FedLove

Is there any point at which career federal employees get more love than during a presidential transition? During this period of frenzied limbo, as political appointees move in and out, they're all eager to praise the folks who will hold the fort together.

"The next Secretary will also benefit from the support of an exceptional staff of hard-working career employees at Treasury who are critical to the important work before the Department," Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said in his statement on the transition.

And Jim Rispoli, Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management at the Energy Department, wrote in his resignation letter that " am particularly proud of the accomplishments made by our DOE team of career civil servants and contractors to enable EM to attain performance results in our projects, and in safety for our work force and our communities. This dedication and enthusiasm have been major catalysts for me as we executed our cleanup mission."

It's interesting to me that, if political appointees are sincere in their appreciation of career employees, that more of them don't advocate for workforce reforms, like better pay and performance management systems. Even politicals who don't work in workforce and management agencies like OMB and OPM should see the importance of workforce issues. It might be an interesting project for the next Treasury Secretary to take on; perhaps the bailout office, and the rapid hiring the department is doing will provide a catalyst for talking about what works, and what doesn't, in hiring, pay, and benefits.