| Comment Number: | OL-10507763 |
| Received: | 3/14/2005 2:54:13 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:
After reviewing the proposal of the NSPS system, I am gravely concerned for the future of the federal civilian employees as far as preserving their rights and safeguards in the Management and Employee Relations field, and maintaining a fair rate of pay for location, experience, and expertise. It would seem that rather than rushing into a system that has not yet been thoroughly proven, a longer research period would be proposed. What has happened in the agencies that are under the pay banding system? From what we hear from our paybanded brothers, it is not good. What happened when the civil service system was under a supervisory pay for performance many years ago? What did we learn? Have the field employees been asked for input, have any employees been asked for input? We have not been privey to hearing the groundwork for this new system. We are the employees that will be implementing the system and will have to live with the results. Yes, there are needs for improvement in many areas of the government civilian workforce, but there are also many proven procedures in place to provide a productive, fair, and equitable workplace. Do not throw out the baby with the bath water, find the broken parts and fix them, do not discard the entire system just to say we have a new system, and keep talent that we have been blessed with, not discard them, then have to spend years patching the flaws. I have had the priviledge to work with the Corps of Engineers for several decades. I have seen creative, talented people build dams, hydropower plants, recreation areas, and save environmental situations. They are working within the structure that the civilian federal government has put in place, and have honored our nation with fine work. They give of themselves to make our nation strong. Our employees are in Iraq and building the nation's electricity, waterways, and oil lines to aid the Iraq people to take their nation back, they are in our federal parks, wetlands, recreation, and many other venues supporting this country. We are not challenged to attract and keep talent, we need to CONTINUE to find ways to bring the same caliber of employees to our workplace.