| Comment Number: | EM-022996 |
| Received: | 3/16/2005 1:36:03 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 16, 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. I have worked for DoD for 32 years and I do not like the fact that we are now at the mercy of a supervisor, who is imperfect. History shows that supervisors show favoritism. That is one of the very reasons that the current rules were made. We are losing the very ideals and reasons why the current system was devised. Many of us signed and contracted to work for DOD for exchange of less money than industry, for security. One thing we can count on is the annual pay raise and seniority in a reduction-in-force. There is no guarantee that even the best workers will receive a pay raise or that the pay offered will be fair or competitive. The amount of a worker's salary will depend almost completely on the personal judgment of his or her manager. I am a Property Administrator, which means that once we go into these Property Centers, you are at the supervisor's mercy. He may not even be driving distance to you. I am concerned about going under the center philosophy, because a supervisor, who rarely interacts with you, may not be as concerned about your well-being. Employees who are geographically closer to the supervisor will have preference when it comes to pay raises and awards; its just human nature to do so. 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 the employee's performance. Federal employees could be assigned anywhere in the world, even into a war zone, with little or no notice. We signed up for a civilian job. We did not enlist in the military. Today?s volunteer system works well. The change to the retirement system is no different, whereby DOD recognized that the changes could not be made without our consent. I did not sign up to this. We are fighting for democracy abroad. We need to implement that here. We need work rules that preserve fairness. I urge you, to force DoD to rethink this proposal. Sincerely,