NEASO Brothers and Sisters,

I wanted to spend a few minutes bringing you up to date on several issues.  You should have received notice on the upcoming NEASO Officer Elections that will be held on Wednesday, November 18th from 11.30 – 2.00 pm.   Nominations for the 2 Vice Presidents (MB and HQ), Treasurer, Secretary and the 6 Director Seats are due on October 16th  by close of business.  Please see the official notice with all the particulars on the neaso.org homepage.  I have received some questions about why we are not using an online service for elections.  We’ve learned that there are regulations and laws that prohibit unions from doing this.  It’s a case of the law not keeping up with the technology.  Certainly, given how our members are based in various places around the country, online voting would be useful.  Unfortunately, we won’t be able to take advantage of the technology until the rules change.

For the past 6 years, NEASO Presidents have joined AFSE and IUOE representatives on a committee called the G27.  The group’s task was to plan for NEA’s future.  Out of this group came the new NEA mission and vision.  The current configuration of G27 will significantly change in the next few months.  Though I am not exactly sure of the configuration of the “new” G27, we do have some hope that there will be more representation by staff.  As I receive information, I will keep the membership and leadership informed.

Each year the National Staff Organization (NSO) holds the Winter Advocacy Retreat (WAR College).  It’s a time for all the NSO affiliates to come together to hone their leadership skills.  This year, I will be recommending to the Board of Directors (BOD) that we send the majority of our delegation from MB since they will be bargaining next summer.  I will be conferring with MB leadership before making my recommendations.

The HDQ JLMC will be holding an extended meeting next week to make plans for the number of joint committees and efforts that came out of the recent negotiations.  I’ve appointed Denise Alston (HCR) and Dan Lunaria (NPP) to serve on the sabbatical committee.  I’ll also be joining that committee.  A number of you have volunteered for other committees and as plans are made, I’ll keep you all informed.  On the neaso.org website there is a form for reporting waste and mismanagement.  We need this information to fulfill a negotiated revenue sharing article.  Your comment can be left anonymously.   If you feel more comfortable letting me, or another leader know of your concerns, please email or call.  

During HDQ negotiations, there was some talk about strike insurance.  The Executive Committee directed our ED/GC Dan DiJames to investigate and give a report on the cost of such insurance.  At the September board meeting, Dan informed the Board that no such insurance exists for unions.  There is insurance available for businesses in case their employees go on strike.  Given this, the board is taking a hard look at the budget and what other avenues are available.  NEASO is very frugal with its’ money. Our major expense is our employees, which given our size and our lack of release time for elected leaders, is necessary and needed.  Kitty Johnson, our treasurer, and her finance committee are taking a hard look at the budget and our investments.

We have NEASO T-Shirts for sale.  These are collared shirts (red or blue) with the NEASO logo.  Each shirt is $30.00 (at-cost price).  If you would like a shirt, please let Jean (202-822-7808 or jmondejar@nea.org know what size.  For bookkeeping reasons, we will only be accepting checks made out to NEASO.  

As always, if you have any questions or comments, please let me know.

In Solidarity,
Andrea Prejean
NEASO President