Merit Systems Protection Board
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Thanks to Congressional budget cutters and the White House sequestration program, two of the most important federal operations - the IRS and the Social Security Administration - are getting smaller and slower. So, how much longer can we afford these 'savings', Senior Correspondent Mike Causey asks?
June 23, 2014 -
Legislation in the Senate would allow the Veterans Affairs secretary to dismiss members of the Senior Executive Service on the grounds of performance, and that could mean more appeal cases for the already-swamped Merit Systems Protection Board.
June 19, 2014 -
Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wants to know: If the score is 32,000 them and 0 you, do you change your game plan? If your significant other says no 32,000 times in a row, do you consider another tactic? Do Congress and the White House need a new playbook?
June 19, 2014 -
The director of the Phoenix VA hospital and two other employees are on administrative leave following allegations that the hospital delayed medical treatment to veterans. Note: they have not been fired. Legislation moving through Congress would make it easier for the VA secretary to give the boot to senior executives. Susan Tsui Grundmann is chairman of the Merit Systems Protection Board, which hears appeals from federal employees on personnel issues. She joined Tom Temin and Emily Kopp on the Federal Drive to explain how the law could change. Read related article by Federal News Radio's Shefali Kapadia.
June 18, 2014 -
When you try something 32,000 times, including 1,600 times in one 8-hour period and fail, there is a lesson there. And the lesson is that despite what you've read, heard and been taught, failure is an option. Especially if you work for the government, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
June 05, 2014 -
So far, all of the initial decisions stemming from the Merit Systems Protection Board gigantic caseload of furlough appeals have "affirmed the furlough action taken by the agency," according to MSPB's annual report for fiscal 2013 released last week.
June 04, 2014 -
Many federal offices took a hit last year, when agencies furloughed employees because Congress couldn't agree on a budget and brought the government to a halt. Now, nearly a year later, the Merit Systems Protection Board is still reviewing complaints from some of those furloughed employees. As part of our special report Trust Redefined: Reconnecting Government and Its Employees, Tom and Emily spoke with Board chairman Susan Tsui Grundman on the Federal Drive. From where she sits, she says it looks as if the federal workforce hasn't quite recovered yet.
May 20, 2014 -
The heads of both the Office of Special Counsel and Merit Systems Protection Board tell Federal News Radio as part of our special report, "Trust Redefined: Reconnecting Government and Its Employees," that their increasing workloads could actually be a sign of progress, and that more employees feel protected enough to make whistleblower disclosures. However, an exclusive Federal News Radio survey reveals a wide chasm of trust remains when it comes to feds blowing the whistle at work.
May 20, 2014 -
Susan Tsui Grundmann, chair of the Merit Systems Protection Board, said many federal employees filed furlough appeals last year because they said they didn't trust that their managers were making the right spending decisions that could have fended off the need to furlough employees. This article is part of the Federal News Radio special report, Trust Redefined: Reconnecting Government and Its Employees.
May 20, 2014 -
Even in 2014, sexual orientation is a touchy subject in the workplace. The Merit Systems Protection Board has just finished taking a comprehensive look at workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and published the results in a report. MSPB's General Counsel Bryan Polisuk and Project Manager Doug Nierle discussed the findings with Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp.
May 12, 2014 -
The Merit Systems Protection Board is fishing for ideas. It asks for help from the public as it refreshes its research agenda. The board is mandated by Congress to conduct studies on issues in the federal workforce. Recent reports have focused on workplace violence and perceptions of favoritism. Chairman Susan Tsui Grundmann told Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Emily Kopp that the board strives to make an impact with its research.
April 17, 2014 -
The Merit Systems Protection Board is updating its research agenda and wants your help in identifying federal workforce issues and policies to study. The agency says it wants to hear from federal employees, supervisors, unions and other groups on the issues they would like to see MSPB address in its research.
March 21, 2014 -
The Merit Systems Protection Board seeks additional resources in its fiscal 2015 budget request to improve staffing and IT infrastructure. The agency is working through more than 32,000 furlough appeals in addition to its regular workload and also expects a wave of administrative judge retirements.
March 13, 2014 -
Former GSA Region 7 Public Buildings Service Commissioner James Weller has been put on paid administrative leave during an appeal by the agency, which could take as much as a year.
March 11, 2014 -
James Weller won his wrongful termination case before the Merit Systems Protection Board against GSA. The board ruled Weller deserves 19 months of back pay and to be put back in his former job as Region 7 PBS commissioner.
March 06, 2014