If you are planning to retire at the end of the year, or if you could retire but the economy has made you unsure, there are things you need to know.
Among several significant changes in federal retirement rules, the fiscal 2010 defense authorization bill signed by President Barack Obama allows federal retirees to return to government for limited, part-time appointments without reducing their annuities.
Not all agencies will decide to put aside funds for such appointments. But offices in which retirements are leaving needed skills unfilled are likely to take advantage of the new authority.
What, you say? Why retire and then starting working again at same kind of job? The income boost from part-time work on top of a pension would be an obvious plus. But there are also distinct health benefits that may be even more important.
A national study published by the American Psychological Association finds that there are fewer major diseases and mental health problems for retirees who transition from full-time work into temporary or part-time jobs.
In fact, people who make a “bridge employment” transition between a full-time career and full retirement actually function better day to day than people who stop working altogether.
All of this is good news to baby boomers who have already become known for wanting to be active and continue working after retirement. The new government authority for part-time work after retirement may help those already retired find what they have been seeking. And for those still working, but on the fence about whether to retire, it may provide another incentive.
The findings are reported in the October issue of the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. Researchers used data from 12,189 participants who were between the ages of 51 and 61. The participants were interviewed every two years over a six-year period beginning in 1992 about their health, finances, employment history, and work or retirement life.
People whose post-retirement jobs were related to their previous careers reported better mental health than those who were fully retired or who worked in jobs outside of their career field. This may be because retirees who take jobs not related to their career may experience more stress in adapting to different job conditions.
The authors suggest that retirees carefully consider their choice of post-retirement employment. So if you can snag a part-time job doing what you used to do, why not try government again?
Posted on Nov 03, 2009 at 1:10 PM2 comments
A new workplace survey found that happiness on the job still depends largely on the relationship with the boss, with 89 percent of workers saying that is an important factor in their job satisfaction.
Unfortunately, 53 percent of workers don’t think their boss is honest. In this time of recession, the lack of trust leads one quarter of employees to believe their boss is dishonest about their job security. The relationships are so bad that 28 percent of workers would even lay off/fire their boss if given the option, according to the survey, fielded by Harris Interactive on behalf of Adecco, a workforce recruiting company.
At the same time, it is not all bad news for managers as the majority (65 percent) of employees would not change anything about the relationship they have with their bosses. That could mean that they have found a way to work it out in the current situation or they are willing to suffer through it.
What do older employees know that others do not? A significantly greater percentage of Generation Y, the younger millennial generation workers, trusts their managers to promote their work internally and grow their career compared to Baby Boomers or Generation X.
At the same time, only one of four baby boomers responding to the survey indicated they would want their manager’s job in contrast, to one of two younger workers.
A lot has been written about toxic bosses. A new book, Working for You Isn’t Working for Me, touts being the “ultimate guide” to managing your boss. The book, written by a Harvard psychotherapist and a business strategist, identifies different types of difficult bosses and cross-matches different types of employee personalities.
The book provides many detailed examples to suggest ways to handle a variety of boss/employee relationships depending on various personality types of your boss and you. With a mixing and matching of types, this book is not light reading.
Regardless of whether you mesh with your boss or not, there are times when relationships can’t be fixed. Trying to prove yourself to a boss who can’t be pleased or who believes he or she knows best will leave you feeling constantly defeated. The authors point out that may be the time to move on.
Posted on Oct 27, 2009 at 2:13 PM2 comments
Every open season, the need for some way to hold down health costs hits home for federal employees. Health costs keep rising along with federal employee health insurance premiums, and more than a little bit.
Open season for changes to federal employee health insurance will be Nov. 9 to Dec. 14.
Premium increases for 2010 will average 8.8 percent. As one approach, federal employee unions would like the Office of Personnel Management to bear a greater share of the costs.
Blue Cross will have the largest increases: 12 percent for family coverage and 15 percent for self-only. Roughly 60 percent of the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program’s more than eight million participants are covered by the Blue Cross/Blue Shield standard or basic plans. Premiums increased 13 percent last year.
OPM also announced increases in premiums for the federal dental and vision coverage program. Dental premiums will climb by an average 4.2 percent, while the vision program will see a 2.4 percent increase in premiums.
Other health news this month concerns federal employees. FedsGetFit is a new effort by OPM to raise awareness of federal employees to a healthy lifestyle. Given health care costs, there is more than one reason to stay healthy.
The first of three planned events is a Fitness Expo/Walk to be held at 12 noon on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009, on the National Mall. The program will include an optional one-mile walk at 11:30 a.m. along the Mall. An expo will highlight agency work life programs.
If you haven’t heard about this yet from your human resource offices, you will soon, because OPM instructed FedsGetFit officials to join the walk on the Mall. The awareness campaign, which begins in October with the theme of fitness, will focus on nutrition in November and healthy choices in December.
Meanwhile, staying fit could have retirement rewards. The Defense Authorization conference report included allowing workers under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) to get credit for unused sick leave, a right employees under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) already have. It will be phased in over four years with a 50 percent credit through Dec. 31, 2013, and a 100 percent credit beginning Jan. 1, 2014. The Congress is expected to approve it.
Posted on Oct 21, 2009 at 6:07 AM0 comments
It’s that time when many people think about whether they will change jobs or, if eligible, perhaps retire at the end of the year.
Some managers say that the process of finding and getting another government job involves more than how well you write your resume or application. It requires taking advantage of opportunities in your current position.
The view of one manager, who recently retired after a 30-plus year career, is that there are many ways to prepare for change by building your skills and expanding your contacts in your present job.
“You need to take advantage of opportunities such as work groups or task forces where people come together from other programs and agencies,” said Spencer Schron, who retired last January as a technical advisor in the Office of External Affairs at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Work groups give exposure to other people and perspectives and, when staffers from other agencies are involved, perhaps to other jobs. “By networking in work groups, you can also develop secondary and tertiary contacts and broaden your knowledge of other program areas. Sort of the ‘six degrees of separation’ idea,” he added.
Schron hired dozens of employees and added hundreds of people to workgroups, forums and teams during his career. Joining groups that develop is one approach to networking, but making your own group is another option, he said. For example, someone might propose an informal interagency workgroup to explore ways to improve a project or solve a problem.
On those knowledge and skill essays, or KSAs, Schron looked for people who demonstrated the ability to run with a situation and be creative. He wanted examples of how a person had overcome barriers or found a new solution to an old problem.
Schron is now an active volunteer, recently appointed to the Montgomery County, Md., Commission on Aging, which focuses on the health and welfare of older residents. In a way, it’s like joining another interagency work group, he said.
Any other ideas on ways to change jobs and move around in government?
Posted on Oct 14, 2009 at 5:54 AM0 comments
Get a Life: The etiquette of flu prevention
Elbow is the new etiquette. That is, in the absence of a tissue, coughing into your elbow is the next best option for flu prevention.
On the theme of “know what to do about the flu,” the Centers for Disease Control and the Office of Personnel Management are providing information for federal workers and agency HR offices. Here are some of the basic tips if you want to be flu-free:
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds, or use an alcohol-based hand rub, especially after coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose.
- Avoid touching your nose, mouth, and eyes.
- Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue, or cough and sneeze into your elbow.
- Keep frequently touched common surfaces clean, such as telephones, computer keyboards, doorknobs, etc.
- Do not use other workers’ phones, desks, offices, or other work tools and equipment. If you need to use a coworker’s phone, desk, or other equipment, clean it first.
- If you are sick with flu-like illness, stay home for at least 24 hours after you are free of fever.
So here are my questions for IT expert readers:
What would be best for cleaning off and keeping computer keyboards germ-free without causing problems to the equipment?
Does your office have hands-free trash cans for those tissues?
If you are in one of the groups for whom H1N1 Flu shots will be available first, are you planning to get vaccinated? The groups are pregnant women, caregivers of children younger than 6 months of age (e.g. parents, siblings, and child care providers), health care and emergency medical services personnel, persons from 6 months to 24 years of age, and those aged 25 to 64 years with medical conditions associated with a higher risk of flu complications (e.g. asthma, diabetes).
Finally, a word of advice: When in doubt, stay home and telework.
Posted on Oct 06, 2009 at 8:44 AM1 comments
In the report to Congress on the status of telework at federal agencies, Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry wrote, "We have significant work ahead to develop a strong telework culture." The eye-opening report almost makes that an understatement.
Governmentwide, only 102,900 out of 1,962,975 federal employees -- 5.2 percent --actually teleworked in 2008. And that was a slight increase over 2007.
Agencies with the greatest increases in total number of teleworkers included the departments of Interior, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs and the General Services Administration. One program area that saw a significant increase in teleworking was Interior's U.S. Geological Survey (4,750 to 8,857).
The frequency of telework also increased. More people worked at home one to two days and some even 3 days a week
But the number of federal employees eligible to telework decreased significantly, by some 51,000. Agencies where substantial decreases occurred included the departments of Commerce, State and Treasury.
Although telework is only inching along, agencies still reported cost savings and benefits. The greatest benefit was seen in improved morale. But also, one third of agencies cited productivity and performance benefits.
Among major barriers to telework, nearly two thirds of agencies cited concerns about office coverage. More than half saw management resistance and organizational culture as barriers, and one third cited IT security and IT funding.
Many agencies are tackling the barriers with training for managers and employees; some have established budget for IT expenditures.
Berry emphasized the importance of telework in his guidance last week on H1N1 flu preparedness. Noting that the Federal Government cannot shut down, he called for mitigating the effects of a flu pandemic through "social distancing interventions such as telework."
He also stressed that agencies need to implement and maintain a strong IT system to accommodate remote usage of agency systems. He called for sufficient technical support personnel to resolve remote connectivity issues.
In guidance to agency heads, he wrote, "As many employees as possible should have telework capability...connectivity and equipment commensurate with their work needs, and frequent opportunities to telework so that systems are tested and known to be functional."
This flu season might be just the right time to start testing.
Posted on Sep 25, 2009 at 7:55 AM5 comments
September is the month for government tri-athletes. This is the time when many race to the finish of the fiscal year, churning through final acquisitions and trying not to spin wheels as the books close.
People in budget, accounting and contracting departments forego vacations in September or leave wearily later in the fall. Agencies have tried for as long as I can remember to release all contracting funds before the end the year but still find funds to expend in a flurry in September.
I wondered why the federal government’s fiscal year does not match the calendar year. But it makes sense that it doesn’t given what would happen in December, traditionally a holiday month. It turns out that before 1976, the fiscal year began on July 1 and ended on June 30. But change was made to allow Congress more time to approve the federal budget. The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 provided for a transitional quarter from July 1, 1976 to September 30, 1976, and the federal fiscal year changed to October 1 to September 30.
The date for wrapping up financial statements is not the same in other countries. The reporting year for government financial statements in the United Kingdom and Canada is April 1 to March 31. Closing books in March can be tricky in the U.S. because that’s often when kids have spring vacations and families like to take trips. So consider yourself lucky that the change was made to September.
Posted on Sep 16, 2009 at 7:26 AM0 comments
At a time when a recent report warns of needing 277,000 new government workers by 2012, including about 11,500 in information technology, others warn that with the current hiring process, it ain’t gonna happen.
Comments on Federal Computer Week and Government Computer Week articles focus on problems with the KSAs, those knowledge and skill essays that help hiring officials determine whether an applicant has the critical experience for the job. Others tell of the excessively long, often never-ending delays in processing applicants. Some tell of never hearing anything; others wait a year or more for a phone call. Horror stories abound.
So it makes sense that the Office of Personnel Management has a set a strategic goal for 2010 to reform recruiting and hiring policies and procedures. The effort envisions sweeping changes to streamline the process. The proof, of course, will be in the pudding, to use an old metaphor. Will OPM really accomplish what is needed?
OPM has listed and defined indicators of progress it hopes to see. And you can still comment on the draft until September 11. The strategic goal calls for a decrease in hiring time and an increase in applicant satisfaction “as reported in surveys.” Of course, the amount of decrease in hiring time remains unstated.
If wishful thinking could prevail, we would see a radical change to make government hiring more like it is in the private sector, in which a resume is submitted, extensive interview or interviews held, references checked, and hiring occurs within a few short months or less.
Sure, a background security check is needed for many positions in government, but not for all. And even so, if government seriously needs to hire tens of thousands of people, then security investigation also needs to expand its force to help make it happen.
OPM hopes to lighten the load through government-wide reciprocity. That implies that if a person is trying to move around in government, and already has clearance, it would apply to other positions. Similarly, if someone from private industry has had a security clearance for government contract work, which should also suffice or meet some of the requirements.
Posted on Sep 09, 2009 at 7:26 AM0 comments