In challenging OPM’s conclusions, National Treasury Employees Union said its experience with these alternative personnel systems has been characterized by grievances, arbitration, litigation, high attrition and low morale.
"The problems may differ from agency to agency but the reality is that each of these programs is terribly flawed," said NTEU president Colleen Kelley.
The union said that at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation just 12 percent of employees in a recent survey said their performance was accurately reflected in performance evaluations under their alternative personnel system.
It said IRS managers have not embraced the performance management system implemented for them and cited a Treasury inspector general report from last year that found the system hinders the agency’s ability to recruit and motivate leaders.
"The key to these kinds of compensation systems rests on a trilogy of ideas," Kelly said, adding, "They must not only be fair—they must be seen by employees as being fair; they must be credible; and they must be transparent, particularly in communicating to employees how they must perform to achieve a given level and in communicating why various decisions have been made."
