The bill also would widen a special noncompetitive hiring authority for spouses of military personnel who are relocated under military orders. Image: Mike Flippo/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffHouse and Senate negotiators have reached agreement on a key DoD spending bill that among other things expands eligibility for federal employees to take paid parental leave and extends to spouses of DoD employees a special hiring authority for spouses of military personnel.
The defense authorization bill could reach final approval as soon as this week. It is considered a “must-pass” annual measure that typically passes with strong bipartisan support. Negotiators dropped several social policy provisions that House Republicans had added that resulted in passage there on a partisan vote.
Among the workforce provisions is one addressing a requirement that a federal employee have at least one year of service before qualifying for paid parental leave; the one-year requirement is part of the underlying Family and Medical Leave Act, which created the parental leave entitlement, although the leave is unpaid under that law. The provision would credit toward that requirement military service time, so long as the discharge was under honorable conditions.
The bill also would widen a special noncompetitive hiring authority for spouses of military personnel who are relocated under military orders. It would extend that authority for them to positions that can be performed offsite, and would further extend the authority to spouses of civilian DoD employees who are relocated as part of a change in official duty station.
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