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Workforce
Sen. Kaine is ‘Optimistic’ an Anti-Schedule F Bill Will Get a Floor Vote This Year
The Democratic senator described Republican arguments that the Trump administration’s abortive effort to make thousands of federal workers effectively at-will employees was aimed at dealing with poor performers as “not honest.”
Pay & Benefits
New Data Suggests the Federal Pay Gap With the Private Sector Is Widening
Union officials called on the Biden administration to provide a more generous raise than the 4.6% average increase slated for next year, while a group representing executives urged officials to explore broader pay reform efforts.
Pay & Benefits
Education Department Issues More Rules to Simplify Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Rules set to take effect next July expand which past loan repayments will apply for the program as well as simplify the employment certification process for some applicants.
Workforce
Federal Employee Advocates and Scholars All Are Urging Congress to Enact Anti-Schedule F Legislation
With the window to pass a bill preventing presidents from unilaterally creating new job classifications closing at the end of the year, good government and federal employee advocates warn of potential grave consequences for inaction.
Pay & Benefits
The Education Department Announces More Tweaks to Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Although temporary measures making the program easier to access will be unavailable from November until next July, officials said they are prepping a new one-time adjustment for applicants involved in income-driven repayment plans.
Workforce
Social Security Union Rallies Outside the Agency's Headquarters for Funding, Bargaining and Training
An internal survey conducted by the American Federation of Government Employees found that 4 in 10 field office respondents are considering leaving the agency within the next year.
Pay & Benefits
OPM Authorized a New Way Agencies Can Help Feds with Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Federal agencies can now certify a Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program applicant’s past service elsewhere in the government.
Pay & Benefits
TSP’s Recordkeeper Transition Created an Opportunity for Hackers to Steal Accounts, a Victim Says
Over the summer, a hacker was able to claim a VA psychologist’s TSP online account access and filed a nearly $100,000 hardship withdrawal.
Oversight
Agencies Must Do More to Protect Their Canine Workforce from Abuse and Neglect, GAO Says
Although federal agencies and contractors have policies covering most elements of ensuring working dogs are employed and cared for humanely, they fall short on several issues, including identifying signs of abuse and neglect.
Workforce
Social Security’s Union Is Calling for $16.5 Billion in Funding and Cooperation from Management
Labor leaders say the only way out of the agency’s staffing crisis is more money and the abandonment of cutthroat collective bargaining tactics by the agency’s Office of Labor-Management and Employee Relations.
Workforce
OPM: Federal Employees’ Engagement ‘Stabilized’ in 2022, but Morale Continues to Fall
The Office of Personnel Management has released preliminary data from the 2022 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey.
Workforce
The FLRA Says HHS Erred in Implementing a Partial Union Contract During the Trump Administration
The agency that oversees labor-management relations in the federal government also chided a union for trying to get out of an agreement it previously reached because it conflicted with President Biden’s labor executive order.
Workforce
The Senate’s Defense Authorization Act Omits Most Workforce Provisions, For Now
Although many workforce-related policies included in the House-passed version of the annual defense policy bill are not included in the Senate’s latest draft of the bill, most could be added as amendments next month.
Pay & Benefits
Federal Retirees Are Set to Receive the Highest COLA in Decades, But Some Will Get Less Than Others
Civil Service Retirement System enrollees will see an 8.7% increase in their defined benefit pension payments in 2023, while participants in the Federal Employees Retirement System will only receive a 7.7% increase.
Workforce
OPM Authorizes Emergency Hiring for Hurricane Response
The federal government’s HR agency also reminded agencies of the variety of categories of leave available to federal workers impacted by a pair of recent severe storms.
Workforce
A Union Says the National Park Service Violated the Law by Allowing an HR Official to Pursue Decertification After Her Promotion
Federal labor law requires agencies to remain neutral on the question of whether employees want to be represented by a labor union.
Pay & Benefits
OPM Has Authorized Another Round of Paid Leave For Feds to Get COVID-19 Boosters
As part of the Biden administration’s efforts to encourage Americans to receive the latest COVID-19 booster, federal workers will get up to four hours of paid leave for the shot.
Management
Lawmakers Are Calling for Permanent Leadership at Social Security
Nearly two years into his tenure, President Biden has yet to name his choice to lead the agency, despite low morale, mounting attrition and lack of progress in labor-management relations.
Workforce
A 9-Year-Old Case Alleging Discrimination by NASA Can Finally Proceed
An administrative judge last week certified the classes of Black and Asian American employees at the agency, who allege its performance appraisal system discriminates against them, allowing the case to move forward.
Workforce
Supreme Court Takes Up Case Challenging FLRA's Long-Settled Jurisdiction Over National Guard Civilians
If the court’s conservative majority throws out the long-standing precedent that state national guards must comply with federal sector labor law, more than 20,000 employees could lose their collective bargaining rights.
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