In response to the ruling against the Department of Homeland Security’s
proposed personnel regulations and its plan to postpone the implementation
of the first phase of its pay-for-performance system for a year or
more, the Department of Defense plans to move forward with finalizing
regulations and its plans to implement the National Security Personnel
System later this year.
It issued a timeline with the statement that calls for notifying
Congress of final regulations in early autumn, followed shortly by
publication in the Federal Register.
Thirty days after publication the regulation will be in effect and
DoD may begin a phased implementation with the labor-relations portion
of the new system covering all bargaining unit employees simultaneously,
according to the timeline.
It said other provisions will be phased in by spiral, with labor
relations targeted for early fiscal 2006 and performance management
set for early in the 2006 calendar year.
Following implementation, supervisors will be required to work with
employees to establish performance goals and expectations aligned
with mission goals, said DoD, adding that training would be available
for both groups prior to implementation.
The HR and appeals system is also targeted for early in the 2006
calendar year, followed by HR elements such as pay banding and
staffing flexibilities after general pay increases and within-grade
buyouts.
The first performance-based payouts under NSPS are scheduled for
January 2007. Spiral 1.2 is scheduled for spring of 2006 to be
followed by Spiral 1.3 about six months later.
