OPM News 
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- IRS to pay $70M in bonuses, Grassley says
- Small companies won't feel effect of lowered contractor pay cap
- Senators push Tangherlini for assurances GSA is improving
- As VA works to eliminate one backlog, one more might emerge
- BRAC-like commission proposed to hunt down government cost savings
- Sequestration claims another conference: DHS's GFirst cyber event
- Postal Service closing Capitol Hill post offices in 'symbolic' move
- Senators seek cost cuts for F-35 fighter jet
- Fed pens new furlough song
- Web guru Dorris brings new life to government websites
- EPA CIO Jackson returning to private sector
- Navy strikes enterprise licensing deal with Oracle
- Contractors with security clearances lack path to report problems
- NSA leak case gives vendors reason to reevaluate personnel
- 8 contract executives guilty of 8(a) contracting fraud
- Whistleblower suit leads to $12M false claims settlement by SAIC
Congress passes bill to honor fallen feds
Agencies can give an American flag to the survivors of a federal employee who is killed in the line of duty under a bill passed Thursday by the Senate. The House unanimously approved the measure last month.
Open Season crunch time: What to do NOW
Federal benefits specialist Ann Vanderslice has some quick tips in the last-minute days before the Open Season deadline.
DC-area officials cheer federal 'shelter-in-place' snow strategy
Capital region officials cheered the Office of Personnel Management's "shelter-in-place" option for snow emergencies. Having people stay at the office during sudden or extreme snowstorms would lessen gridlock, officials told lawmakers Wednesday. They also urged area workers to know their children's school emergency policies and have backup childcare arrangements in place.
Senate examines DC-area disaster preparedness
A Senate homeland security subcommittee is set to examine whether the Washington area is prepared for natural or man-made disasters.
Common mistakes during Open Season
Federal employees have until Dec. 12 to decide on a health plan during this year's Open Season. Benefits expert Walt Francis has advice for feds.
OPM highlights hiring reform best practices
Agencies are measuring their progress towards hiring reforms and implementing technology to track applications and identify bottlenecks. Those are some of the best practices shared in a memo from the Office of Personnel Management. Overall, it said, agencies are progressing toward the governmentwide goal of filling vacancies in 80 days or less.
SESers see bonuses drop in face of budget woes
Many agencies began freezing senior executives' pay and limiting performance awards a year before the White House ordered them to do so. That finding comes from a new report by the Office of Personnel Management that some say underscores the pressure to prove a pay-for-performance system can work when there isn't a lot of money.
Pilot program will prepare Asians for the SES
With Asian Americans making up just 3 percent of the Senior Executive Service, a pilot program seeks to groom more Asians for the government's top ranks. The program, run by the Asian American Government Executives Network, will give 20 Asian SES hopefuls mentoring, networking and placement assistance.
OPM releases draft qualification standards for HR workforce
The Office of Personnel Management has released draft qualification standards for human resources managers and assistants. The draft standards update the qualifications to include competencies and minimum requirements by grade, Acting Deputy Associate OPM Director Andrea Bright wrote in a memo.
Open Season creates opportunities for tax savings
Ed Zurndorfer, a registered employees benefits consultant, recommends that feds consider possible tax deductions when choosing a health insurance plan. But hurry, open season ends Dec. 12.
OPM rolls out changes to snow policy
Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry announced a new set of dismissal and closure notifications for federal employees. The meat of the changes allow for staggered early departure with a final departure time, immediate departure and shelter-in-place.
Obama extends labor-management council to 2013
Unions, management associations and agencies will continue to meet through September 2013 to discuss issues from employee evaluations to bargaining over office space and technology. President Barack Obama signed an executive order extending the National Council on Federal Labor-Management Relations, the President's Management Advisory Board and seven other advisory committees.
OPM extends National Capital Area's Combined Federal Campaign
The Office of Personnel Management recently extended the Combined Federal Campaign of the National Capital Area fundraising effort to the end of December.
Top tips for managing teleworkers
Are you a federal manager? Then you need these 13 tips for managing the new crop of teleworkers in your office.
OPM's onboarding framework to ease SES' new-job jitters
The Office of Personnel Management has published an onboarding framework that agencies can use to ease the new-job jitters for members of the Senior Executive Service. Thorough orientation can increase retention, said OPM deputy associate director Steve Shih.
New strategy gives agencies a "springboard" for increasing diversity
Agencies have four months to develop diversity and inclusion plans under a broad, brief governmentwide strategy released Thursday. Proponents say, by making the President's Management Council responsible for progress, the strategy will succeed where past measures have failed.
OPM offers feds job help in case of workforce cuts
With federal workforces potentially on the budget chopping block, the Office of Personnel Management is extending a helping hand to feds who may find themselves jobless in the near future.
Senate bill would extend federal benefits to domestic partners
The Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act of 2011 was the logical next step after the repeal of the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy, which banned gays from openly serving in the military, said committee chairman and bill co-sponsor Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) in a statement.
Tips for choosing the right health plan during Open Season
Federal News Radio Senior Correspondent Mike Causey, Colleen Murphy, executive for PlanSmartChoice, and Walton Francis, editor of the Checkbook Guide to Health Plans for Federal Employees discuss the 2011 Open Season.
CHCOs create speed dating for mentors, mentees
The Chief Human Capital Officers Council will hold speed matchmaking sessions each quarter starting in 2012 to pair up mentors and those who are looking for such support. Kathryn Medina, the executive director of the CHCO Council, said the success of the first speed mentoring session earlier this year presented an opportunity to address a long-standing need.
