Return to Article: Lawmakers weigh intervention in Defense personnel reforms
-
55227
We have been under NSPS for over a year and I have yet anything good to say about it. The good ole boy system certainly recieved a shot in the arm with this system. In our particular command, the cronies who manage our paypool simply gave each other fat bonuses and left the crumbs to the underlings. It is my understanding that for an employee to earn a rating of 5, you practically must defeat the taliban by yourself and with just a knife and thus saving the government billions of dollars. This garrison has easily 8 to ten of these individuals as they vanquished the pay pool. And lets not talk about how you can transfer your friends into jobs without any justification.
-
44236
I continue to read these topics and two things stand out. 1. Many people, like me, do not have faith in NSPS. I am holding off on my comments until I fall under the first payout (JAN 09) to see how I fare. I am a hard working YA-2, manage 8 military and was selected Civilian of the Year. I would hope I fair well and if not, i will address it in formal way. The second topic is "the good ole boy" issue. Everyone keeps talking about ex Military getting jobs and having preferential treatment. Hello, they do have preference under the law veterans get preference under: The Veterans' Preference Act of 1944, the Disabled Veterans Affirmative Action Program (DVAAP) Plans and other prefernces. This goes back to the civil war. As the U.S. Office of Personnel management define the reasoning I quote "Since the time of the Civil War, veterans of the Armed Forces have been given some degree of preference in appointments to Federal jobs. Recognizing their sacrifice, Congress enacted laws to prevent veterans seeking Federal employment from being penalized for their time in military service. Veterans' preference recognizes the economic loss suffered by citizens who have served their country in uniform, restores veterans to a favorable competitive position for Government employment, and acknowledges the larger obligation owed to disabled veterans". We need the good ole boy system in a way. We just need to re-educate people as to why we have preference. If you were in uniform, spent, in many cases, 10 years deployed out of a 20 year career or lost an arm, leg, eye or all those together, you would want some federal help in getting a job as most employers would not hire you.
-
22406
What will be the cost, and who will pay, when in a few years (if that long) the new system is seen to be cronism and discriminatory. The Federal Goverment will then be faced with the situation of lowering the saleries of the 'good old boys' from their unearned benefits, or raising everyone elses to match those raises. The cost in the DOD could be billions. We have seen where in the World Bank the former DOD executive gave his girlfriend a bunch or 'best friend' raises. Will everybody else now get them? Will her pay be reduced? Now maginify that to the largest Federal Employer, and project the cost. Bad idea.
-
22297
By nature of my job with a DoD agency, I have been smack in the middle of NSPS implementation for three years. I have to tell employees that the "good old boy" system they are so worried about will NOT impact their annual salary increases. On the other hand, the perception is there that that same good old boy system is hiring military retirees before their terminal leave is even done and because of NSPS, that good old boy system allows those new employees' pay to be set $10,000 more than it would have been a year ago.
I'd like to see more comments from those who have worked in MyBiz or MyWorkplace.
Been There, Doing That
-
21989
Just some more talk, talk, talk. The Democrats are just as anti government worker as the Republicans. They just hide behind double talk. Take a look at who voted for NSPS, just as many Dems did as Republicans. Until voters wake up and see the truth, these back-stabbers in Congress will always use government workers.
-
21680
Lawmakers need to quit sitting around weighing the need to intervene and just need to intervene. NSPS is a personnel system that was created and pitched by the same people who have arrogantly contributed so much to "train wrecking" the world over the past three decades; brought back by the current administration to mess up whatever they missed before.
The courts have ruled against it. Nearly all of Civil Service, except the cronies, is opposed to it. The unions have declared it grossly unfair, it has cost hundreds of millions of wasted dollars. It was implemented prior to even having a decent performance management system in place, it was implemented arrogantly with a refusal to even discuss it professionally with AFGE and other unions, and it is a nightmare to administer. The lawmakers just need to ask themselves how they would like to throw their own careers into a personnel management system created by the likes of one departed SECDEF and his friends. The answer to that should mean their immediate intervention.
-
21629
NSPS is a joke, and my experience with MyBiz makes the process a joke. I spent two days doing a "self assessment" that is supposed to be voluntary, but which we are "required" to do. NSPS software is so bad I had to copy out all the objectives and then write the assessment in Microsoft Word. I then had to copy it from Microsoft Word into MyBiz. Yesterday I went in to add to the assessment and there was nothing there. Now I have to do it all again. I am not paid to assess my performance that is why the manager is paid the big bucks!
Managers have no clue concerning management and, as the logistics person points out, Managers are technical experts - not managers.
Manager positions are used to get higher pay for friends and technical experts - not managers. That is why nothing works correctly and when it does it is simply by chance. Government needs to get rid of technical managers and begin hiring managers that can manage and in general get the work done through motivation of personnel! Our managers believe hollering at people and criticizing people in public is the proper management technique to accomplish work. Most of our staff is demoralized and only works on specific things they are assigned to do. There is no initiative or innovation. DoD and the services are highly unlikely to recruit new qualified people and if lucky enough to do, probably are not going to keep them. As far as any outside experience being of value to DoD or the services - forget it. They have no clue how things are done on the "outside" and they really don't care. It is their way or assignment to the outback (They never get rid of anyone. They simply ignore them and get new people to abuse.)
This is why they always want to hire ex-military, which allows them to continue in bad management with no one to question their actions or to try and implement new ways of doing things. If they do not understand it, or cannot handle it, they ignore it and criticize it as not being the military way. NSPS does nothing to improve this and may be even worse than the old system.
-
21625
It is time to kill the entire NSPS boondoggle! It is a prime example of waste, fraud and abuse that never should have started in the fist place. Shame on the DoD for attempting to bring back the old "Boss Tweed" management system!
-
21618
Our DoD agency has screwed up acquisition demo and are now rushing into NSPS even though My Biz isn't working. Lots of retired military hired into NH-IV slots so there is no career progression for civilians that want it.
If NSPS is so good, why don't we implement it for the military as well Or demo it with them first? I hear the generals telling me how great it will be.
I think it is trying to keep pay raises down and ultimately reduce retirement costs for civilians and nothing more. Then they wonder why no one considers a federal career a viable option.
-
21615
I hope Congress stops wasting money on NSPS. NSPS is an administrative nightmare. The review form is a 15-page document. The rating given by your immediate supervisor is subject to change by higher levels of management. There are a number of layers of reviews where an individual rating can be changed by people who have no idea about what a person is working on. These levels of review are designated pay panels. The rating officials now devote 80% of their time to NSPS instead of technical issues where their expertise lies. In numerous meetings and forums the workforce has been told that the majority of ratings will be a 3 on a scale of 1 to 5.
Why not rate only those performers who fail to reach the 3 level, or exceed the 3 level and avoid documenting a predetermined rating for the majority of the workforce. The funding for this should have been spent on the troops not an administrative process!
The old rating system was flawed but not nearly as labor intensive. Why weren't the problems fixed instead of reinventing the wheel? Do the American taxpayers really want to spend millions of dollars on what is basically an administrative process? I don't think so!
NSPS is advertised as "Pay for Performance", if a "3" rating is already predetermined for a large percentage of the workforce how can that be? Stop the bleeding now!
-
21610
I work there too, for almost 30 thirty years. Gone are the days when people could get an education and move up the ladder. Throw merit promotion out the window, because with the intern program management can do whatever they want. No competition with those who "paid their dues" - as in learned the basics, got their 4 year degrees, masters, whatever, and the infamous CDFM certification which is not cheap. So what? They hire kids that know nothing and refuse to be certified because most likely they have no intention of sticking around.
Many of us are waiting for retirement or have too much time in. I hear and see "worries" about the baby boomers jumping ship. Just what do you think is going to happen when baby boomers lose raises, etc. to kids? The system has worked for years, sure maybe some bonuses should be added, but why throw something out that has been FAIR all these years (for the most part) to us women, minorities, handicapped, etc.
I am studying for the CPA and I won't get a dime if I pass it and or get my license. NSPS is only for the well connected as mentioned, and suck ups as well. I uphold the constitution not my bosses' whims and moods. Throw that philosophy out too they should do away with the "oath" we take coming into federal service. It's a joke now.
-
21607
Oh great, Now we're getting the all knowing congress involved with the testosterone-laden DoD. A bad idea made even worse. Talk about more waste of money. There is no end to it.
It is just another money pit taking tax dollars out of play.
-
21606
The arguments in this article boil down to one word: Trust.
I think many of us understand the need for some flexibility in today's environment, but the management structure from DOD down to the local agency levels have unfortunately demonstrated over the years that they cannot be fully trusted to implement NSPS in a fair and equitable manner and beneficial not only for the workforce, but for a good working environment necessary for DOD agencies to carry on their particular missions.
The issues of appeal rights and whistleblower protections are just a couple of things we as National Guard Dual Status Technicians have been arguing for years.
Instead of collaboration (a big thing in the public sector these days), DOD and many of its agencies are seeking to quash collective bargaining and, ultimately, opportunities for federal employees to provide bottom up solutions to the local agencies' day to day challenges.
What a pity.
-
21599
". . . NSPS has come under harsh criticism from unions . . ."
Get it right, press. NSPS has come under harsh criticism from everyone involved from the employee side. The Union simply has been the most effective because they stopped DoD in its tracks using the courts. The courts have ruled that NSPS is bad and should not go forward. We are under this crap now and it is very little different for the employee than the old system was. However, DoD now may hire anyone they want for any job they want and the employees have no organized way to oppose the fraud, waste and abuse that NSPS fosters on them. DoD and the service now may hire anyone they want for any job they have. Existing employees can go to hell and may not even be informed of the availability of jobs. Promotion from within is a stronger joke now than it used to be in DoD and the services. Now they wait for their friends to retire from the military and hire them into jobs that civilians have been waiting for years. Kiss it goodbye now because NSPS made the illegal actions of the past legal! That is real flexibility that DoD and the services needed. Congress should make the hiring into any position under the DoD illegal for ex-military for at least five years following retirement or exit from the military. NSPS is a thorn in the paw of DoD to hire anyone new from any good college or university because there is little hope for the future when you are not even given a chance to advance because the military managers hire their ex-buddies from the military and put them ion the choice civilian jobs. Likewise, all our 15s were placed into top management positions in a major reorganization when there is supposed to be no difference between the old 15s and anyone else in the same pay range and schedule. The bad managers in the services already are proving that NSPS is a joke.
-
21594
I cannot even begin to express my frustration with NSPS. This abomination is the brain child of Dr. Chu and Mr. Rumsfeld, and was unleashed to punish civil service for the policy failures which failed to stop 9-11. This system has so many flaws; I hardly know where to begin.
One of the objectives of this system is to enrich Northrop Grumman, the contractor, acting as the front for the flawed software programs to develop My Biz (the website to store performance evaluation data), the annual performance ranking software, and the contract to recalculate future civilian service salaries. The objective of these programs is to further stretch civilian personnel administration costs and to make civil service management subordinate to contractor rule. Our command shifted to NSPS on 22 Jan, this was the date the My Biz data was to be loaded. It is now March 7, and the software still doesn't even work. This is just another example of the other defective contractor run civilian management programs, such as SLCADA (time card management which often fails to save data), STAIRS (Navy's job application system which is often inoperable for months at a time; further no job applicant has a hope of getting their resume past the contractor's software unless they have inside knowledge of the magic key words), and DTS (DoD's travel program which requires all employees to become their own travel agent). As an example Northrop Grumman's management now directs us on what procedures are acceptable for their shoddy DTS software. Our military/civilian leadership can't be bothered with the burden of managing DTS. No doubt our leadership will defer NSPS management the same way.
Then there is the actual pay administration system itself. The whole objective is to limit base pay increases (which are cumulative and count to retirement) and replace them with an annual bonus check which by NSPS definition is not even salary. In the meanwhile employees are pitted against one another to fight for shrinking bonus checks. On the bright side, I suspect that the well connected will actually prosper under this crony based system.
PROMO RIGHT: EVENTS
UPCOMING WEBINARS
NOVEMBER 18
Speed bumps for Teleworking: What are they and how to avoid them?
DECEMBER 3
Achieve Program Success: Unlock the Management Information in Your Data
DECEMBER 10
Practical Transparency: Applying Exchange Networks for Mission Results
PROMO RIGHT: DIRECTORIES
Post a Comment
To post a comment, you must provide a name and a valid e-mail address. Messages must be limited to 400 words. By using this Service you agree not to post material that is obscene, harassing, defamatory, or otherwise objectionable. Although Government Executive does not monitor comments posted to this site (and has no obligation to), it reserves the right to delete, edit, or move any material that it deems to be in violation of this rule.