Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Postal Service wants to force retirees out of the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and over to Medicare

Article Title: USPS Plan to Pull Out of Fed Health Benefits Could Cost Postal Workers

Snippet of Article: "...The Postal Service would reach a majority of its savings by shifting its retirees... to Medicare..."

Source: www.govexec.com Postal Service, FEHB, Medicare,

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Small 2014 Federal Pay Raise May Be Coming

Article Title: COLA? Maybe. Pay raise? Maybe not!

Snippet of Article: "...Thanks to a three-year pay freeze, higher taxes and rising health insurance premiums, take-home pay for most nonpostal federal workers has been shrinking every year. The White House originally..."

Source: www.federalnewsradio.com 2014 Pay Raise

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Tell congress to stop the privatization of the Postal Service - you will be next!

Article Title: House Panel Approves Rep. Issa’s Postal Bill

Snippet of Article: "...“If it is enacted, this bill will lead to the demise of the Postal Service,” said APWU President Cliff Guffey..."

Source: www.apwu.org Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Postal bills, postal privatization, privatization,

Monday, July 29, 2013

Are sequestration cuts being used to send a political message?

Article Title: Chief of federal workers union says Pentagon using sequestration cuts to 'send a political message'

Snippet of Article: "...it's obvious sequestration cuts are being used to "send a political message" by being as "disruptive as possible." ..."

Source: blog.al.com

Thursday, July 25, 2013

States Rights: Will states need permission from the Feds...

Article Title: Feds want Texas to clear voting-rights changes with them

Snippet of Article: "...Holder said the Obama administration will use a different section of the Voting Rights Act that allows federal authorities to ask a judge to order a state to be put under the preclearance regime. To do so the Justice Department must prove "purposeful" discrimination...."

Source: www.cnn.com States Rights

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Are women owned businesses getting their share of federal contracts?

Article Title: Women-Owned Small Businesses Snubbed by U.S. Energy Department

Snippet of Article: "...The effort hasn’t gone far at the Energy Department, which reserved six of more than 13,000 awards for such companies last year. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration has also struggled, setting aside just one. ..."

Source: www.bloomberg.com 8A

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Life Event: Marrying a CSRS retiree

Article Title: Marrying a CSRS retiree

Snippet of Article: "...when he dies? Does the spouse receive any benefit?..."

Source: federaltimes.com

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Impact of furloughs begins

Article Title: Furloughs begin hitting federal workers in the wallet where it hurts; their pain will spread

Snippet of Article: "...Federal furloughs arrived for real this week, and real-world impacts will begin showing up as well. Thousands of federal workers..."

Source: www.pennlive.com

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

OSHA investigates postal worker death

Article Title: OSHA opens investigation into death of Medford postal worker who collapsed in the heat

Snippet of Article: "...A 24-year veteran of the US Postal Service, Baldassarre had complained to his wife about the heat earlier in the day. Baldassarre was a utility carrier working out of the Medford Post Office..."

Source: www.boston.com

Sunday, July 7, 2013

OPM buyouts could further slow federal employee retirement processing

Article Title: OPM pension claims processing plunged again last month

Snippet of Article: "...claims backlog could also be hindered by OPM’s decision in late May to offer buyouts and early retirements to up to almost 300 employees..."

Source: www.federaltimes.com OPM pension claims backlog

Sorry, the dismantling of your postal service must go on

Article Title: Postal Service to La Jolla: Sorry, the dismantling must go on

Snippet of Article: "...came to the same decision that he made regarding the relocation of the Bronx GPO: the objections to the relocation “do not outweigh the financial exigencies facing the Postal Service.”..."

Source: www.savethepostoffice.com

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Locality Pay Equity Act (H.R. 2450)

Article Title: Legislation Would End Wage Disparity for Hourly Federal Employees

Snippet of Article: "...The Locality Pay Equity Act (H.R. 2450) aims to solve a local labor market boundary issue that has resulted in wage computation disparity between wage scale or hourly employees and general schedule (GS) or salaried employees. ..."

Source: www.fedsmith.com Locality Pay Equity Act (H.R. 2450)

Sunday, June 23, 2013

Proposal would force the firing of any federal employee who refuses to testify before Congress after receiving a grant of immunity

Article Title: Legislation filed to FIRE federal employees who refuse to testify before Congress

Snippet of Article: "...Rep. Mo Brooks wants a law on the books to penalize federal government employees who mislead Congress, or plead the Fifth Amendment after..."

Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Friday, June 21, 2013

Violent attacks on federal employees working on public lands has escalated

Article Title: Federal Employees Increasingly Under Attack on Public Lands

Snippet of Article: "...Federal employees working in the country’s outdoor areas were victims of more violent attacks in 2012 than in previous years, according to a report by an advocacy group...."

Source: www.govexec.com

Thursday, June 20, 2013

TWA Flight 800 documentary inspires calls for NTSB to reopen investigation

Article Title: NTSB urged to reopen review of TWA Flight 800 crash

Snippet of Article: "...Former investigators from the NTSB, TWA and Air Line Pilots Association suggest in a documentary that missiles caused the plane to explode near Long Island and kill 230 people aboard. The plane was flying from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport to Paris...."

Source: www.usatoday.com NTSB, TWA Flight 800,

Sunday, June 16, 2013

2014 Federal Pay Raise

Article Title: White House again calls for federal employee raise

Snippet of Article: "...“The Administration urges the Congress to provide the proposed 1.0 percent pay increase for Federal civilian employees. As the President stated in his [fiscal year] 2014 Budget, a permanent pay freeze is neither sustainable nor desirable,” the administration said in policy statements on pending bills to fund the Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs departments. ..."

Source: www.washingtonpost.com 2014 Federal Pay Raise

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Postal Service is over-discounting presorted bulk mail

Article Title: PRC: USPS Presort Discount Too Generous

Snippet of Article: "...the USPS is over-discounting for presorted mail—bulk mail organized according to its destination by the mailer prior to handing it over to the USPS. The discount for presorting is supposed to result in lower costs..."

Source: www.dmnews.com USPS Presort Discount

Federal Worker Shortage Coming With Mass Retirement Wave Possible

Article Title: Wave of federal retirees to hit government

Snippet of Article: "...30% of the federal workforce will be eligible to retire in the next three years, according to a Government Accountability Office report. That means the government could be hit by a wave of retirements at a time when it is already dealing with inadequate staffing..."

Source: cnn.com

Wednesday, June 5, 2013

OPM buyouts and early outs

Article Title: OPM to offer buyouts, early outs

Snippet of Article: "...Office of Personnel Management is planning to offer buyouts and early retirements to nearly 300 employees — and some of those buyouts are likely to..."

Source: www.federaltimes.com

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Federal Worker Furlough Notices Sent Out

Article Title: Furlough notices sent to WSMR employees, other federal workers

Snippet of Article: "...Notices to federal government civilian employees and government contractor employees, letting them know they will be placed on mandatory one-day-a-week job furloughs for 11 weeks, began going out Tuesday. The process will continue through June 5...."

Source: www.lcsun-news.com

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

U.S. Department of the Treasury temporarily stopping investment into Civil Service Retirement

Article Title: Treasury will temporarily stop investing in retirement to free up money for federal debt, Lew Says

Snippet of Article: "...Stopping investment into the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund and the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefits Fund will free up about another $79 billion...."

Source: www.fiercegovernment.com

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Postal Shooting: Killer believed his mail was being diverted to his estranged wife

Article Title: Complaint outlines alleged plot to kill letter carrier

Snippet of Article: "...With a rifle, extra ammunition and lighter fluid, he hid in a treeline like a sniper to wait for the letter carrier to make her delivery. As she pulled away in her Jeep Cherokee, he shot ..."

Source: www.news.ruralinfo.net

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Postal carrier found in burned vehicle, shot

Article Title: Inspectors continue search for suspect in postal carrier slaying

Snippet of Article: "...Postal inspectors said he is the lead suspect in the investigation into the slaying of 52-year-old Marie Youngblood. She was a U.S. Postal carrier who had been on her rural delivery route in her personal car on Friday in San Jacinto County. Youngblood worked out of the Coldspring branch...."

Source: www.khou.com

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Federal workers keep our country running

Article Title: Federal workers keep the country running

Snippet of Article: "...Our borders are secure because of Homeland Security. Our airways are safe because of the TSA. Planes take off in an orderly fashion because of air-traffic controllers. Farmers have the latest technology to produce our food through the USDA. Health and Human Services makes sure we get the healthcare we need. The FBI protects us from criminals. The Secret Service protects..."

Source: www.miamiherald.com

Monday, May 13, 2013

Is your federal pension accurate?

Article Title: Pension accuracy slips as OPM picks up pace

Snippet of Article: "...The accuracy of the Office of Personnel Management’s calculation of new federal pensions has slipped as it has worked to speed up its retirement processes, the agency’s inspector general is set to testify Thursday...."

Source: www.federaltimes.com

Postal carrier speaks of delivery in crime-infested areas

Article Title: The postman doesn't always ring twice: tales from a ghetto postal worker

Snippet of Article: "...There were blocks I worked on that I dreaded because you’d see dudes smoking weed, prostitution. There could be weapons involved, gangs. Sterling Place, all the way from Utica Avenue to Buffalo Avenue in Crown Heights — bad, bad, bad. It’s the gauntlet. Two of the worst blocks in Brooklyn for a letter carrier — no question...."

Source: www.nypost.com

Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Postal Union Food Drive: 21st annual NALC National Food Drive is Saturday, May 11

Article Title: 21st annual NALC National Food Drive is Saturday, May 11

Snippet of Article: "...The 21st annual drive is Saturday, May 11, and more than 1,400 NALC branches in just about every city, state and territory will have letter carriers, family members and thousands of volunteers out and about to help collect, sort and distribute the cans, boxes and jars of non-perishable food items left in bags next to customers’ mailboxes...."

Source: www.nalc.org

Monday, May 6, 2013

Postal Workers fear for safety in crime-infested area

Article Title: Postal workers too scared to deliver mail in crime-ridden Brownsville, Brooklyn

Snippet of Article: "...“The neighborhood is bad,” the worker said outside the Brownsville Station Post Office on Bristol Street. “I wouldn’t want to go into those buildings.”..."

Source: www.nypost.com

Sunday, April 28, 2013

Personal Advocates for Civilians Returning from Combat Zones are much needed

Article Title: OPM to Agencies: Create Personal Advocates for Civilians Returning from Combat Zones

Snippet of Article: "...The 2012 National Defense Authorization Act called for the establishment of a Post-Combat Case Coordinator at each agency. The coordinator should help civilians who “incur injury, disability or illness while in a war-risk hazard assignment,” according to OPM’s memo. ..."

Source: www.govexec.com

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Charges dropped against ricin mailing suspect Paul Kevin Curtis

Article Title: 2nd Miss. Man Investigated in Ricin Case

Snippet of Article: "...Everett Dutschke, whose Tupelo, Miss., home was searched Tuesday by dozens of officials, some in hazmat suits, had feuded with Paul Kevin Curtis, a 45-year-old celebrity impersonator who had maintained his innocence since his arrest...."

Source: time.com

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Special federal bomb squad has mobilized to Boston Marathon site

Article Title: Investigators meticulously combing Boston Marathon crime scene

Snippet of Article: "...every bomb technician from every civilian agency has graduated from the same Hazardous Devices School, run jointly by the Army and the FBI at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala. “When we go on the scene, we’re working side by side with people who went to the same school,”..."

Source: www.kansas.com

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Expanded online background investigations can cause issues

Article Title: Security checks keep some federal workers from pay

Snippet of Article: "...Newly enhanced security checks have put some federal workers in limbo, unable to work or receive paychecks while they wait to be cleared...."

Source: hamptonroads.com e-QIP

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

USPS loses money in spite of growing customer base

Article Title: Postal Service loses money despite customer growth

Snippet of Article: "...The service isn't losing money on delivery, but adding addresses while losing volume is an issue, she says...."

Source: www.courierpress.com

Saturday, April 6, 2013

“discretionary monetary awards” should not be issued while sequestration is in place, unless...

Article Title: OMB clamps down on federal employee awards

Snippet of Article: "...The White House on Thursday ordered limits on the payment of monetary awards and incentives to federal workers..."

Source: www.washingtonpost.com “discretionary monetary awards”

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Fort Knox shooting: 'a personal incident and not a random act of violence.'

Article Title: Search on for person who shot, killed 1 outside Fort Knox building

Snippet of Article: "...killed an Army civilian employee in a parking lot outside a Fort Knox building -- in a shooting that they said stemmed from a personal dispute..."

Source: www.cnn.com Fort Knox shooting

Monday, April 1, 2013

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.): cybersecurity bill won't allow the National Security Agency to spy on American citizens

Article Title: CISPA Author Rogers: NSA Is Not 'Monitoring the Internet'

Snippet of Article: "...Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.), author of the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act cybersecurity bill, said Thursday that the bill's "information sharing" aspect does not seek to share citizens' information with the government...."

Source: www.usnews.com

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Furloughs: an unequal playing field

Article Title: Painful Furloughs Divide Federal Workers

Snippet of Article: "... not every government worker will feel the pain equally, according to The Washington Post, and some employees won't feel it at all, depending on how the various departments of government implement the automatic cuts that began on March 1...."

Source: www.newsmax.com

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Pentagon has delayed sending furlough notices

Article Title: Pentagon to delay furlough notices by two weeks

Snippet of Article: "...The Pentagon has delayed sending furlough notices to its civilian employees for two weeks while it studies legislation that would give it more flexibility in spending its budget for the rest of the year, according to a memo released Thursday...."

Source: www.usatoday.com furlough notices

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Federal and state agencies investigate 'beached' boat

Article Title: State and federal agencies respond to boat beached at Long Beach

Snippet of Article: "...The multiple agency effort is focused on coordinating any actions that might be necessary to protect public health, safety and the environment, and on working with the Consulate-General of Japan in Seattle to find out if the boat came from Japan and to locate its owner...."

Source: kbkw.com

Monday, March 25, 2013

Marine claims he was 'humiliated' by TSA

Article Title: TSA accused of 'humiliating' Marine in wheelchair

Snippet of Article: "...The controversy took hold after witnesses traveling with Cpl. Toran Gaal, an wounded Marine, contacted Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., to say TSA agents forced Gaal to remove his prosthetic legs and try to walk at the checkpoint. ..."

Source: www.usatoday.com