| Comment Number: | EM-019832 |
| Received: | 3/14/2005 8:20:51 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 14, 2005 DoD NSPS Comments , DoD NSPS Comments: I am writing to voice my concerns about changes to the 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 DoD for 20 years. I am not only angry that these proposals seem to treat the employees who help defend our country as the enemy but appalled at the blatant union busting tactics. Most DoD employees work hard and are committed and if they weren't then management already had the tools to correct the problem without NSPS. I believe that mistreating the employees will hurt the agency?s mission. It will creat a worksite where you constantly have to look over your shoulder and it with destroy teamwork and replace it with cronyism. 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 influenced by favoritism rather than serving the civil concerns of the American people. Annual Pay Raises 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 just 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? The Pay System: With the new patronage pay system, which DoD calls ?pay for performance,? will do away with moral and replace it with backstabbing and failure to keep the eye on the mission. This system will force workers to compete with one another for pay raises, c which will cause onflict 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 harassment, violations of the law, and workplace safety problems. Furthermore, there will be no impartial appeal system to assure that everyone is treated fairly. EEO will be overburdoned. 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, which means that 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 to include my husband, a disabled 24 year army retiree. I signed up for a civilian job. I did not enlist in the military. Today?s volunteer system works well. Many managers say we already can do this and the answer is yes but there is a system in place to bargain to offset the adverse impact and this ability will be taken away. America is at war. Of this there is no doubt. We are fighting for democracy abroad. But the regulations are an attack on workers? basic rights. Furthermore, NSPS will divert the attention of defense workers from the 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 preserve fairness, serve the American people, and respect the rights of Defense Department workers. The current system might need some changes but not the changes proposed by NSPS. Let managers use the tools they already have instead of creating more to do things they already have the ability to do plus union bust at the same time Sincerely,