Pay & Benefits
USDA Slashes Buyout Payments for Scientific Agency Employees By 60% Ahead of Relocation
Employees of research agencies have less than a week to decide whether to accept $10,000 voluntary separation payments, despite being offered upwards of $25,000 in June.
Management
Decoding the Language of Behavioral Science for Government Officials
Before the techniques can be used to improve program outcomes, it’s helpful if we can agree on what the terminology actually means.
Management
USDA, Union Reach Deal to Ease Relocation Impact on Feds
Employees who agree to move to Kansas City will be given a financial incentive and a transition period of at least three months during which they can continue to work from Washington.
Oversight
Lawmaker on USDA Office Relocations: 'This Fight is Not Over'
Department officials reaffirmed they will allow employees to change their mind about whether to move to Kansas City until late September, but management has resisted setting that in stone.
Management
USDA Employees Who Didn’t Already Opt to Move to Kansas City May Be Out of Luck
Department officials say July 15 was the hard and fast deadline to accept reassignments, despite previously indicating there was wiggle room until September.
Management
Republicans and Democrats Divided on Approach to Scientific Integrity at Federal Agencies
Democrats hold hearing to advocate for a bill they say would protect federal researchers from inappropriate political influence.
Management
More than Half of USDA Science Agency Employees May Leave Rather than Relocate
The union representing workers at the Economic Research Service and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture has requested a one-year period of full-time telework to ease the transition to Kansas City.
Management
EPA Failed to Ensure Outside Advisers Don’t Have Conflicts of Interest
Staff failed to follow agency procedures in documenting decisions, vetting financial disclosure forms.
Workforce
Career Feds Publicly Defy Trump Administration Over Climate Change
One employee resigns while another challenges an agency chief.
Management
Breakthrough Technologies Offer Enormous Opportunity for Federal Leaders—If They Seize It
What Silicon Valley calls “exponential technologies” could transform agency operations and boost national security.
Management
How Behavioral Science Could Improve Federal Programs
The private sector has been using psychological insight for years to promote certain outcomes.
Management
Inquiries at EPA's Science Integrity Office Spike Under Trump
Employees are increasingly going to integrity officers with concerns over interference into science.
Management
Trump Orders Agencies to Slash Federal Advisory Panels
Scientific community worries the cuts will eliminate its impact on federal decision-making.
Defense
Climate’s Role In Armed Conflict Will Likely Increase
As global temperatures climb, the risk of armed conflict is expected to increase substantially, experts say.
Management
It's Time to End the 'Manel' Tradition of All-Male Speaking Panels
"It is not enough to give lip service to equality; leaders must demonstrate their commitment through their actions," says Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health.
Management
Kansas City Region Will Host Relocated Agriculture Offices
Local lawmakers welcome Secretary Perdue’s choice in still-disputed moves out of Washington, D.C.
Oversight
Former Republican EPA Chiefs Condemn Trump's Leadership of the Agency
Four former administrators say the Trump administration is putting the environment, and public health, at risk.
Workforce
Union Organizers Score Another Win at USDA
Staff at National Institute of Food and Agriculture vote 137-2 to join the American Federation of Government Employees.
Tech
The True Price of Privatizing Space Travel
As NASA opens up the International Space Station to private astronauts, the romance of space will be within reach for those who can afford it.
Tech