NFFE-Forest Service Council

All the stops on the tour as the tree heads to dc following roughly route 66.

A picture of the trailer containing the tree. If you look closely there is a NFFE sticker that someone has attached.

The #CaptitolChristmasTree2025 is from our local this year! First time ever that Nevada is contributing it.

Citing Trump Order on “Biological Truth,” VA Makes It Harder for Male Veterans With Breast Cancer to Get Coverage A Department of Veterans Affairs memo obtained by ProPublica erects new roadblocks to care for veterans with the rare but deadly cancer. The agency cites no new science but relies on an executive orde...

Citing a Trump order about “restoring biological truth,” the VA is making it more difficult for male veterans with breast cancer to get their care covered by the government.

The disease is deadlier than for women and “notably higher among veterans,” research shows.

By @ericumansky.bsky.social

A blue background with diagonal nffe logos watermarked on it. Nffe eagle and cogs logo at the top of the page. A spiral bound note box has the message "remember- use or lose needs to be approved by November 29th" At the bottom are the nffe.org and nffe-fsc.org websites in a yellow ochre pill shaped box.

Nffe eagle and cogs logo on a tealish background. With holdover funding running low, we're going to start seeing changed statuses. Definitions worth knowing: • Exempt- working and paid as normal • Excepted- working, Not paid* leave canceled •Intermittent excepted- working part time, not paid* • Non-excepted aka Furloughed- not working, not paid*, leave canceled *not paid real time. Once appropriations are passed, you'll recieve back pay @ http://www.NFFE.org & @ https://www.nffe-fsc.org

Help with the 'e' words.

Nffe eagle and cogs logo on a tealish background. With holdover funding running low, we're going to start seeing changed statuses. Definitions worth knowing: • Exempt- working and paid as normal • Excepted- working, Not paid* leave canceled •Intermittent excepted- working part time, not paid* • Non-excepted aka Furloughed- not working, not paid*, leave canceled *not paid real time. Once appropriations are passed, you'll recieve back pay @ http://www.NFFE.org & @ https://www.nffe-fsc.org

Help with the 'e' words.

A blue background with diagonal nffe logos watermarked on it. Nffe eagle and cogs logo at the top of the page. A spiral bound note box has the message "remember- use or lose needs to be approved by November 29th" At the bottom are the nffe.org and nffe-fsc.org websites in a yellow ochre pill shaped box.

When we fight, we win! A federal judge just barred the Trump administration from firing federal workers at more than 20 agencies during the government shutdown. We’ll keep fighting these illegal firings with everything we have.

Thank you @democracyforward.org! #bettertogether #holdtheline #unionsmatter

Trump’s Shutdown-Linked Layoffs Blocked by Federal Judge (1) A California federal judge preliminarily blocked the Trump administration from laying off federal employees during the government shutdown, taking the next step beyond a pause she put in place on the ...

Heck yes! Preliminary injuntion granted protecting our and other federal union's members from being fired during the shutdown. news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-...

That vileness is mirrored on all usda sites sadly.

Free link: archive.is/2025.10.23-0...

You know that vital list of furlough resources being posted? Yeah, it's from 2019. We went through and updated it! Find it and more here: www.nffe-fsc.org/shutdown/ #bettertogether #unionstrong #nffestrong

we're closing in on the longest shut down at this rate (35 days)

On a royal blue background with the nffe eagle and cog logo watermarked diagonally across it. "Breaking: all nffe represented units are now protected under the Temporary Restraining Order against Rifs starting during furlough. This includes our new DaoI siblings!" At the bottom in a bronze pill shaped box are the nffe.org and nffe-fsc.org websites.

Judge Illston added all @nffe.bsky.social units including is and DOI to the Temporary Restraining Order she had issued on the 15th. (democracyforward.org/updates/fede...) #bettertogether #holdtheline #unionsmatter #unionstrong

We encourage folks to go protest, as is your right, but be safe.

Yes! They won. #bettertogether #holdtheline

RIFS during a shutdown are illegal.

@oversightdemocrats.house.gov is accepting whistleblower reports to ensure accountability.

oversightdemocrats.house.gov/contact/tip-line

Our nation's federal employees are more than just numbers on a spreadsheet.

They make sure we have clean water.

They protect us from financial fraud.

They provide healthcare to our communities.

They make our government actually work for people.

Do not forget this.

Federal employees are guaranteed back pay at the end of any shutdown by law without question or exception. “This is clearly and unambiguously stated in the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act, which Congress passed nearly unanimously in 2019. Speaker Johnson and Senate Majority Leader Thune voted for that bill, and President Trump signed it into law. --Don Beyer original cosponsor.

Sponsors of the original law are speaking out-- what omb and trump are proposing is illegal. We will all be back paid period. To read the whole statement from Beyer: beyer.house.gov/news/documen...

We met with the agency National Leadership Council (NLC) . NLC is moving all employees out of excepted (work with no funding) to exempt (paid with non appropriated funds) . All exempt employees will be paid with carryover funding nationally for now. That funding should last 1-2pay periods . Once spent funding will depend on units' available funds such as: JobCorp is funded through DOL for the next year, Perms and Trust, Cost Recovery, GAOA, IIJA, IRA, and Disaster funds. http://www.NFFE.org & https://www.nffe-fsc.org

We met with the agency National Leadership Council (NLC) . NLC is still deciding how to handle Rx Burning nationally. The OMB guidance says the agency "may" RxBurn,so NLC is trying to develop the sideboards of when we can RxBurn. .We asked if they knew anything about potential RIFs or terminations. As news headlines were saying, NLC was originally expecting to see RIF notices come out simultaneous with furlough notices. Since that did not happen there is no telling if we will see them moving forward in ouragency or not. http://www.NFFE.org & https://www.nffe-fsc.org

Wemet with the agency National Leadership Council (NLC) . We told them NFFE FSC notices and are thankful for their efforts to ensure as many employees as possible are in exempt/paid status. . We informed them about the safety issues the banners on our websites seem to be creating for some of our frontline staff. We encouraged the NLC to inform the agency of this risk, and at minimum recommend that employees be aware of potential disgruntled public at admin sites and to work in pairs/groups especially with employees who are helping maintain developed rec sites when they do not normally do so as part of their job. http://www.NFFE.org & https://www.nffe-fsc.org

#yourworkmatters #bettertogether #nffestrong

✅ Key points from NFFE Call: ✅ Call will reoccur every Friday @1pmET for length of shutdown RIFs or Terminations during furlough are illegal against Anti- Deficiency Act and Administrative Procedures Act NFFE is most concerned with ending shutdown quickly and ensure BUEs do not lose pay, not political issues on healthcare etc. The cause of the shutdown really revolves around current Congressional Republicans refusing to work with Congressional Democrats on the continuing resolution and any budget bills Report any RIF notices we receive to NFFE BR immediately (Steve Gutierrez/Matt Brossard/Andy Vanderheuel/Genny Kotyk) BUEs and Members should follow NFFE website and sign up for email notifications NFFE Survey will come out soon about how the furlough is impacting BUEs/members' lives. PLEASE FILL OUT. Data and stories will be used for media to educate the public

Reach out with questions.

osc.gov/Services/Pag...

You had a point, it could have been an email.

Don't forget to preregister and join this call tonight!

Weaponizing government resources is illegal and wrong. Doing it while our members are being used as pawns puts public servants at risk. We should all be outraged, and it needs to stop. Now. On a red back ground with the nffe eagle and cogs logo watermarked.

Our members and colleagues do not have control of the fs or any agency website or what banners are posted. Those banners that are posted are putting us in physical danger, especially those of us who are required to continue working during this situation. #holdtheline #bettertogether #unionstrong

U.S. Forest Service Kills Off Smokey Bear To Get People Serious About Fire Safety

Well, this will be an adventure. Hopefully, we have enough snacks. #furlough2025 #ourworkmatters #saveourservices #bettertogether

NFFÉ If the shutdown happens: 1 Report to work as usual Wednesdav for an "orderlv shutdown"(AL will be canceled) unless the Forest Service informs you in writing that you are officially furloughed. Otherwise you risk an unexcused absence if you are not furloughed. 1a) Work devices will need to be secured at the office if you are not classified as "essential/exempt " take them all in tomorrow eg hotspots, laptops, tablets, radios, agency vehicles & their keys. 2) follow us on socials: insta @nffe _fsc, fb @ForestserviceCouncil, bluesky @nffe-fsc.bsky.social. 3)Sign Up for NFFE alerts using your personal email. Follow NFFE on insta @nffe_ union, Fb @NFFEunion, and BlueSky @nffe.bsky.social 4) Review your personal finances and prepare for the possibility of delayed paychecks. Reach out to banks, utilities and loan servicers to see what their process is going to look like- last time most worked with our emplovees. Regularly visit the NFFE-FSC website and NFFE-FSC on Facebook for news and updates! http://www.NFFE.org & https://www.nffe-fsc.org

Things to consider: 1) file an interim travel voucher if you are on a fire during this. 2) turn in leave requests for use or lose so they can be officially denied, this allows the leave to be reinstated if you don't get to use it. 3) update your timesheet(s). 3) stay within a 24hr call back range unless you have pre- approved leave. Given flight times, this doesn't limit your cheap beach options much. http://www.NFFE.org & https://www.nffe-fsc.org

What we have on good authority: 1) Folks working on priorities eg timber, minerals, and fire are going to be "essential*." 2) RX burns are canceled 3) Depending on the nepa project, appeal/objection review teams will be "essential" *Essential (Syn exempted) means working but not getting paid until a budget is passed. Plan accordingly for commuting and daycare costs! We got the 2019 Government Employee Fair Treatment Act passed. NFFE fought hard to pass the 2019 Government Employee Fair Treatment Act. This ensures that all furloughed employees will receive their backpay retroactively upon the government reopening. No more hoping Congress would vote to backpay us! http://www.NFFE.org & https://www.nffe-fsc.org

Funding lapses at 12:01 eastern if Congress doesn't act. #ourworkmatters #yourworkmatters #unionstrong nffe-fsc.org/shutdown

*comes. My use or lose for an edit button.

That letter from the secretary confess to mind.