Pay & Benefits

The Very Best Senior Executives Can Get Bigger Bonuses Next Year

OMB and OPM remind agencies that the aggregrate spending cap on SES performance awards will increase 2.7 percent beginning in October.

Management

VA Employees Will Display Their Creative Problem-Solving in Washington

An all-day event on Monday features innovative ideas from across the country designed to make the department more responsive to veterans.

Pay & Benefits

Air Force Will Offer Drone Pilots $35,000 Retention Bonuses

The service this fall will start offering $10,000 more than the current annual rate to those who agree to stay in their jobs for another five years.

Oversight

VA Blows $300,000 On The Wrong TVs

The Detroit medical center ordered televisions that didn’t fit in its facility, so they sat in storage for nearly three years.

Management

Fight Over Lucrative TRICARE Contracts Won’t Affect Beneficiaries, Defense Says

Three health insurance companies have filed bid protests over multi-billion dollar Defense health care contracts.

Management

Low Pay and Geography Contribute to Hiring Woes at Immigration Detention Facilities

Homeland Security has struggled for years to recruit and retain mental health providers for detainees, says watchdog.

Management

Surprise Inspections Show VA Health Care Improvement Since Phoenix Scandal

But the agency’s continuing struggle to hire and keep staff hurts vets’ access to care, says the Joint Commission.

Pay & Benefits

OPM Tells Agencies to Submit Annual Special Pay Rate Requests

Federal employees in certain hard-to-fill jobs can be paid more than regular General Schedule salaries.

Pay & Benefits

Civilians in Iraq Receive Higher Premium Pay Through 2016

The latest OPM guidance on premium pay also applies to feds working on reconstruction and stabilization efforts in the country.

Pay & Benefits

New Leave Benefit for Eligible Disabled Vets Takes Effect in November

OPM publishes final rule on law giving up-front leave for medical appointments to vets with a 30 percent or more disability rating.

Oversight

Watchdog: Some FHA-Approved Homes in Flint Had Unsafe Water

HUD did not properly oversee water testing for lead and copper in several properties that received FHA-insured loans.

Oversight

New Law Imposes Income Cap on Public Housing Residents

Measure aims to strengthen oversight of extremely over-income public housing tenants and ensure needy families aren’t shut out.

Defense

Families of Fallen Service Members Demand Apology From Trump

Group says the Republican’s remarks about the parents of a Muslim-American killed in action are “repugnant” and “anti-American.”

Pay & Benefits

Obama Has Until Aug. 31 to Offer Alternate Pay Raise Plan

Feds likely will receive a 1.6 percent pay increase in fiscal 2017, unless Congress intervenes.

Management

Military and Vets Groups Seek To Defend VA Firing Law in Court

The organizations want to weigh in on the case involving former senior executive Sharon Helman.

Oversight

Congressional Committee Seeks Cop Killers' VA Medical Records

It is not clear whether veterans Gavin Eugene Long and Micah Xavier Johnson suffered from PTSD.

Management

Clinton Promises VA Reform Will Be a Top Priority If She’s Elected

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee’s Monday speech marked a departure from last fall, when she said the department’s problems were not as “widespread” as some claimed.

Pay & Benefits

Virginia Lawmakers Demand Answers on Long-Term Care Insurance Price Spike

Federal enrollees who do not change their coverage would end up paying $111 more per month on average for the insurance.

Oversight

Clinton's Vice Presidential Pick Has a Record of Supporting Federal Employees

Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine has backed efforts to protect the pay and benefits of federal workers and service members.