Pay & Benefits
The More You Know
Federal employees and retirees will now be able to compare actual drug and medical procedure costs among some insurance plans.
Defense
Pentagon may seek an extension of labor relations deadline
Lengthy regulation development process, and delays caused by court case, may mean more time is needed, deputy secretary says.
Pay & Benefits
Federal health premiums to rise only slightly
OPM draws on reserve funds to keep costs down, in a move a union official says helps the government more than employees.
Pay & Benefits
Cost of running TSP lower than anticipated
Decreases in operating budget are not coming at the expense of services, officials say.
Management
Senior execs pan performance pay system
Half of respondents to a survey said their agencies are using quota systems to distribute ratings, despite a prohibition.
Pay & Benefits
Life Insurance Options, Part One
The first in a two-part series on the Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance program.
Management
VA responds to low certification test grades with more training
Union blames veterans service representatives’ poor exam performance on inadequate help with preparation.
Tech
Navy civilian benefits Web site remains offline
Unspecified technical difficulties have disabled the Employee Benefits Information System.
Pay & Benefits
Federal employees’ job tenure on the decline
Private sector workers staying longer on the job, but median stay is more than six years shorter than that for feds.
Pay & Benefits
COLA Wars
The difference between getting a full cost-of-living-allowance and the “diet” version.
Pay & Benefits
TSP sticks with Barclays to run funds
The first-ever simultaneous bidding process ends with the same company at the helm.
Tech
Senate bill encourages electronic health records for feds
Measure would require Federal Employees Health Benefits Program insurance carriers to offer digital records.
Defense
Pay-for-performance warrior exits the battlefield
As George Nesterczuk leaves the Office of Personnel Management, his efforts to reshape the Defense and Homeland Security bureaucracies are far from complete.
Pay & Benefits
Gone With the Windfall
The ins and outs of one of everybody’s favorite restrictions on benefits: the windfall elimination provision.
Pay & Benefits
Bush declines to offer alternative pay raise plan
Inaction by Aug. 31 deadline gives de facto support for 1.7 percent across-the-board white-collar raise.
Pay & Benefits
Moving Ahead
The Bush administration isn’t waiting for legislation to expand pay-for-performance efforts in federal agencies.
Pay & Benefits
OPM reaffirms dental, vision contract awards
Blue Cross Blue Shield again shut out of dental contracts; new benefits on track to be offered in November.
Management