A new federal law enacted in response to the coronavirus crisis creates a temporary right to paid leave. Employees of the State of Nebraska, State College System, and County Employees can access this leave if they are eligible. Most employees are eligible. Click here to read our NAPE/AFSCME fact sheet about these leave benefits and […]

This is an unprecedented time for all of us. Nebraska state employees are on the front lines of the fight against COVID-19. NAPE hosted a webinar on March 23 to talk to you about the latest COVID-19 updates, your rights, and to answer questions. If you missed the webinar, you can watch by clicking here. […]

NAPE staff have been working tirelessly to make sure your voice is heard and that you are well represented during these uncertain times. We met with DAS Administrator Jason Jackson this morning to hear more about the state’s response to COVID-19 and to advocate on your behalf.  The governor is asking everyone not to meet […]

All NAPE membership meetings have been cancelled through the end of March as Governor Ricketts has ask groups to limit attendance to less than 10 people in response to the spread of COVID-19. Meetings that were scheduled in Omaha (3/19), Fremont (3/23), and Kearney (3/31) will no longer take place. We will re-evaluate April meetings […]

As we all adapt to the realities of life as the world responds to the spread of COVID-19, we wanted to provide information about how you may be affected as a state employee, and to provide some resources to help keep yourself and your family safe. As veteran NAPE members know, it is unlikely that […]

NAPE member Stacy Fratt was on her way to work at the DHHS Fremont Customer Service Center on July 5 when she had car trouble. She contacted her supervisor right away to let her know that she would be late, and might not possibly be able to get to work at all. Stacy ended up […]

The NAPE Board of Directors meet in Lincoln on Saturday, February 29 for their regular quarterly meeting. The BOD heard a number of reports and took action on a number of items. Below is a summary of action taken by the Board: The Membership, Organizational & Leadership Committee reported that 319 new members joined NAPE […]

In February, NAPE members nominated 48 eligible members to be delegates to our 2020 State Bargaining Conference. This is the official meeting of the union where delegates adopt our bargaining proposals and elect members to the negotiations team. There were 48 delegate positions available, plus 12 automatic delegates from the Board of Directors. We received […]

NAPE launched it’s “Join, Serve, Lead” campaign in order to build strength for contract negotiations in 2020. After posting a 17% growth in membership in 2019, NAPE has continued to grow in early 2020. After 73 new members joined NAPE in January, we posted a single month growth record in February with 94 new members […]

NAPE filed 78 grievances on behalf of members in 2019. NAPE prevailed in 75% of the cases, and over $100,000 in back wages and benefits were awarded to NAPE members who were wrongfully terminated and were reinstated to their jobs by arbitrators and hearing officers. Three more victories took place in January. Not many people […]

There has been a lot of talk this Legislative session about business tax “incentives.” You may have heard some of the arguments: “We need them to bring quality jobs.” “We need to say ‘we’re open for business.’” “It’s the only way to help our economy grow.” But the costs of Nebraska’s business tax “incentive” programs […]

In January, NAPE scored a major victory when DHHS rescinded its short sighted “business casual” dress code policy. Since the dress code was rescinded, certain leaders at DHHS have decided to ignore our agreement with the DAS Employee Relations Division under the guise of “the 2017 policy allows us to require whatever clothing we want.”  […]

Tami Krontz is an 18 year veteran state employee. Most of her career was spent as a pharmacy technician at the Lincoln Regional Center. In 2018, while fighting cancer, Tami was demoted from her pharmacy tech position, into the position of food service cook. Tami had no experience as a cook, and her battle with […]

It is with a heavy heart that we share news that NAPE member Sue Strnad passed away on December 19, 2019 at the age of 61. Sue was terminated by DHHS, despite having 3,000+ sick leave hours, as she bravely fought cancer. While Sue lost her battle with cancer, she won reinstatement to her job […]

When management makes a decision that violates our negotiated contract, our recourse is to enforce the contract through the grievance process. A huge benefit of union membership is having our stewards, staff and legal team fight for you free of charge. Your dues support individual grievances that have an impact on all members.  NAPE filed […]

Dory Howell is a seven-year veteran Social Service Worker at the ACCESSNebraska Fremont Customer Service Center. Like many DHHS employees, she was frustrated when DHHS announced its new dress code policy. The changes will cost Dory money that she doesn’t have, they will require her to obtain an ADA accommodation to wear comfortable shoes, and […]

The NAPE contract clearly allows state employees to use earned sick leave for any diagnosed illness. It came as a shock to 42 year veteran DHHS DD Service Coordinator Sue Strnad when the agency terminated her employment after she was diagnosed with cancer despite having over 3,000 hours of earned sick leave available for her […]

Every two years the NAPE Board of Directors determines the number of union members that will be elected to the NAPE bargaining conference, the dates/location of the conference, and the nomination/election timeline. The bargaining conference is the official meeting of the union where elected member delegates determine what items will be placed into our contract […]

NAPE Stewards are union members like you that have been trained to advocate, represent, and assist employees. 40 NAPE stewards attended a development seminar in Omaha in October to freshen their skills in representing members. If you think that a manager has misapplied the contract or has mistreated you, be sure to alert your steward. […]