NAVY
Sites: Naval Air Warfare Center, Weapons Division, China Lake, Calif.; Naval Command, Control and Ocean Surveillance Center, San Diego.
Participants: 12,300 GS and GM employees.
Features: Broad pay bands for GS grades; performance-based pay for all white-collar employees; increased flexibility for starting salaries.
Dates: 1980 and extended indefinitely.
Evaluation: Successful in improving personnel management. Cited good results in recruitment and turnover, and increased supervisory and employee satisfaction but noted a 2 percent increase in average salaries.
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF
STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY
Sites: Gaithersburg, Md., and Boulder, Colo.
Participants: 3,150 GS/GM employees.
Features: Broader pay bands for GS grades; white-collar pay for performance; expanded direct hire and delegated examination authority; total compensation comparability (dropped in 1992); supervisory pay differentials; recruitment and retention bonuses; flexible probationary periods.
Dates: 1988 and extended indefinitely.
Evaluation: Supervisors more satisfied with classification and pay authority and processes. Starting salary flexibility useful as a recruiting tool. Average salaries up 4 percent. Employees more satisfied with performance management system and 67 percent favor the project.
PACER/SHARE
Sites: Air Force Sacramento Air Logistics Center and Defense Logistics Agency, Sacramento Specialized Distribution Site; McClellan Air Force Base, Calif.
Participants: 1,400 GS/GM and Wage Grade employees.
Features: Broad pay bands; consolidated job series; revised supervisory grading criteria; single pay system for GS/GM and Wage Grade supervisors; individual performance ratings replaced by organization-wide quality/productivity measurement; modified on-call employment program. Project also featured productivity gainsharing, total quality management, and labor-management cooperation, which did not require waivers.
Dates: February 1988 to February 1993.
Evaluation: Fell short of expectations for improved organizational performance. Personnel system changes produced mixed results. Labor-management partnership resulted in improved cooperation.
FEDERAL AVIATION
ADMINISTRATION
Sites: Air traffic control facilities in Chicago, New York, Oakland, Calif., and Los Angeles areas.
Participants: 2,200 GS/GM employees in air traffic control and other safety-related positions.
Features: Retention allowances of up to 20 percent paid quarterly to attract and retain well-qualified employees in hard-to-staff areas.
Dates: June 1989 to June 1994.
Evaluation: Temporarily improved or prevented further deterioration of staffing. Costs high. Specific suggestions were included for more permanent solution.
FAA AIRWAY SCIENCE
CURRICULUM
Sites: Nationwide
Participants: Up to 5,000 General Schedule employees.
Features: Alternative recruitment method for five major occupations through a four-year university program.
Dates: October 1983 to March 1991
Evaluation: Insufficient hiring.
AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT
Sites: Randomly selected Forest Service and Agricultural Research Service units.
Participants: Up to 5,000 GS, GM, and Wage Grade new hires.
Features: Decentralized determination of job category shortages; streamlined hiring process using broader quality groupings in place of stricter numerical ratings; recruitment bonuses and relocation expenses; extended probationary period for research scientists.
Dates: July 1990 and extended to June 1998.
Evaluation: More candidates, faster hiring and greater satisfaction with process. No adverse impact on hiring of women, minorities or the disabled. More veterans hired than at comparison sites. Some concerns about low or imprecise qualification requirements.
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