| Comment Number: | OL-10509269 |
| Received: | 3/15/2005 2:07:06 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:
5 CFR Chapter XCIX and Part 9901 I have been in government service for almost thirty years and have grown to understand how this system functions. I spent 26 years as an active duty military member and can justifiably say I know a little something about pay and promotion. Longevity is one of the key bedrock of the federal pay system. It is the reason many government employees stay with a system that is slow in providing increases in rewards, (pay) for service. Without the appeal of longevity how can you expect to keep qualified employees? The merit system proposed does not provide a fairness to employees who can and do accomplish there jobs everyday. I don’t remember any training I had as a military supervisor that would have addressed the proper way to give a pay raise to a civilian employee. I know there is training mentioned in the required startup, but how can you expect a fluid system like the military to keep proper accounting on civilian employees. The performance reporting system in the Air Force is and always will be one of the most over rated systems of evaluation. Who is going to establish a proper system to use for evaluation of employees? Once the change is in place how will you prevent the brain drain that will take place by the lack of pay for your workers? There is such a great chance to destroy what little continuity there is in the civilian DOD structure by implementing this change. This system was back doored through Congress and it should not be activated without full representation. Many civilian companies provide guidance to their employees based on expectations of company growth. The military does not make a profit; it spends resources without concern of profit. How can you set an honest assessment of future pay for performance without a profit in mind? More work and input should be considered before this is ever implemented.