Snider and Associates is a law firm representing the National Federation of Federal Employees in a grievance that is now pending arbitration. The grievance alleges that the Forest Service has violated the Fair Labor Standards Act and other requirements for overtime pay.

Representatives from Snider & Associates have been contacting employees during duty hours stating that they may be asked to become witnesses to this matter or they may have information relevant to a matter such as overtime and other pay-related matters. Employees have often been asked to complete surveys and have reached out to their supervisors for direction on how to respond to these various requests.

What you need to do

• If you are a bargaining unit employee represented by NFFE (shown by bargaining unit status code 2009 in Box 37 of your most recent SF-50), then you may talk to the Snider Law Firm if you choose to do so. In this matter, the law firm is your union’s representative. However, you must follow the procedures in Article 4.7 of the NFFE Master Agreement (internal link, Page 10-11), which requires release from official duties from your supervisor. You are not required to seek supervisory approval if you respond during non-duty hours.

• For bargaining-unit employees that are represented by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) or the National Association of Government Employees (NAGE) (shown by bargaining unit status code 2028, 2144, 2153, 2192, 2186, 2202, 2266, 2279, 2300 or 2456 in Box 37 of your SF-50), you may speak to the Snider Law Firm, provided any communication occurs during non-duty hours. Since NFFE is not your union representative, you are not covered by Article 4.7 of the NFFE Master Agreement, and there is no authority for you to request official time to respond.

• For employees on an unorganized forest or unit (shown by bargaining unit status code 7777 in Box 37 of your SF-50), you are not represented by any union. You are not covered by Article 4.7 of the NFFE Master Agreement, and there is no authority for you to request official time to respond. You may speak with representatives of the Snider Law Firm, provided any communication occurs during non-duty hours.

• For supervisors, managers, or confidential employees (shown by bargaining unit status code 8888 in Box 37 of your SF-50), you are excluded by law from representation by any union. You should not talk to the Snider Law Firm, and any attempts to contact you should be brought to the attention of your Labor Relations Specialist [internal only] for further assistance.

Accessing your SF-50 to determine your status

Any questions or concerns should be brought to the attention of your Labor Relations Specialist, contacts can be found on the HRM Labor Relations website [internal only].

You may access your SF-50s by:

Logging in to ConnectHR

1. Select eOPF from the left menu

2. Select My eOPF, scroll through to select the required documents and print individual documents – retain for your records

3. If you are unable to access eOPF, contact the HRM Help Desk. Please allow up to 30 days for your request to be fulfilled. You are encouraged to make these requests as soon as possible.

Help is available

Open an HR Help case:

1. Call: 1-877-372-7248, Press 2

2. Email: hrm_contact_center@usda.gov

3. Self-Service: ConnectHR, then click HR Help

For detailed instructions, visit the HR Help How-to Add a Case Guide (PDF, 1.22 MB).