National VA union president visits Chillicothe, encourages employees to unionize
CHILLICOTHE— The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) National President Everett Kelley visited the Chillicothe Veterans' Affairs Medical Center (CVAMC) last week to encourage employees to unionize.
Monday through Friday, visitors got free food, information about joining AFGE and a fist-bump from Kelley as he introduced himself to every employee individually.
His goal: to save the VA.
More: AFGE president fights for VA employees and veterans
In March, the Department of Veterans Affairs' recommended closing the CVAMC in a report to the Asset and Infrastructure Review (AIR) Commission because it "is not optimally located."
A final decision will be made by President Joe Biden and Congress by January 2023. If approved, the implementation timeline could be anywhere between one and 20 years.
"I believe in helping people and our people need assistance," Kelley said. "Some people, in my opinion, are still in shock. They're still in disbelief about what's really about to happen... This place maintains jobs for 1,400 people. That's a massive economic impact."
He is traveling across the county, recruiting members to the union and "getting them to understand the urgency of our mission."
Kelley hopes that AFGE members, along with employees, veterans and members of the community, can band together to save the VA. He said it's important for community members to get involved and understand the importance of the VA system.
He also hopes to encourage the union and VA management to work together as a team to make informed decisions.
Kelley is working on getting an economic impact study for the area to calculate the impact the loss of the CVAMC would have on the community and to "send a strong message" to the AIR Commission.
He hopes to shut down the AIR commission entirely.
Joe Mansour with AFGE has also been encouraging employees to unionize.
"We're talking to people about the importance of getting organized. Helping us save the hospital, thanking them for the excellent job," Mansour said. "We're just talking to our employees about ways to help us save the hospital and improve the morale."
Mansour encouraged the community to communicate to local leaders and to not limit complaints to congressmen and senators.
"Also talk to the state leaders, City Councils, etc," Mansour said. "Call your politicians and tell them that you're against the hospital closing."
Megan Becker is a reporter for the Chillicothe Gazette. She can be reached at 740-349-1106, email her at mbecker@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @BeckerReporting
This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: VA union president visits Chillicothe, encourages employees to unionize
