OPM News 
Top News
- IRS to pay $70M in bonuses, Grassley says
- 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
- 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
- USPS reaches energy reduction goal ahead of schedule
Retirements, buyouts, and downsizing
NARFE's David Snell and Federal Times reporters Stephen Losey and Sean Reilly join host Mike Causey to talk about the issues affecting your job and retirement.
March 7, 2012
House probes OPM management, IT in wake of fellowship debacle
Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), who chairs the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said a recent mishap involving the Presidential Management Fellowship not only threatens the program's prestige but could point to larger technology issues within OPM.
Agencies need to 'quit whining' about SES
A new study is leading to calls to shake up the Senior Executive Service by encouraging members to change jobs once in a while. That was the original intent, but only half of its members have done it. Now, with a third of senior execs eligible to retire, federal human resources leaders say agencies need to focus on improving the corps.
GOP lawmakers question fairness of DoD pay and benefit cuts
Members of Congress complain that DoD's budget cuts don't do enough to trim civilian personnel spending.
Lack of movement in SES ranks hurting agencies
The Senior Executive Service was created to produce strong federal managers and leaders who would move within and across agencies, to help better meet the nation's needs. But three decades after the creation of the SES, nearly half of the more than 7,700 current members have stayed in the same position throughout their SES careers, according to a new report.
Answers to your retirement questions
Co-hosts Bob Leins and John Elliott are joined by federal benefit expert David Redden.
February 27, 2012
OPM calculator helps project retirement savings
Not sure about how much you need to save for retirement? A new online tool from the Office of Personnel Management helps feds figure out how to plan and includes projections for annuities and Thrift Savings Plan benefits.
What's new at the Federal Managers Association?
Members of the Federal Managers Association join host Bill Bransford to talk about the group's annual convention.
February 24, 2012
How to make 'smart' cuts to the federal workforce
Whether the strategy is reducing personnel, consolidating offices or investing IT, "every one of them impacts people," said Ron Sanders, the former chief human capital officer for the Director of National Intelligence and now the executive adviser for Booz Allen Hamilton.
Latinos under-represented at all levels of federal employment
According to Jorge Ponce, co-chair of the Council of Federal EEO and Civil Rights Executives, Latinos are under-represented across all job categories and levels of the government, all the way up to senior executive rank.
OPM defends yo-yo effect of pay, benefits proposals
Director John Berry said the proposition in the 2013 budget request to increase pay by 0.5 percent and increase the contributions employees pay to their retirement by 0.4 percent is "responsible" and "protects the benefit." OPM also would have to figure out how best to meet its mission with a flat budget next year. Berry said his top priority is reducing the backlog of retirement claims.
Women more satisfied than men in federal jobs
Women, who made up 44 percent of the federal workforce in 2011, had a job satisfaction score of 67.1 on a scale of 100, compared with 66.4 for men, according to a Partnership for Public Service analysis of the 2011 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, administered by the Office of Personnel Management.
Managing morale - lessons from OPM's John Berry
John Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management, offers his tips for managing the federal workforce during tough times.
President's 2013 budget focuses on federal performance, cuts to waste
The President's fiscal 2013 budget requests calls on agencies to "redouble" efforts to cut wasteful spending through government reorganization and cuts to improper payments.
Retirement applications tick up 24 percent in 2011
Experts have long predicted a federal retirement tsunami, and the steady uptick in retirement applications across 2011 appears to bear that out. Overall, 104,810 retirement applications were filed by federal employees in calendar-year 2011, according to numbers provided by OPM — a 24 percent increase over 2010 levels.
As retirement applications surge, what should feds consider?
Tammy Flanagan, the senior benefits director for the National Institute of Transition Planning, joined In Depth with Francis Rose to discuss how feds should prepare for retirement.
Agencies finalize diversity plans
Most agencies are on track to implement new diversity strategies by March 16, Office of Personnel Management Director of Diversity and Inclusion Veronica Villalobos told Federal News Radio. Five months ago, President Barack Obama directed agencies to improve the diversity of their ranks through strategic plans.
New snow plan: This time for sure?
Ever since Washington, D.C., became the nation's capital government officials have wrestled — without much success — with what to do with government workers when it snows, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. Yesterday, Uncle Sam got to do a first test of a new government snow plan. So, how did it fare?
Unscheduled leave, telework in effect in D.C. region
Federal government offices in the D.C. region remain open today but unscheduled leave and unscheduled telework are in effect due to light snow in the forecast.
Analysis: Pathways forces agencies to 'ramp up' recruitment
John Palguta, vice president for policy at the Partnership for Public Service, said the new regulations are an opportunity for agencies to "ramp up their game" when it comes to recruitment.
