Sunday, October 28, 2012

Non-emergency federal employees will be granted excused absence Monday in Washington, DC, Area

Article Title: Non-emergency federal employees will be granted excused absence Monday in Washington, DC, Area

Snippet of Article: "...Non-emergency employees (including employees on pre-approved paid leave) will be granted excused absence (administrative leave) for the number of hours they were scheduled to work unless they..."

Source: Federal Employee News

Friday, October 26, 2012

Ryan theme: Reliance on the federal government is bad

Article Title: Ryan’s Family Firm Gains From Government Spending He Criticizes

Snippet of Article: "...Paul Ryan, the Republican vice presidential candidate, may reprise a favorite campaign theme in his debate with Vice President Joe Biden tonight: Reliance on the federal government is bad...."

Source: www.businessweek.com Paul Ryan,

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Baggage worker allegedly steals $20,000 from Federal Reserve

Article Title: Airport Worker Charged with Stealing from $96 Million Federal Reserve Shipment


Snippet of Article: "...An airport baggage handler allegedly pilfered a tiny fraction of the $96 million shipment of cash being hauled to New Jersey..."
Source: time.com

Your Job and the Election

Article Title: Obama extends pay freeze on federal workers

Snippet of Article: "...President Obama plans to extend the pay freeze for federal workers through next March, and then they would get a meager 0.5% increase...."

Source: cnn.com

The election and your job

Article Title: Romney-Ryan would target federal workers

Snippet of Article: "...Both Romney and Ryan have made it clear that they think federal workers are one reason the nation's deficit is too high, and have talked about shrinking payrolls and cutting benefits...."

Source: cnn.com Romney, Ryan,

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

USAJOBS Top Ten FAQ

Article Title: USAJOBS Top Ten FAQ

Bone up on your USAJOBS knowledge to advance your career, change jobs, or to learn information to assist your family and friends get federal employment.

Source: usajobs.gov

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Twenty Seven (27) pay periods for federal employees this year

Article Title: Federal employees will have 27 pay periods in 2012

Snippet of Article: "...Nearly all federal civilian employees will have an extra pay period for leave accrual this year. According to a memo from Angela Bailey, OPM’s Associate Director for Employee Services, the leave year for most federal employees began on January 1, 2012 and will end on January 12, 2013...."

Source: www.asmconline.org

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

2013 Federal Employee Retirement COLA announced

Article Title: Federal retirement COLA of 1.7 percent announced

Snippet of Article: "...Federal retirees will receive an inflation adjustment of 1.7 percent in January, translating to about a $50 increase in the average monthly payment under the annuity program for most of them...."

Source: www.washingtonpost.com Federal Retirement COLA 2013

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Excused Absence for Voting

Article Title: Excused Absence for Voting

Snippet of Article: "...This memorandum provides agencies with information on the Federal Government’s longstanding policy of granting employees limited time off from work (i.e., excused absence) to vote in Federal, State, county, or municipal elections, or in referendums on any civic matter in their community. The head of each agency (or his or her designee) has discretion to grant excused absence in limited circumstances under his or her broad authority to govern, unless otherwise prohibited by law. Agencies have discretionary authority to grant excused absence to the extent that such time off does not interfere with agency operations, including the ability to adjust policies to circumstances as they unfold. Typically, polling places throughout the United States are open for extended periods of time, and an increasing number of jurisdictions are offering early voting options. Therefore, excused absence should rarely be needed.Agencies should consider the following guidelines when creating their policies on excused absence for voting in the upcoming election...."

Source: www.chcoc.gov

Monday, October 1, 2012

2012 APWU early retirement incentive approved

Article Title: APWU, USPS Negotiate Retirement Incentive

Snippet of Article: "...The APWU has negotiated a retirement incentive agreement that awards eligible full-time career employees a $15,000 payment in two installments, President Cliff Guffey has announced. The first installment will be $10,000; the second will be $5,000...."

Source: www.apwu.org 2012 early retirement, APWU retirement incentive,

The White House Cyber Attack That Really Wasn't ...or was it?

Article Title: White House Hack Attack

Snippet of Article: "...“In this instance the attack was identified, the system was isolated, and there is no indication whatsoever that any exfiltration of data took place,” the official said. The official said there was no impact or attempted breach of a classified system within the office...."

Source: freebeacon.com White House cyber attack, cyber spearphishing,