Strengthened Whistleblower Protections Proposed
A newly introduced Senate bill (S-2127) would strengthen protections for whistleblowers government-wide, following IG reports and hearings focusing in particular …More
Fedweek
Sign up Now! Free eNewslettersSurvey Shows Some Uptick in Employee Workplace Views
Results of the annual Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey conducted in the spring show a slight general improvement in opinions about …More
Views Dimmer on Personal Workplaces
Views of how employees are treated in their own workplaces remain negative in many areas, again following the same pattern …More
DoD Bill Seeks to Boost Role of Performance
Performance ratings would take on a greater role in several personnel policies at DoD, under the annual defense authorization bill …More
Probationary Period Also Targeted
Another provision of the DoD bill would lengthen the probationary period for those hired after the bill’s enactment date from …More
Clearance Files Breach Notices Start Going Out
OPM has started sending notices to some 3.6 million current and former federal employees whose security clearance application files were …More
More Waiting Ahead for Many Victims
The notices are expected to continue going out through about the end of the year, meaning still more waiting for …More
TSP Stock Funds Begin Autumn with Fall
The three stock-based TSP funds suffered drops in September, dragging down the lifecycle funds with them. The international stock I …More
Shutdown Threat Set to Be Kicked Down the Road, but Not Far
Congress is set to finalize later today (September 30) a bill to lift the threat of a partial government shutdown …More
FEHB Rates Rising by 7.4 Percent on Average
The enrollee share of premiums in the FEHB will rise 7.4 percent on average for 2016 for non-postal employees and …More
Some Plans Dropping Out, Some Coming In
Also as is common, some plans are dropping out for 2016, meaning that their enrollees will have to elect new …More
Some FEHB Enrollees to Be Asked to Prove Family Member Eligibility
OPM has separately announced a random sample of FEHB enrollees to check whether they are carrying ineligible family members on …More
Get a Flu Shot, Employees Urged
OPM and HHS have sent a joint memo to agencies asking them to urge their employees to get flu shots, …More
Clearance Breach Notices Still Pending
OPM has announced that the clearance files cyber breach involved fingerprints of 5.6 million people, five times as many as …More
Leave, Veterans Preference Bills Advance
The House has joined the Senate in backing legislation entitling any federal employee who is a veteran with a service-connected …More
Much Talk, Little Action on Preventing Shutdown
Only one week remains in the current fiscal year and there still has been no break in the logjam over …More
Lack of Information Irks Employees
Meanwhile, federal employees are increasingly concerned and upset about the lack of information from their agencies. More could be coming …More
FEHB Change Will Help Some Enrollees, Cost Others
Adding the long-awaited self plus one option to the FEHB program will benefit current family enrollees with only one eligible …More
Much More Plan Switching Expected
OPM meanwhile projected that the new option will cause far more enrollment changes in this year”s open season than normal. …More
A Personnel Reforms Get Senate Look
The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee has held a hearing that may revive prospects for personnel policy reform bills targeting the …More
New Per Diem Rates Reminder
As a reminder, per diem rates for federal travelers are effective on a fiscal year cycle and thus new rates …More
GSA Sees Potential Savings on Lighting
There are an estimated 1.5 million conventional recessed fluorescent fixtures just in the federally owned buildings in GSA’s portfolio, that …More
DoD Seeks to Revive NSPS-Style Personnel Rules
DoD has presented its unions with a draft of desired changes in personnel policies that in many ways would harken …More
Other Provisions Would Favor Employees
Among the changes that would be in the favor of employees would be: increasing salaries in the so-called “STEM” fields …More
Shutdown Rumblings Grow Louder
With just two weeks left before the end of the fiscal year and no measure in place to extend agency …More
Pay Impact a Major Factor
Those who continue to work during a furlough because of the nature of their jobs are guaranteed they will be …More
Notices of Identity Theft Services Coming Soon, OPM Says
OPM has said that notices regarding identity theft protection, credit monitoring and other services related to the breach of security …More
Count Drops, COLA Chances Dim
With just one month to go in the count toward a 2016 federal retiree COLA, it appears unlikely that a …More
No Firm Move Yet on Medicare Premium Issue
Meanwhile, there has been rising concern but no firm move yet on Capitol Hill to address the potential for higher …More
FEHB Announcement Ahead
The annual announcement of premiums and plan offerings in FEHB for the upcoming plan year–that is, calendar year–typically is made …More
