a key one. CREA has proposed that such determinations be “fair and equitable” as well as justified by Library management on a case-by-case basis.

In addition, through our national union, IFPTE, we continue to engage with legislators to explain the valuable service we provide as government employees. We hope that, should a government shutdown occur, legislative language similar to that in 1996 will be inserted in any final appropriations act.

Finally, we expect that the work we are now doing will provide the basis for further negotiations if future budget shortfalls require any furloughs. These discussions are still in a preliminary stage as we address the possible shutdown.

If you have questions or concerns, or would like to become more involved, please contact your division stewards and governors or e-mail me directly.

Regards,
Dennis Roth
President, CREA
CREA@crs.loc.gov

 
All CREA members are eligible for and invited to apply for the CREA Scholarship and Loan Repayment Grant Program.

Deadline: Friday, March 4, 2011

If you have outstanding student loans, or wish to pursue career-related education, please consider applying for support from the CREA Scholarship and Loan Repayment Grant Program. Guidelines and applications are available at the links below.

Guidelines for Eligibility
Scholarship Application Form
Loan Grant Application Form

To apply, please print the appropriate application, complete and sign it, and bring it to the CREA office in LM 412 by COB Friday, March 4.

If you have any questions, please call or e-mail a member of the Scholarship and Loan Repayment Grant Committee.

D. Andrew Austin, 7-6552
Carol Hardy-Vincent, 7-8651
Vastine Platte, 7-7975
Mallary Stouffer, 7-8767
Sibyl Tilson, 7-7368