FederalDaily.com > GAO: Staffing Woes Persist at DHS

FederalDaily - July 19, 2007

GAO: Staffing Woes Persist at DHS

Senior-level staff at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are leaving their jobs at a rate that is about twice the government-wide average for such employees, said a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report released July 16. Attrition rates for DHS Senior Executive Service (SES) positions or those requiring presidential appointment were 14.5 percent in 2005 and 12.8 percent in 2006, much higher than the average SES attrition rate for all cabinet-level departments of 7 percent and 6 percent, respectively, the report said. Not only are SES staff leaving DHS at a fast clip, the agency is having trouble filling those same positions, according to a recent House Homeland Security Committee report, which concluded that 24 percent of top positions at DHS are vacant, leaving a “gaping hole” in executive resources. Not all the news in the GAO report was bad, however. The report noted that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) had the highest levels of turnover due to loss of screeners in 2005. But, if the TSA numbers are eliminated from agency-wide results, DHS turnover rates have actually been at or below those of other agencies. Furthermore, DHS met four out of five of the GAO’s management criteria for compliance with the Vacancies Reform Act, the report said. To see more, go to: www.gao.gov/new.items/d07758.pdf

NTEU Applauds Senate Action on Contracting Out

The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) applauded a measure adopted by the Senate Appropriations Committee that it says would level the playing field for federal employees when agencies open privatization competitions. NTEU President Colleen Kelley said on July 17 that the measure, part of the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act of 2008 (HR 2829), would provide federal employees with the same rights currently enjoyed by private contractors to appeal agency privatization decisions. Currently, federal employees can appeal only to their agency, which made the initial decision to contract out, while contractors can appeal the decision to the Government Accountability Office. “This positive step would bring a much-needed degree of fairness to the federal contracting process,” Kelley said. The committee also approved a 3.5 percent pay raise for federal employees for FY 2008, which is one-half percent higher than President Bush proposed, and equal to the amount passed by the House of Representatives. To see more, go to: www.nteu.org

VA to Pair Mental Health Care with Primary Care Facilities

Acknowledging the pending deluge of returning combat veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) plans to start placing mental health programs closer to primary care facilities. VA Secretary Jim Nicholson said that the move is meant to address the reluctance of some veterans to talk about emotional problems by increasing the department’s mental health presence in primary-care settings, which generally are a more familiar venue for veterans. With collocation of the two programs, vets can receive care without actually going to an identified mental health clinic, Nicholson said. “The wounds of war are not always the result of explosions and rocket fire,” he said. “They can sometimes be unseen and cloaked in silence. If left untreated, they can be just as lethal.” The VA, with a $3 billion mental health services budget this year, recently increased the number of Vet Centers from 209 to 232 and added 100 new combat veterans to run mental-health outreach programs. To see more, go to: http://www1.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=1359