Pentagon security officials announced new security measures Thursday that include more random screening of visitors and Defense Department workers, a wider security perimeter and more lighting around the building’s main entrance, following a shooting there last month that left the gunman dead and two police officers injured. The changes will be most noticeable at theRead… Read more »
Happy Thursday! Army Secretary John M. McHugh has decided to effectively ignore the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy by not pursuing discharges of soldiers who recently told him they are gay. “What I’m trying to do is show the troops that, yes, it’s okay to talk about this,” McHugh told reporters on Wednesday. “IRead… Read more »
Happy Wednesday! Workers at the Office of Personnel Management can take an hour break on Thursday or Friday to walk a few blocks south to see the Cherry Blossoms, according to a memo issued late last week. OPM Director John Berry told his almost 1,500 staffers that they can take one hour, workload permitting, toRead… Read more »
What kind of tasks should be performed by federal workers and which ones can be handled by contractors? In other words, what are “inherently governmental” tasks? The Obama administration hopes to have answers by the fall and will start formally seeking input Wednesday from agencies, contractors, federal workers and their unions on when to useRead… Read more »
Happy Tuesday! The federal government will start transmitting pay information for executive branch employees electronically, the Office of Management and Budget announced Monday. The New Orleans-based National Finance Center — which processes payroll statements for more than 140 offices across the three branches of government — plans to start providing leave and earnings statements toRead… Read more »
Happy Monday! Almost half of the federal government’s human resources officials say they have not received adequate training on how to manage and retain employees with severe disabilities, according to the results of a survey by the Telework Exchange and the Federal Managers Association set for release Monday. Many of those officials are also unfamiliarRead… Read more »
Happy Thursday! The Obama administration’s pick to lead the Transportation Security Administration will have to wait after the Senate’s Easter Recess for an up or down vote on his nomination, after a leading Republican raised concerns about inspector general reports and several lawsuits related to his work as an Army officer and government contractor. RetiredRead… Read more »
Happy Wednesday! Last month’s snow days that kept the federal government closed for almost a week cost taxpayers much less than initially feared. The government lost $71,074,495 worth of productivity for each snow day, according to updated estimates released Tuesday by the Office of Personnel Management. The figure dropped from an estimated $100 million becauseRead… Read more »
President Obama’s pick to lead the Transportation Security Administration would not say Tuesday whether he supports collective bargaining rights for airport security screeners. The sensitive issue ranks as a major concern of federal worker unions but has ensnared previous TSA administrators. If workers did ever earn collective bargaining, Retired Maj. Gen. Robert Harding told senatorsRead… Read more »
Happy Tuesday! The Obama administration will soon relaunch USASpending.gov, the government Web site that lets taxpayers track how federal dollars are spent each year. Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra gave The Eye a sneak peak at the new site on Monday (see screengrabs above and below). The Office of Management and Budget has worked onRead… Read more »