Tangherlini Tapped to Stay On at GSA
Video: Stephen Colbert on the Census Bureau
Lawmaker: Don't Furlough Weather Service Now
Making Government 'Simpler'
OK Senators Leery of Unfunded Tornado Relief
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.
Union weighs solo Supreme Court challenge to Defense personnel system
September 12, 2007 Despite recent legal setbacks, a union opposing the Defense Department's new personnel system is considering a solo effort to take its case to the Supreme Court. The American Federation of Government Employees is weighing the pros and cons of appealing the case to the Supreme Court without the involvement of ...
TSP to halt use of Social Security numbers as account IDs
September 10, 2007 In an effort to enhance security, the 3.8 million participants in the federal Thrift Savings Plan will no longer be identified by their Social Security numbers, officials for the retirement savings program announced Friday. Starting Oct. 1, TSP enrollees will begin using account numbers in place of Social Security numbers, ...
House panel questions complexity of veterans preference laws
September 7, 2007 Members of a House subcommittee on Thursday probed whether the complexity of laws giving veterans preference in federal employment is hindering compliance. "There are so many regulations and different parts of the mosaic that make [the law] very complex," said Meg Bartley, a senior staff attorney for the National Veterans ...
Congress approves student loan forgiveness for public servants
September 7, 2007 Legislation that would provide student loan forgiveness for federal employees after 10 years of service will now move to President Bush's desk. The bill (H.R. 2669), sponsored by Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., was agreed upon by a conference committee Wednesday and cleared by the House and Senate on Friday. The ...
Cost Control
September 6, 2007 Controlling escalating prescription drug costs may be a key step in lowering the overall cost of care under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. But disagreement swirls around the best way to curb prices. According to J. David Cox, national secretary-treasurer for the American Federation of Government Employees, there may ...
Common stocks lead August TSP earnings
September 5, 2007 Common stocks in the Thrift Savings Plan made the strongest gains for August, while only international investments -- the leader for yearlong growth -- lost ground. The C Fund, which tracks Standard & Poor's 500 Index of stocks in the largest domestic companies, gained 1.54 percent last month. That increase ...
Presidential candidates back stronger whistleblower protections
September 4, 2007 Nine presidential candidates have pledged support for pending legislation to enhance protections for federal employees who expose weaknesses or fraud in government programs, according to survey results released Monday by a whistleblower support group. Seven Democratic candidates and two Republicans said in response to a survey by the Washington-based National ...
Reserve Returns
August 30, 2007 If you are an active or retired federal employee who took military leave for reserve activities, you may be entitled to annual leave or thousands of dollars in back pay. In a major decision issued Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that the Merit Systems ...
Hackers steal info on users of federal job site
August 30, 2007 Hackers have stolen the names and contact information of about 146,000 job seekers on the USAJOBS Web site, the Office of Personnel Management revealed Wednesday. Hackers gained access to subscribers' names, e-mail addresses and telephone numbers through the resume database maintained by Monster.com, the technology provider for USAJOBS, OPM said. ...
IRS seeks strategy to recruit, retain employees
August 28, 2007 The Internal Revenue Service must develop strategies for retaining employees to offset a looming staffing shortage due to retirements over the next four years, a panel of agency overseers declared last week. Members of the IRS Oversight Board, which met on Aug. 15, said human capital issues represent a major ...
