| Comment Number: | OL-10511590 |
| Received: | 3/16/2005 4:14:51 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 comments refer to the NSPS as a whole, rather than any specific section. As I studied the draft regulation, my trepidation increased. Although I certainly agree that the current system needs improvement, the proposed NSPS represents a pretty drastic change, sort of like throwing out the baby with the bathwater. I am greatly concerned about the power this puts in the hands of unscrupulous supervisors and managers. Although, ideally, we expect these people to be conscientious, fair and impartial, unfortunately in the real world this is the exception rather than the rule. Favoritism and dishonesty are rampant in every DoD organization in which I have worked in my 24+ years of civil service. In fact, even though the new system is not even in place yet, some supervisors are already using it a threat to their employees, i.e., shape up or there goes your paycheck. If NSPS is implemented, I think there should definitely be more stringent controls in place. Although national security is used as the primary justification for this change, I do not see a direct relationship between NSPS and security. The pay banding concept puts all the focus on money. In other words, it doesn't matter that I'm a dedicated employee, a person of integrity, taking pride in my work and doing the best job possible--what will matter is how my performance is quantified in dollars, and this will be decided by someone who, more often than not, will be untrustworthy, biased, and primarily concerned to protect/accelerate his/her own pay band. How do you put a price on integrity? What ever happened to quality Air Force, that was constantly preached to us some years ago?