Critical Thinking

Assignment 1 - Critical Thinking

University of Maryland University College

Assignment 1 - Critical Thinking

The Purpose of this paper is to apply the 10 steps developed by (Browne & Keeley, 2010) and I will apply those methods on the following memo. A memo was drafted by Ms. Mary Ford (personal communication, January 30, 2012) who is Director of Amalgamated Public Employees Union (APEU) Local No. 121 to Mr. Hector Fuentes the President of APEU Local No. 121 on the issue on New Mexico State Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Outsourcing, proposed by the New Mexico Governor Gloria Gainor. This is response memo to the Governor’s (personal communication, October 20, 2011) letter informing the APEU Local No. 121 the intent to privatize and outsourcing of their DMV information management systems in the state of New Mexico.

Step 1: What Are the Issue and the Conclusion? (Browne & Keeley, 2010, Chapter 3)

The issue is that should Governor proceed with the intent to “outsource and privatize the information systems management function” of their New Mexico DMV, thereby effecting 43 of their union members.

Author’s conclusion is that APEU Local No. 121 should oppose the governor’s proposal “as an unfair management practice” that affect their 43 union members and some of them will lose their job in the process of privatization and outsourcing of DMV information systems management functions. This proposed action clearly violates some of the core principles dictated in the Pendleton Act of 1883, which protects both the federal and state employees against any gain or efficient government operations. The author also suggested the alternate method to avoid this proposal by attacking on the convention center project commented as “wasteful” and recommend the governor to abandon that project to protect the APUE union member jobs.

Step 2: What are the Reasons? (Browne & Keeley, 2010, Chapter 4)

According to the (Browne & Keeley, 2010, Chapter 4) this is step 2 and the purpose is to identify the reasons behind the author’s conclusion. The following below reasons justifies the author’s conclusion.

1. Foreign companies will win the proposed governors contract and will accept lower wages than the current pay of our union members. This will set as a precedent to reduction of union employee wages in other state departments and agencies in the future.

2. Strong belief is that dispersing union members will undermine the union ability to protect their union members against the government management decisions in the future. The dispersing method also leads to lower union members, and union will be powerless to protect the government union members in the future.

3. The