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- Contractors with security clearances lack path to report problems
- Proposed commission would give teeth to cost-saving ideas but some lawmakers skeptical
- Feds outside the Beltway react to furloughs
- Contracting executives guilty of 8(a) program fraud
- EPA CIO Jackson returning to private sector
- Navy strikes enterprise licensing deal with Oracle
- 29-year-old NASA engineer going where no one has gone before
- USPS reaches energy reduction goal ahead of schedule
- NOAA meteorologist helps save lives one storm at a time
- ICE Director John Morton stepping down
- NASA picks 8 new astronauts, 4 of them women
- House passes sweeping $638 billion defense bill
- NIH tops list of best companies for baby boomers
- Latest postal reform proposal OKs 5-day delivery
- IRS official contradicts claims about reviews
- House presses VA for more details after cyber attacks
- DoD maintains BRAC fight, despite opposition
Agencies suffering reductions in services even before furloughs occur
Employees at TSA, CBP and Bureau of Prisons will no longer be able to work overtime. SSA offers its employees a new round of early retirements to deal with budget shortfalls. AFGE continues to press Congress, White House to stop sequestration.
Putting your worst foot forward: When bad is good
Now that sequestration is here, normally upbeat federal agencies are putting their worst foot forward, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. The mantra is unhappy days are here again. They are telling people what they won't be able to do for them, the services they will be missing and how things can only get worse.
AFGE fights for protective equipment, additional staff in Bureau of Prisons - March 15, 2013
This week on AFGE's "Inside Government" Council of Prison Locals President Dale Deshotel advocates for additional staff and protective equipment for BOP correctional officers in the wake of an officer killed in the line of duty. Jean Dearden of the National Labor College discusses NLC's Bonnie Ladin Union Skills Program while Democracy for America Chair Jim Dean argues for the preservation of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. AFGE VA Local 1843 representatives Kelvin Flannery and Betty White address the impact sequestration would have on veterans.
DoD constructing offensive, defensive cyber teams
U.S. Cyber Command is putting together dozens of groups to defend the military's network, to work with combatant commanders on offensive tactics and to respond to attacks against the nation. Gen. Keith Alexander, however, said budget cuts will delay DoD's ability to recruit and train team members.
MSPB exonerates Prouty for role in GSA's Western Regions Conference
Paul Prouty, the former GSA Region 8 commissioner, won his appeal of the agency's decision to fire him in the wake of the Western Regions Conference scandal last April. The Merit Systems Protection Board's administrative judge found "no evidence" of wrongdoing by Prouty.
Pay freeze, furloughs - what's not to like?
Although you are paying 2013 health premiums and higher taxes, many feds are doing it at their 2010 salary level. And with furloughs and an extended pay freeze in the offing many people are wondering why they are going to work every day, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Sequestration to force HUD to shut down for 7 days
The Department of Housing and Urban Development will furlough all 9,000 of its employees for seven days between May and August in a bid to reduce costs due to sequestration. All employees, including career employees, will be furloughed the same number of days, which will effectively result in a shutdown of the department on those days.
DoD furloughs to begin April 26, with almost no exceptions
The Pentagon will send furlough notices to civilian employees in the next two weeks. Defense components would not be spared from furloughs, regardless of any other efforts they take to offset sequestration.
Teleworking: 50 Shades of Not-So-Gray
What does the bestseller "Fifty Shades of Grey" have in common with telework-designated federal employees. Well for one thing they both involve voluntary torture, at least for some people, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Telework ready: The dark side
Teleworking is good. It saves time, money, cuts down on pollution and eliminates tardiness. It has no down side, we have been told. And yet, some telework-ready feds got a jolt last week when D.C. area government agencies shutdown for an impending blizzard and they didn't get the day off, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Fun stuff: a library where you're allowed to be loud
Federal News Radio's Beth Reardon speaks with Recreation News Editor Marvin Bond about fun things to do in and near the nation's capital.
Federal workers owe $3.5 billion in back taxes
The number of federal workers and retirees who owed delinquent income taxes jumped by nearly 12 percent in 2011, the Internal Revenue Service said Friday.
EEOC hosts Executive Leadership Conference
Jo Linda Johnson and Dexter Brooks from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission will talk about the organization's upcoming leadership conference.
March 8, 2013
CBP issues tens of thousands of furlough notices
In order to counter funding reductions due to sequestration, Customs and Border Protection has begun sending furlough notices to many of its 60,000 employees. An officer in the union representing CBP agents says these measures amount to a 40 percent reduction in salaries.
FBI investigating NASA whistleblower reports of Chinese data breach
Congressman Frank Wolf, whose subcommittee handles NASA's budget, said whistleblowers have reported a foreign national connected to an 'entity of concern' was allowed to exfiltrate sensitive data to China. The FBI is investigating the allegations.
Just what do government workers do?
Ever wonder what feds who work at airports actually do? Many people complain that they mostly slow down important people, like us, who are on a mission or heading for vacation. But it turns out that they do some pretty dramatic and important stuff all the time, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
What's ahead for U.S. foreign service workers?
Daniel Hirsch, state vice president of the American Foreign Service Association, discusses the issues affecting government employees who are working overseas.
March 7, 2013
Farenthold bill offers way to stop sequestration-related furloughs
The Protecting America's Civilian Employees Act would require the Office of Management and Budget to submit a plan to Congress on how they would cut spending without harming the federal workforce.
Furloughs: Vacation or hard time?
Senior Correspondent Mike Causey asks: If furloughs come to your agency, will you treat them like a surprise budget vacation, or would that 20 percent per week pay cut put you under water? And is there a place where you can get an emergency, no-interest loan?
Sequestration causes rare March blizzard?
In 18th century Paris, the people demanded Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. In 21st century Washington, when a snowstorm approaches, the battle cry is white bread, milk and toilet paper, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
