Digital Government

OPM Nominee Sails Through Confirmation Hearing, Pledging to Support Feds and Uphold Merit System

Kiran Ahuja outlined her vision for the federal workforce and the need for the Office of Personnel Management to transform to become a 21st century personnel policymaking agency.

Digital Government

OPM Looks to Update Federal Job Competencies

Officials hope an updated list of skills required for jobs throughout the federal government will better inform federal personnel policy.

Digital Government

OPM Appointments Mark a Radical Shift in Agency's Role

The hiring of high-level executives from organized labor marks a return to federal employee unions having a seat at the table in the formulation of federal personnel policy.

Digital Government

VA Rolls Back Trump-era Workforce Policies

The Veterans Affairs Department is restoring its previous contract with AFGE, which allows access to official time and union office space in department facilities.

Digital Government

Study: OPM-GSA Merger Proposal Would Not Have Solved Problems It Aimed to Fix

A team of analysts has recommended elevating OPM's role in human capital management and making it less involved in “transaction-by-transaction compliance” activities.

Digital Government

Lawmakers Propose 3.2% Raise for Feds in 2022

Democrats in both chambers of Congress have reintroduced legislation to boost basic pay by 2.2% across the board next year, along with an average 1% increase in locality pay.

Digital Government

OPM Failed to Issue Guidance for D.C. Federal Workers During Insurrection

There was substantial warning ahead of the arrival of the group that violently stormed the U.S. Capitol seeking to overturn the results of the presidential election.

Policy

Trump Vetoes Defense Policy Bill Over Base Names, Unrelated Internet Law

The House has already scheduled a vote after Christmas to override the president’s long-threatened rejection of the annual Defense authorization act, which also includes an expansion of federal employee leave benefits.

Policy

Spending Agreement Would Allow 1% Pay Raise, Fails to Ban Schedule F

Provision in the fiscal 2021 omnibus appropriations bill would give feds until the end of next year to repay payroll taxes deferred by the Trump administration from September through December.

Digital Government

OPM Proposes Prioritizing Job Performance Over Tenure in Layoffs

Officials at the Office of Personnel Management are seeking to finalize a provision of President Trump’s controversial workforce executive orders before he leaves office.

Digital Government

Rolling Back Trump Workforce Policies Won’t Be As Simple As Rescinding Executive Orders

President-elect Biden has vowed to rescind on his first day a series of Trump-era directives aimed at weakening federal labor unions and politicizing the civil service, but repairing the damage could take much longer.

Digital Government

House Democrats Urge OPM to Halt Implementation of Order Politicizing Civil Service

House Oversight and Reform Committee leaders want to investigate the development and analysis of the effort to strip wide swaths of the federal workforce of civil service protections.

Digital Government

Union Sues and Democrats Introduce Bill to Block Trump Order Politicizing Civil Service

As opponents of the president’s effort to convert chunks of the federal workforce into at-will employees kick off their efforts to stop the initiative, the administration has signaled that agencies can push forward ahead of schedule.

Digital Government

Agencies to Have Wide Latitude In Deciding Which Jobs to Strip of Civil Service Protections

OPM issued initial instructions Friday for implementing a Trump executive order that allows federal policy-making positions to be converted from career jobs to at-will appointments.

Digital Government

Governance Experts Assail White House Effort to Strip Federal Employees of Rights

Good government groups, unions and lawmakers were nearly unanimous in their scorching criticism of an executive order that could strip protections for hundreds of thousands and politicize the federal workforce.

Digital Government

‘Stunning’ Executive Order Would Politicize Civil Service

President Trump signs directive that will potentially pull thousands of federal employees in "policy-making" positions out of the competitive service, making them at-will employees.

Digital Government

Watchdog: White VA Employees Twice as Likely to Be Promoted as Black Workers

The American Federation of Government Employees said Thursday that new data it obtained via the Freedom of Information Act underscores its allegations of systemic racism pervading the Veterans Affairs Department.

Digital Government

Senate Democrats Introduce Bill to Make Payroll Tax Deferral Optional

Legislation requiring workers, including federal employees and military service members, to consent in writing to have their Social Security taxes deferred between now and the end of the year has the support of nearly 20 employee groups.

Digital Government

Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Protect All Feds’ Leave Following COVID

Although OPM’s current policy only waives the 30-day annual leave cap for essential employees who are unable to use their leave due to their duties responding to the coronavirus pandemic, Democrats in Congress want to extend the waiver to all federal workers.

Digital Government

OPM Updates Job Qualifications Following Hiring Executive Order

The Office of Personnel Management is asking agencies for feedback on a draft list of the qualifications required for federal jobs as part of the implementation of a recent executive order emphasizing applicants’ skills and experience, rather simply education.