Pay & Benefits
A Bill to Resolve Prison Workers' Locality Pay Woes, and More
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Management
Senate Panel Advances Labor Authority Nominees
President Biden’s picks to lead the agency that administers federal labor law were sent to the floor by a party-line vote Wednesday.
Workforce
GOP Bill Would Send Vaccinated Feds Back to Offices
Republican calls for agencies to resume in-person services clash with Biden administration plans to make telework more readily available to federal workers.
Pay & Benefits
TSP Funds Bounce Back After Rough September
Only one offering in the federal government’s 401(k)-style retirement savings program ended October in the red.
Workforce
Bill to Expand Union Rights for State and Local Workers Puts FLRA in Charge of Enforcement
It is unclear whether the Federal Labor Relations Authority would require additional resources to carry out its proposed new duties, as the agency faces an extensive existing case backlog and staffing crunch.
Workforce
House Panel Advances Bill Protecting FAA Operations During Shutdowns
Bipartisan legislation would ensure the Federal Aviation Administration operates at full capacity during a lapse in appropriations by drawing money from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund for up to 30 days.
Pay & Benefits
Coming in 2022: A Mobile App for Federal Employees' Retirement Transactions
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Workforce
Biden Admin. Suspends Immigration Judge Quotas, Prompting Similar Requests Elsewhere
Following news that the Justice Department will no longer enforce strict caseload quotas on immigration judges, administrative law judges at SSA called on the agency to suspend the requirement to schedule at least 50 disability cases per month.
Pay & Benefits
Senators Urge TSP to Include Diverse Managers in Mutual Fund Window
Group of Democratic lawmakers cites multiple studies that found that women- and minority-run asset managers were more likely to outperform financial markets.
Pay & Benefits
House Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Overhaul Federal Firefighter Pay, Benefits
Under a new bipartisan bill, federal wildland firefighters would make at least $20 per hour.
Workforce
Labor Authority Nominees Vow to Tackle Case Backlog That Flourished Under Trump
Unfair labor practice complaints stagnated for the last four years because the agency’s general counsel position sat vacant for the entirety of the previous administration.
Workforce
Federal Agencies to Inform New Hires of Union Eligibility, Rights
As part of the Biden administration’s initiative to promote collective bargaining in the federal government, agencies also will be expected to inform current employees of their union rights at least twice per year.
Pay & Benefits
Senate Appropriators Endorse Biden’s 2.7% Pay Raise for Feds in 2022
Spending bills unveiled by Senate Democrats Monday were silent on the issue of federal employee compensation, potentially clearing the way for President Biden’s plan.
Pay & Benefits
OPM to Propose Expanding Dental and Vision Benefits to More Federal Workers
In a new proposed rule, OPM would extend eligibility to temporary and part-time workers, as well as federal firefighters and other “intermittent” first responders.
Management
Democratic Lawmakers Offer Advice for White House Racial Equity Initiative
Reps. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., and Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., stress that agencies must take a data-based approach to ensure underserved communities do not encounter barriers to access federal programs.
Pay & Benefits
Annual Employee Viewpoint Survey Coming Next Month, and More
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Pay & Benefits
Federal Retirees to See Largest Cost-of-Living Adjustment in Decades in 2022
While CSRS retirees will receive a 5.9% boost to their defined benefit annuity payments next year, enrollees in FERS will only see a 4.9% increase, renewing calls to change the law.
Oversight
ATF Misclassified Jobs as Law Enforcement and Retaliated Against Whistleblower, Agencies Say
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is demanding additional information after revelations that the Office of Personnel Management partially suspended the agency’s authority to classify positions.
Pay & Benefits
Bill to Provide Paid Family Leave for Feds Could Cost $20 Billion By 2027
Officials with the Congressional Budget Office warned that the actual price tag of providing feds with up to 12 weeks of paid family leave could vary widely from their estimate, depending on how much the new benefit is used.
Management