| Comment Number: | OL-10509463 |
| Received: | 3/15/2005 3:32:29 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:
NSPS clearly does not enhance national security; it allows managers to circumvent a convoluted system without interference and ignore pay and career retention goals that an employee has. Production and morale will definitely be adversely impacted well into the next decade. Without a doubt – NSPS far exceeds what congress intended – A system that is mission driven, employee focused through cooperation, collaboration with principles. NSPS invokes disparity by implying that as a stakeholder (federal employee) we lack commitment and strips rights away in the ability to communicate working conditions. NSPS will further enable dissention, disloyalty and adverse working environments; especially within this agency, where headquarter-level agency officials have openly admitted that management officials severely lack communication skills. This environment has extremely low morale and trust between management and stakeholders and vice versa; as well as a focused potential of nepotism with an inadequate job rating system. NSPS will erode the potential for improvement, because management will continue with their current attitude that they “simply just don’t have too!” Pay issues under NSPS is designed to enhance stakeholder-management relationships, through the power to promote, demote, etc and allow a given manager the authority to say or do what they want. Objectivity in performance appraisals will now be based on “how a manager views the stakeholder” and in this command that alone is a dangerous tool, where performance is based on personality and not mission. The fact that DoD claims that supervisors will be trained retains no merit, because training is available to them now. When OSD refused to address the December 21, 2004 letter from the House of Representatives they clearly demonstrated their open defiance in applying the very rules they are trying to impose through NSPS – Apparently, communication definitely is lacking on a much larger and broader scale than just within this agency. Avenues of redress will dissipate as time goes on … Case in point, an area where DoD claims NSPS will not be affected, are protections from whistleblowing. The actions of its current director when he flagrantly threatened his personnel that he would initiate adverse personnel actions to those who discuss his leadership abilities. Undoubtedly, this presidential appointee has an NSPS mindset that he can do what he wants by motivating through fear and intimidation without accountability. Sadly the erosion of avenues to address concerns, now has is limited to EEO; which in theory may set back the EEO years or decades, due to an increase in complaints and processing. The future is here and it doesn’t look good!