News Briefs

THE DAILY FED

News Briefs

The following news summaries are 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.

FMLA--OPM today issued final regulations designed to help employees meet the demands of their jobs without sacrificing the needs of their families. These regulations implement Title II of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) which became effective on August 5, 1993 ([OPM] Office of Communications News Release, December 5).

THE FEDERAL DIARY--"Most federal workers and nearly all retires are in fee-for-service health plans, even though they have higher premiums and higher out-of-pocket cost than most health maintenance organizations." One reason is greater choice (The Washington Post).

PHONE DIRECTORIES--Finding the right federal telephone number often can be frustrating. But the phone books' "blue pages" are changing. More than 300 federal workers and about 20 telephone companies are revising the pages so they look less like an organizational chart and more like a handy guide to government service and benefits (The Washington Post).

FEDERAL ISSUES--Many of the anti-employee proposals introduced during the last session of Congress will be revised...Successful private sector RIF strategies can be used by the government...Three federal officials agreed during a recent 'workshop' that there is potential for abuse of the merit system in today's government climate of delegation and decentralization of authority in federal agencies...An official at NPR encouraged agencies to convert to Performance-Based Organizations by 2002...OPM announces VA pay-for-skills project at benefits offices in New York and Detroit...Information on FEHB Guide on Internet (Government Employee Relations Report, November 25).

OTHER VIEWS--Federal retirees endured significant problems with mail order GAO report confirms (Pennsylvania Pharmacist, Harrisburg, PA, October)...Call agencies for federal summer jobs (Rockland Journal News, West Nyack, NY, November 5)...New Web Site created for federal employees (Chief, NY, NY, November 1)...U.S. Soccer now part of CFC (Soccer America, Oakland, CA).