WASHINGTON, Dec. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr. issued the following statement in response to the "Best Places to Work" survey released today by the Partnership for Public Service:

"This survey shows what happens when you make federal workers the singular target of deficit reduction schemes. Federal employees have had their salaries frozen since January 2010, while employees who join the government next year will have to pay almost four times more for their retirement than current employees. Meanwhile, agencies have been forced to freeze hiring, downsize staff, curtail operating hours and take other draconian steps to deal with massive budget cutbacks.

"To turn these numbers around, our elected officials must stop the relentless attacks on federal employee jobs, wages and benefits. And agency managers need to do a better job of engaging with front-line employees and their unions in order to communicate how valued they are, especially in these difficult times."

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee union, representing 670,000 workers in the federal government and the government of the District of Columbia.

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SOURCE American Federation of Government Employees