FederalDaily - June 21, 2005
NASA Offers $25,000 Buyouts
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center announced it is offering its civil
service employees a buyout opportunity worth up to $25,000 for eligible employees.
NASA recently issued a memo, which can be found at www1.msfc.nasa.gov/INSIDE/announcements/2005buyout/memo.html,
saying that the buyout application period opened on June 16 and closes on July
15.As in the previous buyout in December, NASA said this is
a "targeted" buyout intended to reduce excess capacity in certain
competency areas; therefore, not all employees are eligible. To be eligible,
one must be a permanent employee with at least three years of federal employment.
Eligibility also will be based on an employee’s:
- primary competency in the Competency Management System,
- grade,
- organization, and
- Office of Personnel Management position title.
:: Back to Top ::
OPM Issues Locality Pay Proposals
The Office of Personnel Management in the June 20 issue of the Federal Register
issued proposed regulations on the locality pay program for General Schedule
employees. The proposed regulations would merge the Kansas City, St. Louis and
Orlando locality pay areas with the “Rest of U.S.” locality pay area;
create new locality pay areas for Buffalo, N.Y.; Phoenix, Ariz.; and Raleigh,
N.C.; add Fannin County, Texas, to the Dallas-Fort Worth locality pay area; and
make minor changes in the official description of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside
and Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia locality pay areas. The new locality
pay area definitions would become effective in January 2006. OPM is taking comments
until August 19 and the regulations can be read at www.opm.gov/fedregis/2005/69-062005-35385-a.htm.
:: Back to Top ::
Public Likes TSA Screeners
A poll recently conducted by Zogby International and announced by the American
Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) found that nearly two-thirds of Americans
say they feel safer knowing that airport passenger and baggage screening is
in the hands of the federal government rather than private sector contractors.
AFGE said 64 percent of Americans indicated they feel more safe when asked, “How
much safer do you feel knowing that the federal government has a trained professional
workforce protecting our airports—a lot more safe, a little more safe,
a little less safe, a lot less safe or no difference in safety?” Seven
percent indicated they felt less safe. The survey also found 43 percent of
Americans indicated they would feel less safe if private companies replaced
federal screeners at U.S. airports.
:: Back to Top ::
Union Fights for Shorts
The Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) has ordered Customs and Border
Protection (CBP) to negotiate with the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU)
over the employees’ ability to wear cargo shorts. NTEU challenged a CBP
proposal more than a year ago banning the wearing of such shorts in air and
seaport cargo as well as land border passenger and cargo environments—except
for southwest border locations, south Florida and Puerto Rico. CBP’s
arguments against the shorts included:
- officers would no longer be identifiable as law enforcement
personnel;
- they would not present a professional law enforcement image;
- an increased risk of sunburn would exist;
- so would an increased risk an officer could be killed or
injured;
- officers would be limited in their “ability to kneel
or crawl;” and
- officers’ legs wouldn’t be protected during a
physical encounter.
:: Back to Top ::
|
