| Comment Number: | EM-019866 |
| Received: | 3/14/2005 10:26:25 AM |
| 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 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 DoD for 28 + years. I am angry that these proposals treat all employees as if they are the worst workers in the country. Most DoD employees work hard and are committed. I believe that these changes will mistreat many employees, which 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 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. I grew up in a home where my mother lost her job because of a health problem (slipped disc, not job related). This made me extremely sensitive to how easy it is to lose gainful employment in the private sector. Although I could have joined private industry after college at a significantly higher rate of pay, I chose to join the federal government so that I would have security of pay and position, unless I did not perform properly in my job. I have met every challenge, every requirement, and every extra unpaid hour during my service years. I am proud to be a government employee. We presently have safeguards for assuring that personnel are not unjustly removed from their jobs or paid according to supervisorial whims. 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 record on this issue, how can employees feel confident that our salaries and bonuses will be funded in the future? In the Federal Aviation Administration, many employees have not had a pay increase in two years because the pay schedule did not increase. ?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 judgment 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 harassment, violations of the law, and workplace safety problems. Furthermore, there will be no impartial appeal system to assure that everyone is treated fairly. 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. We signed up for a civilian job. We did not enlist in the military. Today?s volunteer system works well. America is at war. 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 warfighters' 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. Again, let me repeat that I am a fiercely proud employee of the DOD. I have worked as a fire control electronics mechanic at the Naval Shipyard in Long Beach, as a Quality Assurance Specialist on many Army, Navy and Air Force contracts and as a Software Specialist on many high visibility programs. The job I perform matters to the men and women in uniform these programs support. I intend to continue doing my job in a manner to surpass their expectations. Their lives are in my hands and the hands of my fellow DOD employees. I do not wish ever to fail them. But changes to the pay system may cause many dedicated employees like me to leave federal government, to the detriment of the programs we support. Sincerely,