Pay & Benefits

Senator Calls for New Opt-In Period for Military's Blended Retirement System, More Financial Literacy

A new bill from Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., would require service members to "affirmatively" choose between enrolling in the blended retirement system or a traditional military pension.

Pay & Benefits

TSP Outlines Impact of New Lifecycle Fund Implementation

Next week, officials at the federal government's 401(k)-style retirement savings program will begin offering lifecycle funds in five-year increments, moving the options in line with private sector counterparts.

Pay & Benefits

OPM: Some Feds' Leave Canceled Because of COVID-19 Will Be Restored

The federal government's HR agency said it will issue regulations allowing for agencies to restore federal workers' use-or-lose annual leave if it is canceled due to essential coronavirus response work.

Oversight

Watchdog: HHS Hasn't Done Enough to Catalog Reports of Sexual Misconduct in Migrant Children Facilities

In a six month period in 2018, the Health and Human Services Department IG found more than 700 possible sexual incidents of varying severity, including 48 incidents of misconduct by an adult against a minor.

Management

Union Files Grievance Over VA's Refusal to Bargain

The Veterans Affairs Department claims it doesn't need to negotiate with labor leaders until the pandemic is over.

Management

Labor Authority Overturns Another Precedent Days After Court Rebuke

The agency that governs federal sector labor-management relations seeks to limit arbitrators' authority to provide prospective remedies in grievance proceedings.

Pay & Benefits

TSP Announces CARES Act Loans Now Available

Federal workers and retirees who have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic may now take advantage of favorable loan terms on their retirement accounts.

Management

Watchdog: HUD Telework During the Pandemic Has Been Mostly Successful

A survey of employees found that the department was well prepared to move its workforce to full-time telework, although there were some hiccups around paper-based processes.

Management

Appeals Court Strikes Down Labor Authority Decision That Limited Scope of Federal Union Bargaining

A three-judge panel on Tuesday found that the Federal Labor Relations Authority relied on a misreading of Supreme Court precedent.

Management

VA Union Calls Management Proposals Illegal as Impasses Panel Legal Challenge Advances

AFGE officials accuse VA of submitting "illegal" proposals to a panel the union is separately trying to block from issuing decisions.

Pay & Benefits

TSP Board Chairman to Resign Following White House Intervention in Retirement Program

Michael Kennedy has served on the board for a decade, overseeing several major initiatives including implementing an employer match for military service members through the blended retirement system and making it easier for participants to access their money.

Pay & Benefits

Social Security Unions File Formal Complaints Over Lack of Emergency Sick Leave

More than two months after the deadline for all employers to offer workers pandemic-related emergency paid sick leave, three unions say the agency is violating the law.

Pay & Benefits

TSP Portfolios Continue Gains, But Fail to Make Up Earlier Losses

Although all of the funds in the federal government’s 401(k)-style retirement savings program posted modest increases in May, it was not enough to make up for the economic crash at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Management

Social Security Expands Flexible Hours for Some Workers

After months of urging, officials at the agency will allow some employees the option of working outside normal business hours to better juggle family demands during the pandemic.

Pay & Benefits

Lawmaker: White House ‘Overstepped its Authority’ in Demanding TSP Abandon I Fund Changes

Chairman of House Oversight and Reform subcommittee says instructing the Thrift Savings Plan not to shift international investments to a broader index effectively “politicized” the independent agency.

Management

Social Security Continues to Drag Its Feet on Paid Sick Leave, Telework Advancements

Labor leaders say agency officials have proposed setting preconditions on employees’ use of recently enacted partial paid sick leave, potentially in violation of the law.