CVC Union Welcomes Firing Of CEO

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)

The union organizing workers at the Capitol Visitor Center welcomed the news yesterday that the Center’s CEO has been fired (Head of Capitol Visitors Center gets fired, The Hill 7/27). “You have taken the first steps towards correcting an untenable situation at the CVC,” AFSCME Council 26 Executive Director Carl Goldman wrote to Architect of the Capitol Stephen Ayers. “Management has put the visiting public and employees in potentially dangerous situations through the mishandling of suspicious substances. It has endangered employees’ health by limiting Visitor Assistants’ access to water when working outside on hot days, and has only provided them with light weight jackets when working outside during the winter.” Noting that “the Capitol Visitor Center needs not only a change in personality, but also a change in management philosophy,” Goldman urged Ayers to recognize the CVC workers “as an asset to be valued and consulted,” adding that “CVC employees believe in the mission of the agency. With a CEO and management team that values their work, you will find them and AFSCME to be important partners in serving Congress and the visiting public.”