Rah-Rah Ratings

Critics of government's appraosal system say managers give out too manytop performance ratings. Nearly half of all employees get the top rating.

MAKING DISTINCTIONS

About half of federal employees are evaluated on a five-level scale. Almost as many are in a pass-fail system. Proponents say the pass-fail system focuses on constructive feedback instead of ratings, but critics say it lacks distinctions between mediocre and top performers.

SOURCE: Central Personnel Data File, 2001