News Briefs

THE DAILY FED

News Briefs

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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.

THE FEDERAL DIARY--The 1998 federal pay chart for white-collar (nonpostal) workers in the Washington Baltimore area ran as Sunday's column. "The pay raise will be effective with the first pay period beginning on or after Jan. 1, 1998"...Last month's White House directive says federal workers can display religious artwork or wear religious symbols on the job and that agencies must provide space where employees can conduct religious services (The Washington Post).

NATIONAL PARTNERSHIP AWARDS--Seven outstanding labor-management partnerships born of the Clinton Administration's determination to create a government that works better and costs less will be honored at a national ceremony on Wednesday, September 10 (Office of Communications Press Release, 9/5/97).

ETHICS--In the workplace, sometimes you pay a price for following your conscience. A new book explores the central premise that workers and supervisors frequently confront moral dilemmas on the job (Washington Post, Washington Business).

OF INTEREST--How do you make government information more accessible to citizens without making it available indiscriminately to anyone who might want it? (The Washington Post, Editorial)...Not all workers find the idea of "empowerment" as neat as it sounds (The Wall Street Journal)...Corporate needs open paths to those wanting to escape welfare. Jobs abound for those who get training (The Washington Times). CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Access America Conferences

The National Performance Review (NPR), will launch a series of informational conferences aimed at providing government employees and private industry IT officials with techniques and strategies for implementing the goals of Access America, an NPR report outlining steps to increase access--via the Internet--to government services. The first conference will be held September 25 in Baltimore, Md. and then will travel to other cities across the country. Expert panels will discuss IT topics, including Internet/Intranet successes, the future of Distance Learning and collaboration, IT acquisition and procurement reform, and privacy and security.

DTIC Annual Conference

The Defense Technical Information Center is presenting its Annual Users Meeting and Training Conference on Nov. 3-6, 1997 at the DoubleTree Hotel, National Airport, Arlington, Va. The conference theme is Information in the New Millenium. Contact Ms. Julia Foscue at 703-767-8236 or by e-mail at jfoscue@dtic.mil.