My favorite movie is “She Wore a Yellow Ribbon” starring John Wayne as Captain Nathan Brittles. In the end, Captain Brittles is retiring and riding into the sunset when Trooper Tyree catches him and hands him orders to return to the Army as Chief of Scouts.
I felt like that happened to me when I was elected your President in 2015. I am proud of that, and I thank all of you who voted for me and have supported us as we moved forward. We’ve faced difficult times and we have met them head on and have come out on the winning side every time. The announcement of Submission Processing stunned all of us. We moved into action immediately and have succeeded in the best agreement ever, the first CORE room to help employees and several other things, including job fairs and college outreach and retirement counselors on site. Were there lessons learned? Yes, and plans put into action to correct the weak areas. We had a great Holiday Luncheon and Party this year. The representation program has improved, and membership has grown. I would consider the last 3 years the best Chapter 73 has performed in years.
There are more jobs coming also. Everyone that wants to work will have an opportunity to apply and get a job. That is great! I’ve been with the IRS for 32 years and six months and just recently turned 63. It is time for this Old Captain to ride off into the sunset and say goodbye. I’ve accomplished what I sat out to do when elected and more. I have done my time in service of our country, which began as a Lieutenant in the Ohio Army National Guard in 1977 and ends February 28, 2018. want to thank everyone that has helped me, and especially those that have helped our members. Thank you all, see you all later.
Rick Riley
President NTEU Chapter 73