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More than 12,000 federal employees filed for retirement last month, according to new data from the Office of Personnel Management. That was about 2,200 more retirement applications than the agency expected to receive under new monthly projections it began using this month. Despite an overall slower pace of retirements this year compared to last, OPM's progress in clearing a longstanding inventory of claims appears to have stalled. In fact, the backlog grew in February by more than 2,200 claims.
Given the choice, would you choose a date with Justin Bieber, an evening with Beyonce or a $25,000 buyout? Given the odds, chances are you will never have to make a choice, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. But be prepared...
Federal Times writers Andy Medici and Sean Reilly and NARFE legislative director Jessica Klement will talk about some of the issues affecting feds in 2014. February 26, 2014
When you are expecting a big expensive wedding cake and somebody brings you a single Twinkie it can strain the relationship. That's sort of the situation today between federal and postal unions and the White House, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
While the latest rounds of buyouts and early retirements span agencies as diverse as the Naval Sea Systems Command and the Interior Department's Bureau of Land Management, one thing many of them have in common is the targeted nature of the offers. In many instances, agencies are targeting offers to employees in specific job areas or agency locations.
Was there a monster under your bed when you were a kid? Did demons lurk in your closet waiting for lights out? Well they may be gone, but now as an adult civil servant there's a real terror lurking out there, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board is eyeing another potential tweak to the Thrift Savings Plan's Lifecycle Funds — their name. Lifecycle Funds, also known as L Funds or target-date funds, are made up of a mix of the five core TSP funds that shifts over time. But board members are concerned the "fund" label may be confusing to TSP participants. In its place, the board is considering changing the name to "Lifecycle strategies."
Could political gridlock save you up to $48,000 in retirement? It could if it blocks a politically explosive plan to trim future cost-of-living adjustments for retirees, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Today's announcement that President Barack Obama would not be including a proposal to calculate cost-of-living changes to federal retirement rates in his 2015 budget should be welcome news to federal employees, legislators and federal-employee support groups who opposed it.
More than 100 members of the House and a dozen outside groups have signed on to a letter to President Barack Obama from Rep. Allyson Schwartz (D-Pa.) requesting that the upcoming White House budget not include a proposal to alter the way retirees' cost-of-living adjustments are calculated. The National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, the American Federation of Government Employees and the Military Officers Association of American have signed on in support of the letter.
Now that early-outs and buyouts are popping up in various agencies, the obvious question, for younger and older workers is: What's in it for me? Unlike the one-size fits all buyouts of the 1990s, the new version is tailor-made to individual groups, grades and regions, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Suppose for the next 20 to 30 years, you have to spend 24/7 with your spouse or significant other. Can you handle it? Can he or she? With some planning it might not be too bad, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wants to know: Is 2014 going to be your up-or-out year? Are you looking at retirement or prepping for a promotion?
Remember the good old days when agencies were offering early retirement and $25,000 have-a-nice-life buyouts? Well, it appears that the combination of buyouts and early outs is another victim of climate change, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.