Comment Number: OL-10510765
Received: 3/16/2005 11:52:27 AM
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 am writing to express my concerns about changes to work rules, National Security Personnel System (NSPS) in the Dept of Defense (DOD). This message will be sent to both DOD and my representatives in Congress. I have worked for the DOD for many years as an Active Duty military person, Retired Reserve AF person, and a CSRS (Civil Service) person (Contemplating retirement in the next several years), and I am very disappointed in how employees can expect to treated with the proposed NSPS system. Under the General Schedule and FWS, employee pay was clear. It was funded by Congress and could not be taken away. Now the proposal is to give that authority to Management, who we all know will use the power to discriminate and alieninate employees by expanding their existing cliques based on partiality, favoritism and relationships. With the new patronage pay system which DOD calls "Pay for Performance," the amount of a worker's salary will depend almost completely on the personal judgment of his or her manager. This system will force workers to compete with one another for pay raises or favoritism, which will destroy teamwork, and will ultimately increase conflict among employees, and reward short-term outcomes. Existing employees (CSRS or FERS) should not have to be concerned with such drastic personnel changes in the midst of their Federal careers. If new personnel changes are necessary, they should be imposed on new employees (to be hired), who will be aware of the circumstances under which they are hired and will be prepared for the significant challenges to which they will be exposed. I am deeply concerned about the potential for violence in the workplace due to Management's unfairness, which will do little to expand teamwork or develop employee morale in the workplace. The likelihood for abusive managers to harass employees with bad schedules or short notices, just because of an individual's color, religion, sexual orientation, etc. will be much worse than it already is. The number of EEOC complaints will surely increase; however, to no avail since the NSPS will not allow for any constructive appeal (National Security will override an individual's basic rights), even though we all know that the term "National Security" is merely a "Catch-All" for promoting fear. A fear which can't be alleviated in most Americans since our borders are not even guarded at a sufficient level. The fact that Federal employees could be assigned anywhere in the world is very troubling. Even though I am very familiar with the military service and have served faithfully, I do not feel that Federal civilians should have to be concerned with deployments, especially since they are not in the military (That's the mission of the All Volunteer Force). Also, deployments/short notice assignments would wreak havoc on working parents to care for their children and family (elderly parents, etc). I feel that the proposed regulations are an attack on workers' basic rights. NSPS will only divert the attention of defense workers from the military's welfare to protecting themselves from abuse/favoritism on the job. We need work rules that preserve fairness, serve the American people, and respect the rights of Defense Department workers. Given this agency's miserable record on fairness to ALL employees, employees will have little confidence that their salaries will be increased in a fair manner. Neither the DOD employee, nor the American taxpayer will be well served by the NSPS. These rules will create a system in which Federal managers will be influenced by favoritism rather than serving the civil concerns of the American people. Once employees feel that their performance is not going to be fairly compensated, you can bet their production will reflect thusly, and distract from achieving the DOD mission, whether wartime or peacetime.