Arbitrator Rules In Favor of Postal Union
September 30, 2014
At least 9,000 jobs in the United States Postal Service will be added or transformed into union positions following an arbitration ruling in early September. Arbitrator Stephen B. Goldberg said in his decision that the postal service violated an agreement with the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) when it assigned some jobs to part-time employees […]
Washington Debates USPS Facility Closures
September 25, 2014
The fate of thousands of United States Postal Service workers is still unclear as lawmakers in Washington debate how to rescue the agency from its dire financial straits. In mid-August, a bipartisan group of 50 senators called for a one-year hold on the USPS’s plans to shut down mail processing plants, which would cut thousands […]
Telework Time Under Fire
September 23, 2014
Teleworking by government employees has come under intense scrutiny recently. Early last month, it was reported that the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) had conducted an internal investigation, beginning two years ago, which found that some of the 8,300 employees from the PTO may have fudged how many hours they actually worked, and others were […]
Obama Proposes 1 Percent Pay Raise for Federal Workers
September 18, 2014
Instead of receiving their annual raise via the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act, federal workers may see just a 1 percent raise effective January 2015. President Barack Obama wrote a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Vice President Joe Biden at the end of August in which he proposed raising federal civilian and […]
Reaction Mixed on OPM Health Benefits Expansion
September 16, 2014
Federal employees who are working at least 130 hours a month could be impacted by a recent proposal from the Office of Personnel Management to expand health benefits eligibility. In July, the OPM proposed a rule to expand eligibility for employees to enroll in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP). These would include temporary, […]
Uninspired Workplaces, So Says Survey Regarding Federal Agencies
August 28, 2014
Federal workers are feeling less inclined to innovate on the job because of a lack of encouragement from their bosses and leadership. While nearly 9 out of 10 workers said they are trying to break from the norm and think outside the box to improve their job performance, only slightly more than half of federal […]
Lawmakers Speak Out Against USPS Mail Processing Plant Closures
August 25, 2014
In a rare bipartisan move, 50 members of the U.S. Senate are urging Republican and Democratic leaders to stop the United States Postal Service from closing up to 82 mail processing plants that could result in the loss of nearly 15,000 jobs nationwide in 2015. Republican and Democratic senators said legislation should be passed to […]
Federal Workers Facing Hardships Should Receive Fair Treatment
August 18, 2014
A memo issued by the White House urged that U.S. government agencies should not discriminate against job applicants who are unemployed or facing financial difficulties. As the country’s largest employer, the Obama administration believes the federal government should set an example when it comes to its hiring practices — showing that being laid off or […]
Regulators Unveil Rules Governing Part-Time Work and Part-Time Retirement
August 13, 2014
After a long delay while regulators developed rules for phased retirement, federal workers will finally be able to file their applications in November. The OPM issued its final regulations for phased retirement on August 7, a hulking 129-page document that details how retirement eligible workers can work part-time while drawing on their pensions. The regulations […]
Nobody is Safe in the Federal Workforce from Reductions in Pay and Benefits
August 13, 2014
Nobody is safe in the federal workforce from reductions in pay and benefits these days. Even active duty personnel and retirees with the U.S. military are under the federal cost-cutting microscope. That is why we encourage all federal employees, whether military or civilian, to do a one-on-one consultation with us so that we can take […]
