Scrutiny of DoD, DHS Rules Begins

New personnel rules for the Defense and Homeland Security departments will come under scrutiny by both the legislative and judicial branches in the period ahead. Hearings are upcoming in Congress on the new systems, which each restrict union rights, revamp employee appeal rights and move the agencies toward a pay-for-performance system incorporating pay banding; at a Senate hearing focusing on DHS some members expressed reservations about how fairly unions and individual employees would be treated under the new system, although members stopped short of indicating they might change the underlying law. Meanwhile, federal unions have filed suit against the DoD rules, arguing that DoD failed to follow the requirements for consulting with them. Earlier the unions also had filed suit against the DHS rules, arguing that that department exceeded its authority under the law.