Cybersecurity

ODNI plans recruitment ad campaign

Intelligence agencies are seeking STEM employees and a more diverse workforce.

People

SSA under pressure to reopen Trump-era union contract

The Social Security Administration is under fire from unions and congressional Democrats unhappy with the agency's pace in implementing the Biden administration's changes to labor-management relations, and many are seeking the ouster of the Trump-appointed agency heads.

Digital Government

Federal buildings, vehicles set to go green in Biden's $2T infrastructure package

Updates to federal facilities and an emphasis on electric vehicles are just part of the Biden administration's $2 trillion jobs and infrastructure plan announced on Wednesday.

People

Unions, agencies encouraging feds to get vaccinated

Early results from federal workforce campaigns suggest that vaccine uptake could present challenges once availability for all age groups is no longer an obstacle.

People

Dismantling the 'old boys' club' at State

Several witnesses scrutinized the State Department's placement and promotion practices when it comes to minority foreign service officers.

People

Lawmakers seek clarity on hazy White House pot policy

The White House has fired at least five staffers after their disclosure of previous marijuana use and some lawmakers urging the White House to clarify its policies and take into account a growing nationwide movement supporting legal pot.

People

OPM official: No going back to pre-COVID status quo

The Office of Personnel Management wants to use upcoming guidance on telework to offer a new vision for federal work, an agency official said Wednesday.

Digital Government

Dems press on federal role in UI tech modernization

The Labor Department recently got $2 billion for the administrative costs of unemployment insurance delivery. Democratic Lawmakers have a plan for how the agency should use it.

Digital Government

Court ruling adds to agencies' burden of proof for firing feds

The appeals court ruling changes decades of precedent to require agencies to justify the placement of an employee on a performance improvement plan in the event that they appeal their removal.

Digital Government

18F to help Wisconsin with UI tech

Many states have buckled under the pressure of delivering benefits to surges of claimants during the pandemic using antiquated technology. 18F is set to help Wisconsin modernize its unemployment insurance technology using agile procurement.

Digital Government

Automating the Plum Book and other Sunshine Week bills

Among the current crop of "Sunshine Week" bills are measures to continually update the Plum Book of federal appointments and to require the president to establish records management controls to store electronic messages in a way that they can later be searched and retrieved.

People

Agency STEM workforces in decline, report finds

A new committee report details the dramatic decline in the STEM workforces of federal science agencies. Lawmakers talked ideas to rebuild the workforce at a hearing on Wednesday.

People

A blueprint to rebuild OPM

A congressionally mandated study from the National Academy for Public Administration asks lawmakers and the executive branch to help create the conditions for the Office of Personnel Management to fulfill its purpose as a strategic human capital advisor to federal agencies.

People

D.C. extends COVID vaccines to essential feds but worries continue for far-flung federal workforce

Some agencies have been vaccinating their employees directly, but others haven't. The National Treasury Employee Union wants IRS to secure vaccine allotments for in-person workers nationwide.

Digital Government

TMF to fund Labor Dept. data project

The Technology Modernization Fund doled out its first project of 2021 the day after getting $1 billion in the Biden administration's Rescue Plan legislation.

People

Biden signs Rescue bill, boosting TMF and adding pandemic leave for feds

The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act was signed into law on Thursday. In addition to a massive influx of funding to support Americans harmed by the economic fallout of the pandemic, there is funding available for IT modernization and provision to help the federal workforce cope with COVID-19.

People

VA watchdog cautions on pandemic hires

Temporary waivers to speed hiring at VA medical facilities have helped fill workforce gaps, but the agency's Inspector General warns on security risks of putting off certain security checks.

Digital Government

Biden looks to expand time off for feds to vote

An executive order issued Sunday on voting access includes a directive to the Office of Personnel Management to support federal employees looking to vote or serve as poll workers or observers during elections.

Digital Government

TMF money, more leave in Senate's take on COVID relief

The $1.9 trillion relief package could give federal employees up to 15 weeks of pandemic-related paid leave.

People

OPM tells agencies to restart union talks to uproot Trump-era orders

The Office of Personnel Management is looking to remove vestiges of workforce executive orders from the Trump administration from federal agency contracts with employee unions, including restrictions on official time and union use of agency facilities.