End of Fiscal Year Concerns Raised
In what has become something of an annual ritual, some employees are expressing concerns about potential agency shutdowns with the …More
Fedweek
Sign up Now! Free eNewslettersDHS, DoD Bills also Pending
Also pending final action–and also a candidate to be included in a catchall bill–is the appropriations measure covering DHS, which …More
Raise Likely Would Be Divided
Although the appropriations bills are silent on the issue, a 3.9 percent raise likely would be divided between across-the-board and …More
Congress Returns to Plate of Leftovers
Congress has returned to work from a month-long break with a goal of working only until around the end of …More
Critical Position, Pay Setting Regs Published
OPM in the August 26 Federal Register issued final regulations to govern the use of the critical position pay authority. …More
Expert’s View: Behind the Scenes at FEHB
The announcement of new coverages and rates in the FEHB program precede the annual open season for making enrollment changes, …More
MSPB Looks at Hiring Practices
MSPB recently examined how federal agencies use various hiring practices and found an increasing reliance on alternative authorities that are …More
FEDVIP Rules Finalized
Meanwhile, OPM published in the August 26 Federal Register the final version of operating rules for the FEDVIP program that …More
FEDVIP Enrollment Policy Clarified
OPM recently sent a memo to agencies clarifying the policy on enrollments in the FEDVIP vision and dental insurance program …More
Open Season Also Affects FSAs, FEDVIP
During the same open season period, employees will be able to sign up for flexible spending accounts for the 2009 …More
FEHB ‘Underserved’ Areas Expanded
OPM has expanded the list of “medically underserved” areas for FEHB program purposes by adding Illinois; no states were dropped. …More
No Major Changes in Coverage Expected
In its annual "call letter" to carriers earlier this year, OPM did not mandate major changes in benefits in the …More
FEHB Announcement Likely in Near Future
The annual announcement of premiums and plan offerings in FEHB for the upcoming plan year—that is, calendar year—is likely to …More
Postal Early Out Offers Being Made
The U.S. Postal Service has started sending out offers of early retirement, starting with about 3,000 employees in headquarters, and …More
Rates Vary Among Agencies
Of large agencies, those with more than 15,000 employees, the highest rates of complaints were filed at Education, HUD and …More
EEO Complaints Down a Bit
Federal employees and job applicants filed somewhat fewer equal employment opportunity complaints in fiscal 2007, 16,363 compared with 16,723 in …More
Funding, Pay Caps Also Important
CRS said that the size of the funding pool available for payouts is a primary consideration, since "if employees do …More
Fairness a Key Issue
The report said that for such systems to be successful, supervisors, employees and unions "must believe that a pay system …More
Pay for Performance Called a Mixed Bag
A report done for Congress on pay for performance systems in the federal government notes that some 300,000 federal employees …More
Update on Security Clearance Processing
An OPM official recently testified before a Senate panel on the timeliness of processing security clearances that are needed for …More
In Your Dreams Department
A congressional report earlier this year said that following federal pay law for the January 2009 general schedule raise would …More
Key Pay Group to Meet
The Federal Salary Council, a key advisory group on general schedule pay, is set to meet September 5 and 30. …More
COLA Count Up to 6.2
Through ten months of the counting period toward the January 2009 federal retiree COLA, the count stands at 6.2 percent, …More
Correction: Life Insurance Procedure
In the Expert’s View column of August 13 on FEGLI and those called to active duty, it was stated that …More
Expert’s View: Sick Leave Credit for FERS?
In a surprising turn of events, the House has approved language that would give FERS employees service time credit for …More
MSPB Reports on Appeals Outcomes
Of the nearly 6,900 employee appeals to MSPB in 2007, just above half were dismissed without a hearing, usually for …More
Ethics Office Tees Up Guidance on Events
DoD’s ethics office has issued guidance on the restrictions on employees accepting invitations to play golf or to attend sporting, …More
What Happens When Cap is Hit
If FERS investors hit the dollar cap before the last pay period of the year, their contributions will shut off …More
Guard Against Hitting TSP Dollar Cap
This time of year is a good point for FERS employees to check to make sure they won’t lose government …More
