The official website for NFFE Local 1998 is: http://nffe1998.org/.
 

The website was created by former Local 1998 President Bill Beardall. He brought a lot of his own experience and knowledge into creating and improving the website, and he was helped by the IAMAW as well through his attendance at two week-long courses on web development at the IAMAW's Winpisinger Center. VP Mike Garofano, S/T Rob Arnold, and Union President Colin Walle have also assisted with the development of the website.  Garofano and Arnold also attended the IAMAW's web development classes.

To access the website, type "http://nffe1998.org/" into your web browser (preferably Internet Explorer) and hit "enter" or press the "Go" button. You will then be on the Main Page of the website. This page houses the latest "News & Information" on our local. Scroll down the page to read the headlines. Some of the stories have links to more information or to other web pages.

How to save as a "Favorite" 

All Union officers should check out the website on a weekly basis, if not more frequently. It is recommended that you save the website as a "Favorite" for easy access on a regular basis. To do this, click on the "Favorites" tab at the very top of the Internet Explorer frame (between "View" and "Tools"), then select "Add to Favorites", which should be the first option in the list that opens up. A box will open asking if you want to save the web site as a Favorite. Click "Okay". The site will normally be saved at the bottom of your list of favorites. You can move it to a higher, more visible position, by dragging it to the top of the list of favorites and releasing it there (to see the list on a regular basis, you have to click on the "Favorites" button - below the "Favorites" tab and between the "Search" and "Media" buttons on the second line from the top in the Internet Explorer frame).

Below the NFFE Local 1998 banner at the top of the page, you will see a horizontal bar with seven links:

• FL 1998 Home (this will return you to the News & Information homepage)

• Union Stewards (this takes you to the Steward resources section)

• Union Membership (provides information to current and prospective dues-paying members)

• NFFE National (this links to the NFFE National website)

• IAMAW (this links to the IAMAW website)

• AFL-CIO (this links to the AFL-CIO website)

• Union Websites (page of links to other Union-related websites)

On the left-hand side of the Main Page you will see this series of links:

• About Local 1998

• Contract (CBA) 

• PPT/Local 1998 Docs

• Legislative Action

• Fed News Resources

• News Archive

• History 

About Local 1998: If someone asks you to briefly describe NFFE Local 1998, who we are and what we do, this is the link to go to for the answers.

Contract (CBA): This web page houses a linked version of the contract, formally known as the "Agreement between Passport Services and NFFE Local 1998". As an added bonus, there are links within the text of the various articles to other websites (for example, in the opening paragraph of the Article 1 Preamble, the words "Bureau of Consular Affairs" are linked to that website, and the words "National Federation of Federal Employees" are linked to NFFE's website). This is a key site for Union officers to visit.

PPT/Local 1998 Docs: This is where important documents relating to NFFE Local 1998 and Passport Services are housed.  Memorandums of Understanding, locally negotiated agreements (e.g., work schedules, dress code), decisions and orders by the FLRA relating to the parties, and other documents are posted here.   

Legislative Action: This page houses links and stories on issues affecting federal workers that are before Congress, as well as information about the Hatch Act.

Fed News Resources: This is a very useful page for employees and Union officers to check out. At the top of the page are links to various NFFE and IAMAW news resources. Scroll down below that and you'll find links to independent organizations that report on news stories relevant to federal workers. Scroll down to the bottom and you'll find links to the pay scales - employees are always interested in this information - as well as the Thrift Savings Plan and the National Whistleblower Center.

News Archive: This link houses all of the stories that were once on the New & Info Main Page. For ease at locating a past story, there are links at the top of the page to easily identifiable categories as well as the all-inclusive "other".  Also, all of copies of Local 1998 News - our Union newsletter - are stored here as well.  

History: All Union officers, Union members, and prospective Union members should check out this link, which covers events in the history of NFFE Local 1998 from before its inception to the present. Links at the top take you to the history of NFFE, the IAMAW, the Department of State, the FSLMRS (the law that governs federal labor-management relations), and - eventually - to Passport History.
 

Updated 3-14-2009