| Comment Number: | EM-010827 |
| Received: | 3/3/2005 7:48:07 PM |
| Subject: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Request for Comment |
| Title: | National Security Personnel System |
| CFR Citation: | 5 CFR Chapter XCIX and Part 9901 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
March 3, 2005 DoD NSPS Comments , DoD NSPS Comments: I write to express my concerns about changes to work rules in the Department of Defense (DoD). The proposed regulations, known as the National Security Personnel System (NSPS), were printed in the Federal Register on February 14, 2005. This message will be sent to both DoD and my representatives in Congress. I have worked for non-DoD for 1 year and 3 months.I am angry that these proposals seem to treat the employees who help keep our military running and support those who help defend our country as the enemy. Most non-DoD employees work hard and are committed. I believe that mistreating the employees will hurt the agency's mission. I am very upset by NSPS.This system will change the way workers are paid, evaluated, promoted,fired,scheduled,and treated.These rules would create a system in which federal managers are influnced by favoritism rather than serving the civil concerns of the american people. Annual pay raisers under the General Schedule and FWS, employee pay was clear. It was funded by congress and could not be taken away. However, NSPS will take away this certainty. Salaries and bonuses are funded by DoD. In the past- as recently as last year-DoD did not fund its awards program.Given the agency's miserable record on this issue, how can employees feel confident that our salaries and bonuses will be funded in the future?(These comments are also representing the non-DoD employees, such as NAFE.) I was awarded the time-off award, but due to the fact that that I am a flex employee I was not allowed to receive the time off with pay, however prior to me receiving this award many other flex employees received the same award and was granted time off with pay.This is just one type of what I believe is favoritism. Is this what we as NAFE employees have to look forward to with this new regulation?It's highly Unfair! "Friend of the supervisor"Pay System with the new patronage pay system, which DoD calls "pay for performance," the amount of a worker's salary will depend almost completely on the personal judgement of his or her manager.This system will force workers to compete with one another for pay raises, which will destroy teamwork,increase conflict among employees, and reward short-term outcomes.There is no guarantee that even the best workers will receive a pay raise or that the pay offered will be fair or competitive.This system will create a situation in which workers are in conflict with one another and afraid to speak out about harassement, violations of the law, and workplace safty problems. Futhermore, there will be no impartial appeal system to assure that everyone is treated fairly. Also how is it that certain employees can call out without doctors note or other work excuses all the time and no displinary action is taken? While others have to pick up the work load and staff be left shorthanded, exspecialy on busy days, or when someone knows it's going to busy the following work day and they call out for no reason nothing is done to them? Is this another act of favoritism on managements part?Schedules and overtime NSPS will allow managers to schedule employees to work without sufficient advance notice of schedule changes.This will make it extremely difficult for working parents to care for their children and family. It will also mean that abusive managers could harass employees with bad schedules or short notice. Overtime rotations can be canceled, or schedule days off taken away, or weekends off be deleted from schedule, which means employees may not be able to plan adequately for childcare and other important responsibilities. Civilian Deployment Federal employees could be assigned anywhere in the world, even into a war zone, with little or no notice. I am proud to serve my country, but I am also responsible for caring for my family and my personal obligations at home. We signed up for a civilian job. We did not enlist in the military!Today's volunteer system works well. We have people in the military for a reason!These are the people who choose to sighn up and choose to fight for this country. I am a civilian with a federal job! I did not enlist! What happens if I get deployed and killed doing my job? What about my family members? Who's going to pay for my responsibilities? The government? America is at war. We are fighting for democracy abroad. But the regulations are an attack on workers' basic rights. Futhermore, NSPS will devert the attention of defense workers' from soldiers' welfare to protecting themselves from abuse on the job. I urge you to force DoD to rethink this proposal. We need work rules that perserve fairness, serve the American people, and respect the rights of Defense Department workers. This regulation does not only effect me but it effects my family and those around me. I feel this regulation is abusive and unfair to civilian employees and should be thrown out with the trash that it is! Sincerely,