Neighbor News
Judges Call on Social Security Commissioner Saul to Keep Promise
Association of Administrative Law Judges says it'll continue to protect working conditions and decisional independence
Judge Melissa McIntosh, president of the Association of Administrative Law Judges (AALJ), released the following statement following the decision involving the contract dispute with the Social Security Administration that SSA took to the Federal Service Impasses Panel:
“Given the unconstitutional make-up and persistent anti-union animus of the Federal Service Impasses Panel, we’re disappointed but not surprised that the panel ruled the way it did, in favor of management. We anticipated this very result and we’ll take all necessary legal action to protect the rights of America’s disability judges, especially during this time of a pandemic. The fight continues to protect working conditions and decisional independence in this hostile environment. This order disregards our professionalism and dedication to the due process rights of American citizens.”
AALJ says the SSA refuses to comply with the negotiated ground rules and has ordered the union to complete a ratification vote of the contract by May 4. The ground rules call for the parties to finalize a draft of the agreement, and only then begins the 60 days for the contract to be ratified. Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul and Deputy Commissioner David Black testified before Congress and said that they would work with the unions and comply with the law; the AALJ says they have not kept their word.
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Judge McIntosh stated, “Even today’s panel order states that SSA must comply with the ground rules. Commissioner Saul and Deputy Commissioner Black need to at least honor the agreement their representatives signed, while they have consistently refused to work with us and sought our union’s elimination through their bargaining proposals. A final version of the collective bargaining agreement must be completed and only then does the 60-day deadline for ratification begin. We’re in a pandemic. Should the swift elimination of one judges’ union really be the priority of Mr. Saul and Mr. Black?”
AALJ is a local of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Employees, AFL- CIO, and represents approximately 1,200 judges across 163 offices who preside in Social Security disability hearings across the U.S.
