| Comment Number: | OL-10511189 |
| Received: | 3/16/2005 2:24:50 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:
My concerns for the new system stem from experience with the current personnel system. Under the new system, I feel that too much power is given to supervisors that already tend to abuse the system. I read were they will get training and that will make the system fair, but I don't believe training will do that. Without strong restraint of independent oversight, supervisors will just turn the new system into a "good ole boys" process of taking care of their friends and buddies, both horizontally and vertically. They do that under the current system. The saving grace of the current system is that all employees still receive COLAs even if they don't get a performance bonus. I feel some similar system should remain in place under the new system. Secondly, under the current system, bonuses are pooled and become restricted based on funding provided by Congress and signed by the President. In more than one year we were told, "there is no bonus money available this year". Under the new system, I feel this will still happen and therefore would have a complete negative effect to the supposed linchpin of the new system, above average performers will be paid the most. If money isn't available, then good performance won't be rewarded any more then bad performance. The employee pay part of O&M funding is all too often a target for funding cuts in order to pay other bills. In a case where minimal funding is made available, the situation I spoke about first will be compounded and good performers will be negatively impacted if they aren't in the "good ole boy" circles. Lastly, if true good performance is what is to be rewarded, then sizable increases in pay is what is needed. In the commercial world, performance bonuses are paid well into the thousands of dollars. Federal employees below the supervisor levels are paid bonuses of around a $1,000 to $2,000 or less before taxes. There is no performance incentive with that small of a bonus. If there is a true intention of incentivizing increased performance, bonuses will have to be similar to those in the commercial world in order to truly incentivize all employees to perform better.