The Vast Majority of IRS Employees Aren't Corrupt
GSA Mishandled Executive Bonuses
EIG 2013 as Told by Your Tweets
Infographic: Nominee Limbo
Will You Be Furloughed?
Boldly Go Where No Fed's Gone Before
AUTHOR ARCHIVES
Brittany Ballenstedt
Blogger
Brittany Ballenstedt writes Nextgov's Wired Workplace blog, which delves into the issues facing employees who work in the federal information technology sector. Before joining Nextgov, Brittany covered federal pay and benefits issues as a staff correspondent for Government Executive and served as an associate editor for National Journal's Technology Daily. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Mansfield University and originally hails from Pennsylvania. She currently lives near Travis Air Force Base, Calif., where her husband is stationed.
Consumer-Driven Care
October 25, 2007 The jury is still out on whether high-deductible health plans are in general a good option for federal employees. But with the open season for benefits elections quickly approaching, it could be helpful to understand and determine whether such a plan is right for you. High-deductible health plans and the ...
Panelists suggest reducing reliance on political appointees
October 25, 2007 The conversion of some political jobs to career positions could help address the federal government's leadership and workforce challenges, three panelists said Wednesday. At a seminar sponsored by the Performance Institute, a think tank with offices in Arlington, Va., panelists noted that placing more career employees in leadership roles could ...
Rigid pay systems listed among top workforce challenges
October 23, 2007 Rigid pay systems and leadership skills gaps are among the challenges agencies will face as they seek to offset a talent shortage expected over the next decade, top government officials and an outside observer said Tuesday. At a breakfast sponsored by the Georgetown University Public Policy Institute and the management ...
Lawmakers probe health care staffing shortages at VA
October 19, 2007 In the face of a critical shortage of health care professionals at the Veterans Health Administration, stronger incentives are needed to attract top talent into the workforce, group representatives told a House subcommittee Thursday. "Shortages in health care staff threaten the VHA's ability to provide quality care and treatment to ...
House panel questions benefits for deployed civilians
October 17, 2007 Members of a House subcommittee on Tuesday probed whether non-Defense agencies are providing adequate incentives and benefits to encourage civilian employees to serve in Iraq and Afghanistan. At a hearing before the House Armed Services Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, witnesses from the Agriculture, Justice, State and Treasury departments and the ...
OPM projects potential locality pay rates
October 17, 2007 Congress and the Bush administration still haven't reached an agreement on what next year's pay raise should be for white-collar federal workers. President Bush wants a 3 percent raise; the House and Senate have moved in the direction of a 3.5 percent increase. Either way, the overall pay increase federal ...
CSRS retirees to get 2.3 percent pension increase in 2008
October 17, 2007 Retirees in the Civil Service Retirement System will receive a 2.3 percent boost to their pension checks in 2008. The government unveiled next year's cost-of-living allowance Wednesday. It is based on the change in the Labor Department's Consumer Price Index for urban wage earners from the third quarter of one ...
Lawmakers urge Pentagon to hold off on new pay policy
October 16, 2007 Three House lawmakers are urging the Pentagon to ensure that employees working under a new personnel system receive the compensation next year that they anticipated. In a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Reps. Tom Davis, R-Va., Frank Wolf, R-Va., and James Moran, D-Va., expressed concern over a new policy ...
TSP officials note major growth in plan
October 15, 2007 Assets in the Thrift Savings Plan grew $6.4 billion in September, the largest increase this year, officials with the retirement savings program said Monday. At a monthly Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board meeting, officials overseeing the 401(k)-style plan said last month's growth brought total assets to $231 billion. September's growth ...
Pay Portions
October 11, 2007 Last week, the Federal Salary Council recommended an across-the-board pay raise of at least 2.5 percent for 2008. But even assuming that suggestion is followed, there's a lot more to the pay equation. Your overall pay boost will depend on where you live. That's because in addition to the 2.5 ...
