The agency credited hiring process improvements and use of direct-hire authority from trimming months of the hiring process. Image: Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe IRS has said it’s near its goal to add 5,000 employees to its customer service operations, an area where the agency has come under heavy criticism for under-performance in recent years.
The agency said it already has achieved a gain of 4,000, with a goal of adding the final additional 1,000 by year’s end. Those hired undergo several weeks of training weeks on issues including technical account management issues and understanding and respecting taxpayer rights.
It credited hiring process improvements and use of direct-hire authority for shortening to several months a process that previously took about eight months.
“Many employees will be in place for the start of the 2023 tax season, and others will join as their training is completed in the following weeks. Almost all of their training will be completed by Presidents Day 2023; traditionally the period when the IRS sees the highest phone volumes. The IRS anticipates phones will be answered at a much higher level during the 2023 filing season,” it said.
The IRS also is focusing on increased hiring in areas including IT and compliance with funding from the Inflation Reduction Act enacted in August. That law has been the subject of much misinformation from Republican congressional candidates and others regarding the funds it provided for IRS hiring, most of which will be simply to keep up with attrition across the agency over the next 10 years.
Pay Gap Increases; New, Expanded Localities Again Recommended
Early Marker for 2024 Raise Set: 5.2 Percent
Pay Attention to Family vs. Self Plus One Rates in FEHB, OPM Advises
October Returns a Treat for TSP Stock Fund Investors
It’s ‘Critical’ to Act This Year to Bar a New Schedule F, Groups Say
TSP Investors Down $120 Billion for Year; Average Account Loses $30,000
Settlement over OPM Database Breaches Approved; Deadline ahead for Filing Claims
See also,
FEHB: Federal Benefits Fast Facts
FEHB Open Season Ahead – Time to Shop
Watch for ‘Significant’ FEHB Plan Changes, OPM Says
Enrollee Share of FEHB Premiums to Rise 8.7 Percent on Average for 2023
January Retirement COLA Set: 8.7 Percent for CSRS, 7.7 Percent for FERS
FERS Retirement Planning Bundle: 2022 FERS Guide & TSP Handbook
