Management
OPM announces a program to make it easier for ex-interns to get full-time federal work
A new feature within USAJOBS’ Agency Talent Portal will allow agencies to hire former interns from other agencies into term or permanent federal positions.
Workforce
Facing tight budgets, agencies turn to workforce restrictions to rein in costs
Biden began his presidency seeking to boost the civil service and improve federal hiring. At many agencies, he is ending it by cutting back.
Management
Fixing the broken federal hiring process is critical to improving government performance
COMMENTARY | It's time to fix what has become a convoluted and broken system.
Workforce
Biden administration launches emergency hiring efforts to support hurricane relief efforts
Federal agencies can quickly appoint new employees, who can serve up to two years.
Oversight
GAO: Agency HR offices need better communication with officials in remote posts
Federal officials in Alaska, Hawaii and the United States’ various offshore territories said they struggle to combat high attrition at federal jobs in the non-contiguous U.S., despite some agencies’ efforts.
Workforce
Trump promises pay raises and bonuses to spark a DHS hiring spree
Border Patrol has struggled to hire for a decade, however, and is already offering bonuses larger than Trump is proposing.
Workforce
Young people don’t trust the federal government, but will work for it
The Partnership for Public Service suggested that federal agencies could consider partnering with social media influencers to build trust with young people.
Workforce
Amid hiring surge, FAA taps outside schools to boost air traffic controller training
The agency is looking to reduce bottlenecks as it attempts to reverse a longstanding slide in air traffic controller staffing.
Oversight
Amid hiring surge, two VA agencies face employee background check deficiencies
The inspector general warned that shortcomings in the agencies’ background check programs were letting in unvetted staff.
Workforce
Harris touts plan to bring on more border agents, but hiring is already lagging
The vice president is visiting the border to discuss ideas for the workforce that may be difficult to implement in practice.
Oversight
36% of new IRS hires faced delays due to technical and security clearance jams
Despite hiring 64% of its new employees in fiscal 2022 and 2023 within its 80-day goal, it took the IRS an average of 124 days to employ roughly 19,000 personnel due, in part, to system limitations.
Tech
Expedited STEM and cybersecurity hiring authority extended
OPM grants direct hire authority to agencies when there’s a lack of candidates or major hiring needs.
Workforce
Congressional committees tackle bills governing telework, marijuana and labor unions
While a Senate panel advanced bills improving telework data reporting by federal agencies and codifying the end of the restriction on federal employees’ past use of marijuana, its House counterpart advanced controversial bills aimed at busting federal employee unions and adding leading questions to the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey.
Workforce
Harris touts skills-based hiring for feds on the campaign trail
The move to skills-based hiring for federal government jobs has been ongoing under the Trump and Biden administrations.
Oversight
Republicans criticize EEOC over nixed one-day furlough
The agency said that no additional funding and a high pay increase for federal employees helped create its budget shortfall, but GOP leaders called it a failure to adjust spending.
Oversight
National Park Service’s IRA hiring surge could fail ahead of funding deadline
While the legislation gave hundreds of millions to NPS for hiring, it didn’t grant new hiring flexibilities, which the Interior Department inspector general reports is hampering progress.
Management
OPM and OMB unveil a new plan to improve the federal hiring ‘experience’ for both workers and HR managers
The Biden administration’s latest effort to improve the federal hiring process provides a roadmap for implementing decades-old calls for reform.
Workforce
As millions of acres burn, firefighters say the U.S. Forest Service has left them with critical shortages
The country’s wildland firefighting resources are spread thin, more blazes are imminent, and supervisors of local crews are reluctant to allow firefighters to travel far from home to help elsewhere.
Workforce
A Senate panel has advanced bills codifying skills-based hiring, restricting IG employees’ political activity
Bipartisan legislation would add employees in agency offices of inspectors general to the list of those “further restricted” from political activity under the Hatch Act.
Workforce