Author Archive
Management
OPM Finalizes Rule on Trump Executive Order to Ease Firing and Discipline of Feds
Regulations set to go into effect next month will implement several key provisions of President Trump’s executive order.
Management
White VA Employees Twice as Likely to Be Promoted as Black Workers
The American Federation of Government Employees said Thursday that new data it obtained via the Freedom of Information Act underscores its allegations of systemic racism pervading the Veterans Affairs Department.
Pay & Benefits
Employee Groups Decry Hikes in What Typical Feds Will Pay in Heath Care Premiums, and More
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Pay & Benefits
Feds Will Pay 4.9% More Toward Health Care Premiums Next Year
The Office of Personnel Management said Wednesday that it has revamped its online plan comparison tool and encouraged greater transparency from insurance carriers to tamp down on surprise billing.
Pay & Benefits
Retiree COLA Set at 1.3% Next Year, Prompting Calls for Change
Organization calls on Congress to shift the metric upon which annual cost of living adjustments for Social Security and federal retirement benefits are based from the general price of goods to one that takes into account spending by the elderly.
Pay & Benefits
Senate Democrats Introduce Bill to Make Payroll Tax Deferral Optional
Legislation requiring workers, including federal employees and military service members, to consent in writing to have their Social Security taxes deferred between now and the end of the year has the support of nearly 20 employee groups.
Pay & Benefits
OPM Seeks to Limit Back Pay Awards for Employees, Unions
Officials at the Office of Personnel Management want to upend a nearly 40-year-old set of regulations, restricting which actions are subject to grievances under the Back Pay Act, and banning unions from being awarded attorney's fees when their members win their cases.
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Management
Civil Rights Groups Pressure VA Ahead of GAO Racism Audit
GAO has agreed to investigate the prevalence racism at the Veterans Affairs Department after a survey revealed that the vast majority of bargaining unit employees had either experienced or witnessed acts of discrimination on the job.
Pay & Benefits
Higher TSP Contributions Kick In, and More
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Pay & Benefits
Lawmakers Revive Push to Make Feds’ Payroll Tax Deferral Optional
The effort to pressure the Trump administration into allowing federal employees to opt out of the controversial initiative to delay collection of Social Security taxes until next year is now bipartisan.
Pay & Benefits
Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Protect All Feds’ Leave Following COVID
Although OPM’s current policy only waives the 30-day annual leave cap for essential employees who are unable to use their leave due to their duties responding to the coronavirus pandemic, Democrats in Congress want to extend the waiver to all federal workers.
Management
OPM Memo Puts Pause on Diversity Training Across Government
The Trump administration is pushing forward with its controversial purge of training it deems “un-American.”
Management
Labor Authority Abandons Decades of Precedent, Eviscerates Union Bargaining Rights
Across multiple decisions on Wednesday, the agency that governs federal sector labor law removed unions’ right to midterm bargaining and made it harder for unions to demand agencies bargain over changes to working conditions.
Pay & Benefits
TSP Funds Hit the Skids in September
After months of gains, most of the portfolios in the federal government’s 401(k)-style retirement savings program ended September in the red.
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Pay & Benefits
Voting Flexibilities for Feds, and a TSA Leave Bill
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Management
OPM Updates Job Qualifications Following Hiring Executive Order
The Office of Personnel Management is asking agencies for feedback on a draft list of the qualifications required for federal jobs as part of the implementation of a recent executive order emphasizing applicants’ skills and experience, rather simply education.
Pay & Benefits
More Feds Subject to Mandatory Payroll Tax Deferral Than Initially Thought
The National Treasury Employees Union on Friday said that the Trump administration failed to clarify that the controversial initiative applies to those making $4,000 or less after several pre-tax deductions, not their gross pay.
Pay & Benefits
Biden Vows to Raise Federal Employees' Pay and Protect Benefits
In a questionnaire published by the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, the former vice president said he would abandon efforts by the Trump administration to force federal workers to contribute more to their defined benefit retirement accounts.
Management
Unions Dispute Government’s Latest Effort to Dismiss Impasse Panel Challenges
The Trump administration on Tuesday cited a federal appellate court decision affirming that claims against the president’s workforce executive orders must go through an administrative process to support dismissing lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of Federal Service Impasses Panel appointments, but unions say the cases are unrelated.
Management