Letter to the President of the Senate and to the Speaker of the House on Withholding of Federal Employee Organization Dues.

[Released April 19, 1962. Dated April 18, 1962]

Dear Mr.___________:

I am transmitting for the consideration of Congress a draft bill to authorize Federal agencies to withhold from the pay of federal civilian employees the dues for membership in certain employee organizations. Withholding of dues would require voluntary authorization by the employee concerned and he would be allowed to withdraw his authorization at reasonable intervals.

Employee organizations granted the privilege of dues withholding would be those organizations sufficiently representative of employees to be consulted regularly on personnel matters. The costs of withholding would be borne by the employee organizations.

The draft bill results directly from the intensive study and subsequent recommendation of the President's Task force on Employee-Management Relations in the Federal Service, consisting of the heads of the Bureau of the Budget, the Civil Service Commission, Departments of Defense, Labor, and Post Office, and of the Special Counsel to the President. The draft bill is an important step in providing for employee-management cooperation in the public service. It will assist employee organizations in representing employees and will thus contribute to more effective participation by employees in the formulation and implementation of personnel policies affecting them. It will provide Federal employees with a convenient method of dues payment which has long been available to employees in private industry and which is widespread in State and municipal governments.

The draft bill represents a progressive step in the Federal Government's relations with employee organizations and I hope it will be acted upon promptly.

Also enclosed is a copy of a letter from the Secretary of Labor transmitting the draft bill and an explanatory statement prepared by the Department of Labor.

Sincerely,

JOHN F. KENNEDY