Oversight
Lawmakers push labor-management partnerships
Bill would re-establish a council Bush dissolved in 2001, with the goal of helping front-line employees and managers work together more effectively.
Pay & Benefits
In Benefits Feds Trust
Comments on a story about Hillary Clinton’s health care proposal indicate that at least some federal employees are very protective of their benefits.
Oversight
Employee advocates cite disparities in Hatch Act enforcement
Career civil servants face much harsher consequences for breaking the law than most political appointees, witnesses say.
Defense
Commissioners call for streamlined vets benefits
Recommendations include assigning the Defense Department sole responsibility for performing physical exams that determine soldiers' fitness to serve.
Pay & Benefits
Clinton’s health plan unlikely to affect feds’ premiums
But analysts say it could promote changes in drug prices and insurer transparency.
Pay & Benefits
Mid-level hires rank government above previous employers
Federal jobs rated as better than survey respondents’ former work in 14 of 15 categories, including training and development.
Oversight
Report cites some gaps in Defense payroll security
More could be done to increase physical security of data in the Defense Civilian Pay System, auditors say.
Tech
Panelists offer advice on training technology
Capability and flexibility are more important than the latest bells and whistles, specialists say.
Pay & Benefits
Stepping In
Hands-on management is critical not only to rating employees effectively, but to motivating them.
Defense
Judge rejects request to halt NASA background checks
Ruling in suit filed by Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists says questionnaire is “relatively nonintrusive.”
Oversight
Watchdog criticizes State Department foreign aid staffing
Training is inconsistent, data to track aid workers is inadequate, and some employees are overstretched, GAO says.
Defense
Steady funding, staffing urged for executive boards
Groups can play a key role in crisis, but support and expectations need to be clear, panelists say at hearing.
Defense
Survey: Feds less satisfied than private employees with moving services
Federal employees and military personnel may keep their belongings in storage longer, increasing the possibility of damage.
Oversight
Arbitrator rules for union in dispute with IRS
Management rights don’t outweigh the need to bargain, arbitrator finds.
Pay & Benefits
Personnel chiefs grapple with workforce planning, pay systems
Measuring and managing performance -- and compensating workers based on it -- top many head human capital officers’ to-do lists.
Oversight
Air traffic controllers sue over alleged mold problems
Detroit controllers say mold persists despite efforts to remove it; FAA says the problem has been solved.
Oversight
House passes FAA reauthorization bill
Substantial differences remain between House and Senate over language on contract negotiations and funding.
Pay & Benefits
Making Better Pay Decisions
As pay-for-performance systems spread, managers who make compensation decisions need to be armed with as much data as possible.
Pay & Benefits