| Comment Number: | OL-10400000 |
| Received: | 2/14/2005 2:06:06 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:
I would like to comment on the proposed new DOD personnel rules. As a 53 year old DOD(Corps Of Engineers ) employee with 22 years of service, I am very discouraged by this for four reasons: 1. I see this new system being used to get rid of older employees – especially those on the old CSRS retirement system. The EEO laws work well with minorities but do not work well with Age Discrimination and will not work at all in the future. 2. Those employees who may have done their jobs well but have made enemies among management will be sitting ducks. Just because you may not agree with a Project Manager or a Supervisor does not make you a bad employee or security risk. The system will breed more “Yes” people and they will be rewarded – there will be no “No” people because they will be gone. 3. There is absolutely no definitive way to accurately determine how a Government organization is performing. It is not like a business where making money determines if an organization is good or not. In the future, ratings will be based on goals made up by individual organizations and will be graded by that organization. Bad management still will be bad management – just higher paid. Thus, the ratings truly will be meaningless. 4. DOD wants to govern itself – the fox guarding the hen house scenario. I would like to see an outside agency be set up to handle personnel problems. There are some great reasons to be a Government employee. There also are some disadvantages but since most of us like our jobs, we live with it. I always considered my relationship to the Government as an informal agreement – I would live and work with the disadvantages but I would be protected by the Merit System and also would be served by Seniority advantages to work to retirement if I chose. I do believe that I gave more to my job than I received and truly believe my best years are behind me but I thought everything would level out. I am certain that I will be gone in two years for the first two reasons stated above. I consider this throwing out of the law “immoral”. Some people want the Government to act like businesses but they are starting with the bad part first.