FederalDaily - August 10, 2005
AFGE Questions Cost of Personnel Changes
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents 300,000
workers at the Department of Defense (DoD), yesterday asked for details on
the cost of implementing the proposed personnel system for DoD, known as the
National Security Personnel System (NSPS). For almost two years, DoD has been
developing NSPS for its 700,000 workers. “Despite the reams of paper
outlining details and procedures under the proposed system, little information
has been made available to the public on the costs associated with implementing
the new system,” said John Gage, president of AFGE. Gage noted
that Northrop Grumman was awarded a contract for $175 million solely for the
purpose of designing the new personnel system for DoD.
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Protecting USPS Employees From Poison
In October 2003, an envelope marked “Caution: Ricin Poison” was
discovered at an airmail facility in Greenville , South Carolina . Ricin is
a poison that, in certain forms, can cause death. The Government Accountability
Office (GAO) reported recently on how the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) responded
to the incident. GAO said USPS personnel did not speak with postal inspectors
or emergency responders about the envelope until 12 hours after the discovery
of the envelope. Subsequently, employees’ health was monitored, the facility
was tested for contamination and information was communicated to employees
and unions. But during the response, postal personnel did not fully follow
existing guidance. Although the USPS has since made a number of changes in
its guidance, the agency still has not provided managers with explicit instructions
on communicating with employees and unions regarding suspicious mail incidents,
according to GAO. For more on this story, see the upcoming August 15 issue
of Federal Employees News Digest.
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Plans for New Physical RehabilitationCenter
Servicemembers with severe injuries requiring extensive treatment and rehabilitation
will soon get assistance at a new facility on Fort Sam Houston, Texas, the
Army announced. The $30 million National Armed Forces Physical Rehabilitation
Center, funded by the nonprofit Intrepid Heroes Fund, will be built on a 4.5-acre
site adjacent to two new 21-room Fisher Houses. The groundbreaking for the
four-story, 65,000 gross square feet center is planned for the fall. The facility
will include indoor and outdoor rehabilitation facilities and a day care center
to support accompanying family members staying at the Fisher Houses. The center
will support treatment and rehabilitation of patients with amputated limbs,
severe burns, blindness and head trauma.
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FBI Solicits IT Modernization Bids
The FBI Office of IT Program Management released on August 8 its formal solicitation
for proposals to develop its next generation electronic information management
system, called Sentinel. The solicitation was sent to more than 40 companies
under a National Institutes of Health government-wide contracting vehicle.
Sentinel will consolidate and replace the FBI's legacy case management capabilities
with an integrated, paperless file management and workflow system. It is supposed
to contribute to the modernization of the FBI's Information Technology capabilities,
as well as enhance information access and promote information sharing with
law enforcement and intelligence community members such as the Department of
Justice and the Department of Homeland Security.
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