THE DAILY FED
News Briefs
News summaries from OPM AM, the daily newsletter of the Office of Personnel Management. OPM AM is available on OPM Mainstreet, the agency's electronic bulletin board, at 202-606-4800.
IN THE NEWS... THE FEDERAL DIARY--"Insiders think it will take a minor miracle to save the plan to let all feds invest as much as $9,500 each year in their tax-deferred thrift savings plan" (Sunday)...An earlier column about a Department of Agriculture memo that dealt with stamping out sex-specific words struck an off chord with most readers who liked the idea, but said the memo was grammatically incorrect (Monday, The Washington Post).
FEDERAL ISSUES--"To nip workplace violence in the bud, HR professionals must first recognize sources of workplace conflict which can lead to violent situations"...and...The most controversial part of the Omnibus Civil Service Reform Bill of 1996 is a provision that would increase the weight given performance ratings in determine employee ranks during RIFs. Chairman John Mica of the House Government Reform and Oversight subcommittee on civil service said the bill has a "50-50" chance of passing the House (Federal Human Resources Week, September 2).
OTHER VIEWS--Bonus-granting authority restored to Export-Import Bank by OPM (Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, MA, August 9)...Investigations privatized (Forbes, New York, NY, August 26).
OF INTEREST--Workers in their 50s and 60s are landing jobs with surprising ease (USA Today)...Unemployment rate at a seven-year low (USA Today).
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