Few Firings or Resignations
The MSPB survey asked supervisors if they would select their probationer again if given the chance to do it over. …More
Fedweek
Sign up Now! Free eNewslettersMSPB: Probationary Period Not Being Used Effectively
The Merit Systems Protection Board has released a study on the issue of probationary periods, that period after hiring in …More
Expert’s View: Annual Leave and Retirement
If you are targeted in a reduction-in-force (RIF), there is a way of staying on your agency’s payroll until you …More
Just for the Record
The salary council estimates the overall average pay gap between federal and private sector pay under a 1990 federal pay …More
Raises Would Range up to 5.62 Percent
Assuming that a 3.1 percent raise is ultimately enacted, 2.1 percent of that most likely would be paid across the …More
Senate Takes Up Raise Measure
The Senate has taken up the Transportation-Treasury appropriations bill (HR-3058) that as usual is serving as the vehicle for the …More
Social Security Numbers Also Changing
The 4.1 percent COLA also will be applied to Social Security benefits, mainly of interest to those retired under the …More
COLA, Raises Two Different Things
The retiree COLA, which is set through an automatic inflation-linked process, has no direct effect on pay raises for active …More
2006 COLA Set at 4.1 Percent
Those retired under the CSRS retirement system, who make up the large majority of federal retirees, will get a 4.1 …More
Federal Legal Corner: EEOC Reiterates Reasonable Suspicion Rule
The EEOC recently issued a decision (Bradley v. Dept. of Homeland Security, EEOC No. 01A53129 (2005)), which reiterates a well …More
Loan Policy Improvement Price Tag Set
The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that passing pending legislation to make student loan reimbursement payments for federal employees tax-free …More
DoD Issues Travel Comp Time Policy
The Defense Department has issued guidance carrying out authority enacted last year for agencies to grant compensatory time off for …More
Commissary Access Rules Loosened
The Defense Department has sent out interim guidance to permit broader access to military exchanges, commissaries, morale/welfare/recreation and lodging facilities …More
Large Number of Employees Affected by Katrina
The Congressional Research Service has estimated that in the three states most affected by Hurricane Katrina, there are 55,253 federal …More
Expert’s View: Those Actuarial Reductions
Actuarial reductions are one of the mysteries of the retirement system, writes benefits expert Reg Jones. “They are only used …More
OPM’s Explanation of Reform Proposal
At the hearing, Springer outlined both the proposals and the administration’s justification for them. For a closer look, go to …More
Measure Targets DHS Contracting, Personnel System
Meanwhile, Congress has cleared the fiscal 2006 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security (HR-2360), which bars the agency …More
Judge Again Rules Against DHS Rules
A federal judge in Washington, D.C. has issued another ruling against parts of the revised personnel rules planned at the …More
Bill Contains Other Restrictions, as Well
The DoD measure also would require that the in-house bid be based on a “most efficient organization” and bars contracting-out …More
Contracting Limits on DoD Advance
The Senate has passed an appropriations bill for the Defense Department (HR-2863) despite a Bush administration statement that it “strongly …More
Proposed Personnel Overhaul Gets a Hearing
The Bush administration’s proposal for government-wide civil service reforms involving pay for performance, reduced union rights and streamlined appeals rights …More
I Fund Leads TSP Returns
The international stock (I) fund led the Thrift Savings Plan funds both in terms of monthly returns in September and …More
Whistleblower Measure Advances
Legislation designed to overturn federal court opinions of recent years that effectively limited what types of disclosures are considered protected …More
Expert’s View: Should You Take an Early Retirement?
Many federal employees look eagerly for an early retirement offer, writes benefits expert Reg Jones. “There are some questions you …More
Attempt to Halt Base Closings Pending
A measure to bar the round of base closings recently approved by President Bush is pending in the House, although …More
Complications Abound on Raise
The 2.1 percent default amount would be significant only if Congress fails to enact a raise figure before January. Such …More
Pay Raise Still in Play
One issue still to be finalized in the budget process is the size of the January 2006 federal pay raise. …More
Spending Authority Extended Temporarily
A temporary extension of government spending authority (Public Law 109-77) has been approved through November 18, preventing any potential disruptions …More
DHS, DoD Systems Still Pending
The hearings on personnel reforms are being held in the context of pending changes at the Defense and Homeland Security …More
GAO’s Views on Reforming Pay
GAO testified that pay reforms must be part of a broader strategy of change management and performance improvement initiatives and …More
