Navy intranet project will not result in job losses

Federal employees displaced by the Navy's multi-billion dollar intranet project have found jobs either with the contractor or elsewhere in the department, a top Navy official said Thursday. Government employees whose jobs have been affected by the implementation of the Navy-Marine Corps intranet (NMCI) were offered jobs with the project's contractor or were reassigned to civil service positions within the department if they chose not to work for Electronic Data Systems Corp. (EDS). That was the word from Joseph R. Cipriano, the Navy's program executive officer for information technology at a press conference Thursday. So far, the NMCI has affected the work status of 280 employees. The Navy awarded the $4.1 billion, initial five-year intranet contract to EDS, which competed with three other bidders for the project. The contract outsources the technology, maintenance and help desk support of 360,000 desktop computers and 200 networks. Cipriano's remarks came during the Navy's first press conference on the status of the intranet project since the department awarded the contract in October. NMCI will provide service members and employees in the U.S. and abroad with access to voice, video and data communication through a sole service provider. Cipriano said the department has not issued any reductions in force and has no plans to do so. When federal unions mobilized against the deal over fears of job losses, former Navy Secretary Richard Danzig authorized a compromise to let any potentially displaced workers transfer within the Navy or become employees of EDS. EDS has implemented a "first hire" policy for affected government employees, including a 15 percent increase in gross salary and a 3 percent signing bonus. Employees are guaranteed employment for three years. Cipriano said the purpose of NMCI is to enable naval personnel to make better and faster decisions. Through NMCI, Cipriano said the Navy wants to provide the average sailor and Marine "access to the combined knowledge of the Navy." For example, employees will be able to view and change their personnel records online, instead of having to wait to receive that information by mail. All employees will have a smart card that identifies them in the computer system and ensures computer security. Congressional concern and criticism from the General Accounting Office over funding for the project slowed the department's momentum in getting the initiative off the ground, but many of the project's initial critics are now supporters. The Navy did not specifically include the initiative in its fiscal 2000 and 2001 requests for funding. The Navy started the testing and evaluation phase of the project last month and expects NMCI to be fully implemented by October 2003. Navy officials said the department will hold regular press conferences on the project's status.