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Return to Article: Court extends deadline for DHS decision on labor rules

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  Regardless what personnel rules and pay system are adopted nothing will equal the General Schedule in fairness. I've known workers who were GS-4-5-6 who came to work every day and did their job. They were dependable, efficient, and fulfilled their job description. What more could you ask of them? Yet they sat in the grade 20 years. Yes, it takes 20 years to go through the 10 steps in the GS pay system. I knew two Supervisors of 10-12 people who retired as GS-6 after 30 years service (it wasn't lack of education because one of the women was a qualified school teacher). It's a very sad situation for these women to have to live on a GS-6 retirement in today's economy. After the women retired their job descriptions were rewritten for the GS-12 level!

  Yes, there is unfairness in promotions, favoritism, and brown-nosing within the GS pay system. This has to do with upper management not the pay system and will only escalate with the MaxHR/NSPS. MaxHR/NSPS will only increase the back-stabbing, low morale, and discontent which is already evident within DHS. The brown-nosing individuals will be promoted and continue to move leaving many positions without corporate knowledge. All this will be compounded by the retirement of the "Baby Boomers." Pay for Performance is set up to fail because DHS has already proved it in creating MaxHR/NSPS. The cost has escalated and DHS is requesting more funding which is needed for more urgent issues such as the War, Border Control, Immigration Control, and military program shortages. If the Pay for Performance were in place now DHS would receive "F" for FAILED in creating the MaxHR/NSPS.

  Save the taxpayers lots of money: Trash the MaxHR/NSPS and leave the General Schedule in place!

  Civilian Worker Posted July 24, 2007 9:47 AM
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  I agree 100% with Colleen Kelley for DHS to drop the entire effort of a new personnel plan. DHS is trying to slip MaxHR past the government workers under the new name NSPS. The MaxHR met with strong opposition from the government workers so DHS changed the name. The lie of DHS being allowed to move civilian workers for "Security" is a falsehood. Civilians are the stability of a department/section because of the constant turnover of military personnel. There is so much dissatisfaction & discontent within DHS, it brings to attention that DHS cannot fix their own personnel problems. Why than would DHS be allowed to change the personnel system for the whole government civilian work force? Is the MaxHR/NSPS just a smoke screen to cover the problems within DHS? I've heard about the morale problem within TSA and read about the discontent within the Border Control, will the NSPS make DHS morale and personnel problems worse? DHS has been allowed to swallow up other government departments for the sake of "Security." Is it possible DHS has bit off more than it can chew?

  The MaxHR/NSPS has wasted enough taxpayers' dollars yet is requesting more funds. With the use of all that money and DHS still cannot get it right; it could because it's WRONG. If the MaxHR/NSPS plans were tested by the "Pay for Performance" it would FAIL miserably. Maybe it's a good thing the Pay for Performance isn't in place yet, the DHS personnel working on the MaxHR/NSPS could be looking for new jobs!

  American Taxpayer Posted July 23, 2007 10:29 AM
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  Let's look at what is really happening here. The new personnel system won't really correct the problems with poor performers. What it will do is expand political patronage and favoritism throughout the government. One of the reasons the current personnel system was put into place was to address these types of problems.

  More to the point, the problem ISN'T that firing bad employees is impossible or even difficult... If management does its job. The problem has been, historically, that management hasn't done the things necessary to get the bad employees out of the government. So, the new rules accomplish what exactly? They curtail employee rights without addressing the real reason that bad employees manage to hang on.

  You know me Posted July 23, 2007 8:10 AM
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  If this is so important to DHS why is it taking so long? They are still looking for a way to marginalize the Unions and not look for a system that benefits everyone.

  Jim Posted July 19, 2007 3:17 PM
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  I wish to make only one comment regarding Larry Orluskie statement in which he says the agency is taking steps to foster employee morale. I work for CBP and in talking to many officers I haven't heard of one instance of any promising or actual changes. The agency still continues to batter the employees in any way possible.

  Charles McCollum Posted July 19, 2007 10:53 AM
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  The new personnel systems for the DHS and NSPS are strikingly similar.

  The appeal of the DHS decision resulted in a second judgment that parts of the new system are illegal.

  An appeal of the NSPS decision resulted in a judgment essentially saying that the NSPS has the green light to try anything they like in the labor relations portion of the system till November 2009 - then it reverts to the original labor relations system.

  Personally I agree with Judge Collyer that the personnel system which is so similar to the one she ruled illegal at the DHS is just as illegal for the NSPS.

  But that is one of the opportunities that we have in our judicial system - right or wrong we may sometimes appeal until we find a court which will rule our way.

  Stay tuned - it isn't over yet.

  Joe Posted July 19, 2007 8:56 AM
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  The performance evaluation that the agency is trying to use must not be as complicated as this one. It seems that the objective is design using number objectives and completion driven (the more you complete, the better you are). Government entities are expected to enforce and administer laws fairly and accurately. The "numbers" will force or tempt employees to get completion however it takes.

  ELY BORJAL Posted July 19, 2007 8:18 AM
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  The history of this program is highly problematic. It ignores the reality that the current personnel system was set up for a reason- and that was abuse of the system for political reasons. MaxxHr (and its erstwhile successor) also ignore the fact that the biggest problem, in getting the mission accomplished, is the lack of genuine leadership that pervades the DHS.

  Concerned Citizen Posted July 19, 2007 7:29 AM
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  I transferred from the IRS near DC in April 05 where management personnel was using the "Pay for Performance" plan. I found this pay banding not equal to the current GS scale. When you apply for another position with other agencies using the GS pay charts...it is hard to relate your pay band to the GS ratings. The government must get on the same sheet of music and use only one style of salary system.

  William Posted July 19, 2007 6:39 AM