Background: Section 202(g) of the E-Government Act of 2002
requires OMB to collect from the agencies the status of agency implementation
of the Act, and annually report this information to the Congress. The
Department of Labor's FY 2004 report in accordance with instructions outlined
in Budget Data Request No. 05-08 are summarized below:
1. A brief high level overview (a text document of up to five
pages) of your agency's implementation of the E-Government Act, including a
summary of agency-specific E-Government initiatives. This should not include
the 24 Presidential E-Government initiatives. The overview must address the
following specific provisions of Section 202 of the Act:
- Describe how sample initiatives are transforming agency
operations;
- Explain how your agency maintains an ongoing dialogue with
interested parties to find innovative ways to use IT;
- Identify other agency partners who collaborate on the
initiative;
- Identify improved performance by tracking performance
measures supporting agency objectives, strategic goals, and statutory
mandates;
- Quantify the cost savings and cost avoidance created by
implementing the initiative (e.g. reduction and elimination of investments),
and describe the methodology used to determine savings; and
- Explain how your agency ensures availability of Government
information and services is not diminished for those without access to the
Internet.
DOL Response 1:
HOW SAMPLE INITIATIVES ARE TRANSFORMING AGENCY
OPERATIONS:
The Department of Labor's (DOL) Office of the Chief Information
Officer, in a cooperative effort with DOL Agencies, is developing a
department-wide Information Technology (IT) infrastructure consolidation
approach to Technology Services and IT Services Management. This is consistent
with OMB guidance. The plan includes determining consolidation opportunities,
within and across agencies, in a federated approach. This federated approach
means that consolidation will occur at a level that provides the most value to
the organization. The consolidation effort will bring together separate parts
of DOL's nine independent networks into a single or unified whole with
objectives of reducing costs and improving effectiveness. DOL's Unified
Technology Infrastructure (UDTI) will adopt a balanced management approach for
the delivery and operational support of the common infrastructure service
components. Key to infrastructure consolidation is who and how the
infrastructure will be managed. As such, a unified and coordinated approach
will be undertaken for both:
- Security Management Framework for the protection, privacy,
national security requirements of resources: information, equipment,
information, and people (privacy and national security); and
- Service Management Framework for the delivery and support of
consolidated services. This consists of the processes for service level
management, availability management, IT service continuity planning, capacity
management, financial management, change management, incident management,
configuration management, problem management, and release management.
The UDTI network will provide the ability to transform relations
with citizens, businesses, and other arms of governments. These technologies
can serve a variety of different ends: better delivery of government services
to citizens, improved interactions with business and industry, citizen
empowerment through access to information, or more efficient government
management. The resulting benefits can be increased transparency, greater
convenience, re-investment of savings, and/or cost reductions.
Through increased usage of the internet, several DOL agencies have
already begun to more directly connect with citizens in a manner than opens new
opportunities while also raising new challenges. The following examples
demonstrate other ways in which DOL agencies are transforming agency
operations:
DOL's Safety and Health Information Management System (SHIMS) is
improving service to Federal employees with a faster transmission of workers'
compensation claims to the Employment Standards Administration's Office of
Workers' Compensation Programs for processing and the ability to allow the claim
to be processed in an expedited manner. Previously claim forms were manually written and
mailed which took several days and a response took 2 weeks. Now the claim is
submitted electronically within 24 hours and a response on receipt of the claim
from the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs is within 48 hours. This allows the claimant
to begin referencing their claim within 2 days of filing.
DOL's Office of Public Affairs is a service delivery provider for
other DOL agencies for both the Internet (DOL.gov) and Intranet (LaborNet). The
interested parties for DOL Web services are employers, employees, citizens,
international organizations and other Federal Agencies. The Internet and the
Intranet provide timely, relevant and usable information for our internal and
external customers thereby providing citizen-centered government. OPA is
utilizing Web Trend and Nielson Net Rating System to provide critical
information regarding the Department's customers and the DOL Web sites. A forum
has also been established for development of customer performance metrics to
provide: 1) Accessible Web Content; 2) Faster Web Delivery; and 3) Improved
Search and Navigation Capabilities.
All DOL websites continually encourage input from stakeholders on
satisfaction levels. For example, the Wage Hour Division (WHD) has initiated
customer-based requirements for gathering and testing web-based applications.
During the development phase, customers directly interact with the applications
so that their feedback and suggestions can be incorporated into the final
system design. This provides the ability to meet customer needs with the first
system release of a web-based application.
The Office of Labor Management Standards (OLMS) use of email as a
communication method to receive feedback on ways to improve the LM-2 process
through use of the new T-1 Form has resulted in improved enforcement results
and compliance assistance programs. OLMS has also provided a link for members
of the public to send email messages related to enforcement under the Labor
Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959, and publicize recent criminal
and civil enforcement actions.
The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) conducts
dialogues concerning the Career One-Stop electronic tools and the H2A labor
certification system, using input from employers, jobseekers and other
interested parties for improvement and enhancements.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) actively
solicits public comment on a number of draft proposed guidelines for specific
hazards in the workplace. OSHA also continues use of its database driven
e-correspondence to provide the public the capability to ask specific workplace
health and safety questions. Another example of OSHA's IT innovations to
improve the delivery of services is use of its email system to send citations
to Employer/Unions through the wide area network to Alaska and other States and
agencies. Benefits include:
- Savings in photocopying, postage and time;
- Faster processing of citations to other interested parties for
internal reviews (e.g., Regional Officers, Solicitor);
- Elimination of Certified Mail resulting in earlier abatement
and response preparation;
- Simple and user-friendly process; and
- Citations can be received in various formats (e.g., PDF and
Word)
The Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) has expanded
their program process through development of a new web site dedicated to
informing and encouraging the public to hire Veterans. The new site is
HIREVETSFIRST. VETS also continues to utilize other automated tools that allow
stakeholders, employers and other interested parties to exchange information
such as their VETS-100 Website, E-Laws and Electronic One Stop. By providing
electronic information, the VETS staff is then free to develop more productive
ways to assist America's veterans.
HIREVETSFIRST has opened up a new level of communication with the
public. The President's National Hire Veterans Committee was charged with
raising awareness of veterans to employers through the public labor exchange. A
review of the material available to employers and Veterans showed that, while
information was readily available, it was scattered across several different
locations. The HIREVETSFIRST website was created to drive home the point that
veterans are a valuable asset to the American workforce and allows a central
location for employers and veterans to find relevant information about each
other. It is a comprehensive electronic site to allow the workforce to begin
the job/employee search.
The VETS-100 website has proven invaluable to the distribution of
information to Federal Contractors and Contracting Officers. The site informs
Federal Contractors of their obligation to file a VETS-100 report and explains
the value of the information to those who are assisting our country's veterans
in re-entering the workforce. Prior to the development of the website, Federal
Contractors and Contracting Officers had to contact VETS staff directly to get
data. Contracting Officers now have online search capability to determine if a
specific Federal Contractor has submitted a VETS-100 report.
DOL E-Laws Advisor empowers the Veteran with knowledge of their
rights under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act
(USERRA). By helping veterans understand employee eligibility and job
entitlements, employer obligations, benefits and remedies under USERRA, this
advisor has proven to be an excellent tool in improving the ability and
response of VETS to assist Veterans in a timely manner.
The Electronic One Stop provides real time assistance to Veterans
and Service Members seeking support from VETS as well as other agencies in DOL.
Traditionally, a Veteran would have to physically visit a One Stop for
assistance. With the implementation of the Electronic One Stop, Veterans can
reach a Disabled Veterans Outreach Program (DVOP) or Local Veterans Employment
Representative (LVER) for assistance via e-mail and gain other types of
assistance. In areas where a One Stop may not be accessible, the site helps
connect Veterans with VETS' staff that can help in the job search.
MAINTAINING AN ON-GOING DIALOGUE WITH INTERESTED
PARTIES:
In line with the President's goal to make the government more
citizen-centered, DOL continues to seek innovative ways to use Information
Technology to improve the delivery of information and services. DOL also uses a
variety of communication methods to seek input from stakeholders and customers
and other interested parties for continual improvement and enhancement of
business processes. The following examples are organized by subject area and
provide an overview of the kinds of outreach programs and activities DOL is
engaged in to sponsor ongoing dialogue with stakeholders, partners and the
general public.
Annual Conferences: The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)
and its state partners have two annual conferences that explore IT-related
issues in two broad areas, employment/unemployment statistical programs and
safety and health statistical programs. Joint Policy Councils that include
representatives from BLS and participating states are a vehicle for dialogue on
federal-state cooperative programs. BLS also actively participates in industry
and academic technical conferences in order to monitor developments in the IT
field and learn how other organizations are making use of technology.
OSHA conducts regularly scheduled meetings with State Plan States,
Consultation Projects and OSHA field and national office executive staff to
recommend and discuss ways to improve the delivery of Government information
services. OSHA actively solicits public comment on a number of draft proposed
guidelines for specific hazards in the workplace.
Advisory Councils: BLS maintains an on-going dialogue with
interested parties through a variety of advisory committees and partnerships
that include the Business Research Advisory Council, Labor Research Advisory
Council, and the Federal Economic Statistics Advisory Committee.
The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) has regularly
scheduled meetings with the ERISA Advisory Council, which provides suggestions
on how EBSA can increase its effectiveness in improving its interaction with
the public, which includes the use of Information Technology. To date, the
council has conducted three of the four scheduled meetings as well as multiple
meetings by three separate workgroups (Fee and Related Disclosures to
Participants, Health and Welfare Form 5500 Requirements, and Plan Fees and
Reporting on Form 5500).
Compliance Assistance Seminars: The Employment Standards
Administration's (ESA) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)
has established Spanish and Chinese language versions of its Internet site,
which provides information to interested parties regarding scheduling and
conducting of Compliance Assistance Seminars annually and provides the ability
to meet the needs of the Hispanic and Chinese American constituent communities
in an effective manner.
ESA's Office of Labor Management Standards (OLMS) has initiated
planning for a program of structured, nationwide compliance assistance seminars
and outreach for Union Members across the Country. One objective will be to
make extensive use of electronic media to deliver training material and
compliance assistance information.
AGENCY PARTNERS WHO COLLABORATE ON INITIATIVES:
Fourteen Federal agencies have agreed to implement SHIMS software
with six agencies moving to DOL SHIMS hosting services beginning in January
2005. DOL's sustained performance in attaining Federal goals on timeliness is a
major factor in Agencies seeking to partner for use of SHIMS. DOL is in
communication with 25 external agencies on SHIMS development and implementation
through one-on-one presentations and quarterly meetings. DOL also meets with
agencies who have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for hosting and is in
constant communications on needs and actions for implementation.
The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has
completed the development of a Service Oriented Architecture that identifies
services that can be shared across the Government. MSHA collaborated with other
Federal agencies, including DOI, and the states to identify services (such as
Legal Mine ID) that could be provided by MSHA. Additionally, MSHA is planning
to work with OMB and the Core.gov initiative to identify government wide
services that can be leveraged to improve service delivery to citizens and
other key stakeholders.
ESA's Office of Workers Compensation Programs (OWCP) and the
American Medical Association (AMA) have reached an agreement that allows OWCP
to place proprietary AMA information on-line as part of the OWCP Fee Schedule.
This makes the schedule available to Medical Providers and other interested
parties; it provides these parties with the schedule without cost.
With all VETS' initiatives, feedback is the key to improving and
providing quality service to the public. VETS provides a help desk function for
the Federal Contractor Program (VETS-100) and, through the help desk, VETS
queries callers on the site and their suggested improvements for the delivery
of information via the web. This information has helped grow the site and
improved the development of Frequently Asked Questions and search
capabilities.
The VETS maintains an ongoing dialogue with Veterans Service
Organizations such as the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the
veteran program coordinators as the state workforce boards. Through periodic
meetings, VETS receives updates and feedback on initiatives to better meet the
needs of our 'clients.' In reviewing feedback, VETS saw a need to tie together
to of our programs to assist transitioning and newly minted Veterans. A
veteran's zone was created on the HIREVETSFIRST website melding the information
from the Transition Assistance Program (TAP), which helps prepare Service
Members who are leaving the military for civilian life, and LVER, who provides
priority of service to Veterans seeking employment assistance. Thus, the newly
minted Veteran has one electronic location to utilize while transitioning into
a civilian career.
VETS has also recently begun utilizing electronic surveys as an
additional means of gaining more valuable information and insights from its
electronic public.
IMPROVED PERFORMANCE BY TRACKING PERFORMANCE MEASURES
SUPPORTING AGENCY OBJECTIVES, STRATEGIC GOALS, AND STATUTORY
MANDAQTES:
The customer and productivity performance measures used by the
Department to improve the delivery of service are directly in alignment with
DOL's Strategic Goals for:
- A Prepared Workforce
- A Secure Workforce
- Quality Workplaces
- A Competitive Workforce
Statistical Analysis:
DOL has a long-standing customer service goal to disseminate
accurate labor statistics data to the public according to the announced
schedule 100% of the time. The BLS customer service goal is in direct alignment
with DOL's Strategic Goal of a Prepared Workforce through the outcome goal to
"Improve the effectiveness of information and analysis on the U.S. Economy". In
3rd Quarter 2004, the American Customer Satisfaction Index's E-Government
report gave BLS' LABSTAT Website a score of 82. The aggregate government score
was 71.2 for this quarter and the comparable private sector score was 74.4.
This puts DOL in the top 10% of government agencies. In addition, BLS
statistical systems rely upon the General Support System and must be
operational and available to produce accurate statistics and disseminate them
according to the announced schedule 100% of the time. During the last two
quarters of FY 2004, a total of 94 news releases via LABSTAT were scheduled, of
which 93 were issued on time. The FY 2004 system reliability target for the BLS
LAN/WAN was 99.95%. The actual system reliability was 99.98%.
Workplace Compliance and Benefit Protection:
DOL is also responsible for "Enhancing the welfare and protecting
the rights of American workers". This mission is achieved through DOL programs
that manage enforcement and compliance in regard to:
- Providing secure, pension health and welfare benefits
- Protecting worker benefits
- Reducing workplace injuries, illnesses, and fatalities
- Fostering equal opportunity workplaces
The EBSA program performance goals are identified as
Enforcement or Compliance (Participant Assistance) goals. The program goals and
measures are:
- 1. 50% ratio of closed civil cases with corrected
violations to civil closed cases as a whole;
- A Secure Workforce;
- Achieve greater than a 25% ratio of criminal cases referred for
prosecution to total criminal cases;
- A Customer Satisfaction Index Rating of at least 59 (FY
2004);
- Dollars of pension and health plan assets that are restored
($484M - FY 2004); and
- Number of civil and criminal cases disposed (at least
5,575).
The majority of EBSA initiatives provide the public and
governmental agencies with electronic access to ERISA 5500 series filing and
related data. Specific developmental partners include IRS, SSA, PBGC and
multiple DOL agencies. EBSA initiatives provide the infrastructure to: increase
system availability, facilitate electronic accessibility and reduce reporting
burdens to the public and governmental agencies as it relates to ERISA related
filings and data. During FY 2004, EBSA achieved the following performance
goals: 1) Increased to 85% Disclosure of M-1 documents electronically; 2)
Increase to 85% Disclosure of "public" 5500 data electronically; 3) Increased
to 85% internal disclosure of latest year's non-publicly disclosed Form 5500
Series documents; and 4) Increased to 85% the internal electronic distribution
of ERISA imaged documentation and backup/library documents.
ESA/OWCP: As a service organization, improvement of
customer services is a key OWCP program objective. OWCP developed a five-part
communications services goal for the Federal Employees Compensation Act (FECA)
Program to employ strategies that will shift customers to making greater use of
automated information services, including greater use of Web-based and other
direct system-accessed services. In FY 2004, the Division of Federal Employees'
Compensation (DFEC) met its annual targets to increase the use of automated
information services, e.g. Agency Query System (AQS), Interactive Voice
Recognition (IVR), and Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). The FY03 baseline was
a volume of 1,791,290 (aggregate of AQS hits, IVR calls, and EDI volumes).
OWCP's FY04 goal was 2,150,000, which was surpassed by 37% with an actual
volume of 2,953,037.
OWCP also established and met several performance goals to use
productivity performance indicators to measure the delivery of government
information and services to citizens, stakeholder and other appropriate key
groups. The preliminary results for FY 2004 indicate that DFEC met all of its
annual targets:
- Caller wait times were reduced from the FY2003
baseline of 3.32 minutes to 3.0 minutes. This surpassed OWCP's goal of 3.2
minutes by .2 minutes.
- Speed of returning calls was increased, allowing OWCP to reduce
response time from the FY03 baseline of 3.0 days to 2.7 days. This surpassed
their goal of 2.9 days by .2 days.
- Calls resolved on day of call without need for callback
improved from the FY03 baseline of 58% to 81%, surpassing OWCP's goal of 61% by
20%. (4) OWCP met its goal to increase the number of district office calls
meeting its standards for call handling quality, surpassing its target of 90%,
at 96% for the year.
ESA/Wage Hour Division (WHD): WHD uses productivity
performance indicators for its nationwide call center on a daily basis. Each
fiscal year, established measures are evaluated to produce higher standards for
customer service. Current standards include 1) providing adequate training for
all customer service representatives (CSRs) and 2) requiring a passing score of
80% or better on a workshop prior to allowing CSRs to answer calls. Other
standards relate to providing targeted training on new initiatives, such as
that for Section 541 regarding the Management, Administrative and Professional
Exemption, and the use of scripts for effective communication of WHD
information; and requiring a scrolling "ticker" on each CSR computer monitor
reminding them of important communication points. This criterion is compared to
the WHD performance metrics in order to assess performance success.
The WHD call center received 520,547 calls with an average of
43,379 calls per month. This represents an 11.5% increase over FY200. WHD's
goals and results for answer rates, abandoned calls and calls answered during
FY 2004 are as follows:
GOAL: Average answer rate less than 30 seconds - FY 2004 -- 24
seconds average answer rate GOAL: Abandoned calls less than 5% - FY 2004 --
1.88% GOAL: 80% of calls answered w/in 30 seconds - FY 2004 --
80%
ESA/OFCCP: Contractors and the consultants have repeatedly
requested resources for developing annual plans. The web-based Small Employer
Guidebook and the Sample Affirmative Action Plan for Small Employers are direct
responses to these requests. Comments to the most recently proposed regulatory
changes are also available on the web site. The OFCCP also publishes its
Compliance Assistance Calendars on its Internet Web Site to provide information
to the public regarding compliance assistance seminars conducted throughout the
country. In FY 2004, the OFCCP conducted over 1000 compliance assistance
seminars.
In FY 2004, OFCCP closed 6,544 compliance evaluations:
- 91.4% of the compliance evaluations closed with no violations
determined.
- 6.97% of the compliance evaluations closed as a result of a
Conciliation Agreement (CA) being reached with the respective company.
- 1.44% of the compliance evaluations closed as a result of a
Letter of Commitment (LOC) being reached with the respective company.
ESA/OLMS: OLMS established a program goal to improve the
accuracy and completeness of filed labor organization reports. OLMS' e.REAP
application automatically completes a desk audit of incoming reports. The
application assesses the number of LM2/3/4 reports which met all acceptability
standards established by OLMS. During the baseline period of 12/1/2000 to 11
/30 /2001 (twelve months prior to the availability of the electronic software),
73.33% of all LM-2/3/4 reports filed met all acceptability standards
established by OLMS. Currently, 92.4% of all reports received meet all
acceptability standards. OLMS continues to strive toward improved accuracy of
union report data. Currently OLMS is in the process of implementing a revised
LM-2 form. With the advent of this implementation, the largest unions (those
with receipts over $250,000) will be required to file electronically. All
reports filed electronically will meet 100% of the acceptability standards set
out by OLMS, thus improving accuracy of union reports to better serve union
members and other interested parties.
MSHA's mission is to administer the Federal Mine Safety and
Health Act of 1977 (Mine Act) and to enforce compliance with mandatory safety
and health standards as a means to eliminate fatal accidents; to reduce the
frequency and severity of nonfatal accidents; to minimize health hazards; and
to promote improved safety and health conditions in the Nation's mines. MSHA
has developed performance measures for each of its program areas and strategic
initiatives that are health and safety focused (accidents, injuries, and dust,
silica, and noise samples). MSHA utilizes these metrics to measure the
performance of the Agency in ensuring a safe and healthy workplace for its
direct customers, the Nation's mining community. Many of the Agency's metrics
are published on its website. Through its GPEA compliance efforts, MSHA has
enhanced its capacity to support e-filing; thereby, enabling mine operators to
report this information electronically. Customers are encouraged to submit
requests and complaints through the MSHA web site to report any additional
service deficiencies. The Agency has also developed methods of distributing the
information via its web portal, which enables customers to measure their
workplace versus industry best practices and averages.
For example, MSHA stakeholders identified a need to reduce data
redundancy caused by maintaining multiple systems. As a result, MSHA included
an MSIS project goal for FY 2004 to eliminate redundant data. New functionality
provided in MSIS requires no redundant data entry - and 999 redundant data
elements have been eliminated thus far. Another MSIS goal is to eliminate paper
form submissions required by citizens, with a long-term goal to provide
citizens the option to file all required forms through the internet. As of FY
2004 on-line filing is available as an option for MSHA forms representing 94%
of all submissions.
OSHA's mission is to assure the safety and health of
America's workers by setting and enforcing standards; providing training,
outreach, and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual
improvement in workplace safety and health. OSHA has a requirement to provide a
prompt response to employee complaints about workplace safety and health within
one day. The website has facilitated this process by providing the OSHA-7
worker complaint form online. This supports DOL's strategic goal to reduce
injuries, illnesses and fatalities. OSHA added the capability for the public to
search and register online for available workplace safety and health training
courses available through the OSHA Training Institute and Education Centers
nationwide.
OSHA also provides via its website searchable access to the public
to all FOIA-type inspection data on for more than 3.2 million inspections
covering 31 years of agency inspection activity. The public can view how OSHA
is meeting its goals for the reduction of workplace illnesses, injuries and
fatalities in high risk areas. Managers within OSHA can view on a daily basis
the most frequent data and interest from the public.
MyOSHA was launched, January 2004 to provide the capability for
public users to create personalized pages for frequently accessed areas of
information. In addition to the Website performance results, OSHA also tracks
performance results for e-correspondence and for the agency's e-newsletter,
Quick Takes. OSHA web visits during FY 2004 increased by 27%. The total Web
Visits in FY 2004 were 56,471,829 and 44,412,272 in FY 2003.
Safety And Health And Return To Work (SHARE) Initiatives
developed by the Department of Labor and approved by OMB for all Federal
agencies is the vehicle used to monitor SHIMS accomplishments as the initiative
related to timely submission of claims to OWCP and lost production days. In
addition, SHARE also has a requirement for the reduction of accidents and
injuries and it is through the SHIMS system that the initiative goals are
monitored. The SHIMS also has an automated filing system for OSHA's required
reporting of accident and injuries. The system therefore provides a tracking
mechanism to report DOL's performance accomplishments to the OMB.
VETS has standard objectives to meet when creating or
updating any of our electronic sites:
- Provide comprehensive informative information to the
public
- Ensure information is easy to understand
- Eliminate excessive "clicks" to reach searched information
- Ensure contact information is prominently displayed so that
users can contact VETS staff if necessary.
It should be noted that the HIREVETSFIRST initiative started in
the 4th quarter of FY 2004 so adequate data is not yet available for review.
Performance measures such as the number of new employers who begin to use the
services of the One-Stop Career Centers as a result of knowledge gained from
the HIREVETSFIRST website and campaign as well as veterans seeking the services
of an LVER due are being utilized as dissemination of the site continues.
QUANTIFY THE COST SAVINGS AND COST AVOIDANCE CREATED BY
IMPLEMENTING INITIATIVES:
Since the enactment of the Paperwork Act of 1995 (PRA), the
Department continues to make solid progress in reducing the burden its
information collection activities impose on the American public, while
maintaining its mission and fulfilling its responsibilities to the American
workforce. Between FY 1995 and FY 2004, the Department realized an approximate
38% net reduction in burden hours (from 266 million to 164 million).
DOL's cost savings can also be attributed to the implementation of
the SHIMS in DOL. The system was fully implemented in FY 2003 and since that
time DOL has demonstrated a reduction in workers' compensation costs through
quicker processing of claims and the ability to use the system to identify
persons able to return to work and develop light duty positions for them. As a
result of this effort, DOL reduced its worker compensation costs in FY 2004 by $3.2
million, representing a 13% decline.
ETA's Job Corps Application Data serves as the basic
document for determining eligibility for Job Corps and case management. Data
collected is also used for program planning, evaluating and reporting progress.
The reduction of 28,887 burden hours was achieved by deploying an E-government
implementation strategy. All outreach and Admissions Counselors and centers
directly input data into a national database. As a result, the burden hours
associated with the preparation of forms has decreased significantly.
BLS's International Price Program produces Import Price
Indexes and Export Price Indexes containing data on changes in the prices of
non-military goods and services traded between the U.S. and the rest of the
world. The reduction of 10,767 hours was achieved by requesting re-pricing
information from respondents only in certain months. The expected collection
months were determined jointly by the respondent and a BLS economist and were
based on the company's normal schedule for updating its prices.
Although the VETS' HIREVETSFIRST site is a new site, the
goal is to encourage employers to use it as a way to hire Veterans and
encourage veteran job seekers to utilize the services of the LVERs and DVOPs.
Our initial assumption is that the website could save between 1-5% of current
staff time. Assuming a 2.5% rate, that would allow approximately $15 million of
staff time to be reutilized for efforts to assist veterans.
The VETS-100 website is basically self-maintained now that reports
can be filed electronically. Through additional negotiations with our
contractor, we have saved $188,000 on the site itself. We also chose to utilize
post cards, e-mail and electronic notification via the VETS-100 website to
reduce the costs of the annual 'reports due' notification to contractors. This
year, notification costs were reduced by approximately $35,000. Online filing
of the VETS-100 reports has increased by close to 30%.
The E-Laws Advisor has also proven helpful in allowing staff to
concentrate on other areas of service to veterans. Prior to the advent of the
Advisor, approximately 11 staff years were spent on the phone providing
information and assistance to clients on USERRA and Veterans Preference cases.
The Advisor has helped drop that rate to 5 staff years.
AVAILABILITY OF GOVERNMENT INFORMATION TO THOSE WITHOUT
INTERNET ACCESS:
DOL National Call Center: The DOL National Call Center (DOL-NCC)
provides constituents with accurate and timely information and assistance
through telephone toll-free and e-mail services. DOL-NCC personnel respond to
citizens' frequently asked questions with information that has been cleared
through agency experts and leverages existing Web-based information and
resources. Since its inauguration, the Call Center has responded to 3.2 million
calls and over 100,000 e-mails from employers and employees. Call volume is
currently running at a 1.2 million annual rate. English and Spanish speaking
Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) are available on site, and a
tele-interpretation service is immediately available to assist with over 140
additional languages. The DOL-NCC main toll-free line, 1-866-4-USA-DOL, TTY
1-877-889-5627, is the universal access point to all of DOL and is also used
for special one-time Secretarial events, as well as the number used for most
small agencies. In addition, five citizen-oriented information service programs
are supported at the Call Center, including: Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA), 1-800-321-OSHA; Wage and Hour Division (WHD),
1-866-4-US-WAGE; Employment and Training Administration (ETA), 1-877-US-2-JOBS;
Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP), 1-866-ODEP-DOL; and Women's
Bureau (WB), 1-800-827-5335.
Accessibility: Members of the public can call or visit any
of the Department's agency offices located throughout the country and can
obtain paper copies of any material listed on the DOL and Agency Websites.
Conferences/Seminars: DOL organizes and attends conferences
and seminars, participating as keynote speakers, presenters, and panelists, and
providing information to attendees.
Mailing Services: DOL agencies have been providing
information in the form of reports, publications and news releases for many
years and continue to provide this full range of paper-based services. These
services are provided through mailing lists services for interested parties to
receive information through the U.S. Postal Service. Upon request, the public
is also provided with paper copies of any information posted on an agency web
site. While the public has the option to file almost all responses to reporting
requirements on-line, the option to file through the mail will remain available
for the foreseeable future.
Speech Interpreters: Through Regional and District Offices,
DOL agencies provide Speech Interpreters and documents in languages other than
English during its Compliance Assistance events that are conducted throughout
the country.
2. A summary of the implementation of the specific privacy
provisions of Section 208 of the E-Government Act. Implementation guidance for
the Privacy Provisions of the E-Government Act of 2002 is located at
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/memoranda/m03-22.html . The privacy summary
should contain the following three parts:
a. The reporting of each instance where persistent tracking
technology is used. For each instance agencies must:
- Explain the need to use persistent tracking
technology;
- Identify the safeguards to protect any information collected
from persistent tracking technology
- Provide the contact information (name, title, phone number,
and email) of the agency official who approved each instance of tracking
technology use; and
- Provide the actual privacy policy notification of such
use.
b. A machine-readable agency privacy policy or an explanation
of why it is not readable.
c. The contact information (name, title, phone number, and
email) of individual(s) appointed by the head of the Executive Department or
agency to serve as the agency's principal contact(s) for information
technology/web matters and the individual (name and title) primarily
responsible for privacy.
DOL Response 2:
2. a. The Department of Labor (DOL) does not employ persistent
tracking technology within its Web sites. In accordance with OMB Memorandum
M-00-13, DOL developed procedures for the use of persistent cookies that
require any use of this technology to be properly justified, reviewed, and
approved by the Secretary of Labor. No DOL agency has applied for this type of
review and approval.
2.b. The Department of Labor planned to implement a
machine-readable privacy policy in June of 2004, but that implementation has
been delayed. DOL anticipates implementation of the machine-readable privacy
policy by the third quarter of Fiscal Year 2005. The Office of Public Affairs
has successfully tested P3P in our development and production environments.
2.c. Contact Information: Provide contact information of
individual(s) appointed by the head of the Executive Department or agency to
serve as the agency's principal contact(s) for information technology/web
matters and the individual (name and title) primarily responsible for privacy
policies.
Information Technology: Thomas Wiesner, Deputy Chief
Information Officer, Tel (202) 693-4567
Web Matters: Paul Craven, Director, Office of Public
Affairs, Tel (202) 693-5054
Privacy Policies: Robert A. Shapiro, Associate
Solicitor for Legislation and Legal Counsel, (202) 693-5500
3. A summary (a text document of up to two pages in length) of
your agency's progress to implement your information technology human resource
strategy as described in Section 209 of the Act. The summary must:
- Identify any specialized job activities necessary to perform
the agency mission that have changed since last year's report;
- Explain how your IT training plan integrates into the
overall agency training plan; and
- Discuss how you have used the results of OPM's Training
Report (www.opm.gov/hrd/lead/pubs/ittpreport_07-04/ittpreportJuly2004.pdf) to
successfully implement training programs to fulfill gaps in your IT
workforce.
DOL Response 3:
DOL's overall Human Capital Strategic Plan can be reviewed at
http://www.dol.gov/_sec/stratplan/2003/humancapital/main.htm. In FY 2004,
DOL conducted a department-wide skills assessment of mission-critical
occupations. Management from each agency is currently evaluating the results of
the assessment to identify areas that require attention to eliminate the skill
gaps. DOL also participated in the Clinger-Cohen IT Skills assessment survey.
The results are currently being evaluated by DOL agencies.
DOL has implemented an IT Project Management Program that provides
the senior level IT professional with assistance in acquiring the Project
Management Institute's (PMI) Project Management Professional (PMP)
Certification. The program includes required PMP training and funding for the
PMP Certification Exam. DOL has updated the e-learning catalog to include
IT-related courses for the entry and intermediate IT professionals.
DOL's Human Resources Center has implemented an analytical
reporting tool that allows the Department to provide timely HR information to
managers and human-resource officials. This information is used for the purpose
of workforce planning and monitoring progress on hiring plans and other HR
initiatives.
BLS has developed the BLS Human Resources Strategic plan for
analyzing the workforce, identifying skill gaps and completing a workforce
analysis against these identified skills. The first major component of this
plan identifies critical occupation and managerial competencies. Next, BLS will
be conducting a thorough analysis of its entire IT Program Manager workforce to
determine if there are any skill gaps with the current workforce. BLS will then
conduct workforce analysis to determine the most effective use of resources,
skills, competencies and manager's strategic career goals.
In July 2004, the Department submitted its Departmental IT
Training Guide to OMB. In that report, DOL identified the resources for
training defined in the OPM Training Report as one resource to close gaps in IT
skills within the Department. The Department identified additional resources
that will be used to close IT skills gaps. The Department will utilize the
resources identified in the OPM Training Report as well as the resources
identified in the Departmental IT training guide to help close the skills gaps
identified by the results of the Clinger-Cohen 2004 IT Skills Assessment
Survey, once the data from the Clinger-Cohen 2004 survey is reviewed.
To close competency gaps - for all occupations, including IT, DOL
uses:
- USAJOBS, on-campus recruitment, IT Job Fairs, radio and
newspaper advertisements, internet job announcements, internships programs,
etc. to attract new talent to the Agency;
- Uses retention strategies, including tuition reimbursement,
flexible work schedules, generous incentive and performance awards, and
telecommuting/work at home opportunities.
- Participated in the IT virtual job fair conducted by OPM.
- Participated in the OPM IT qualification competency
initiative.
- Identifies training and development activities to enhance
specific desired competencies.
- Provides on-line training programs through GoLearn.gov.
To date the following milestones have been met:
- All major DOL agencies have completed skills assessments for 27
mission-critical occupations using the Competency Exxceed Plus skills
assessment tool.
- DOL has established a Project Management Certification program
available to all senior DOL IT professionals.
- The MBA Fellows application process for the third class will be
the pilot for the QuickHire on-line application and rating and ranking
tool.
4. A brief description of the process your agency has
established for determining which information will be made available on the
Internet as described in Section 207 of the Act. The description
must:
- Provide the priorities and schedules for making Government
information available and accessible;
- Explain how these priorities and schedules were available
for public comment; and
- Identify the link where the priorities and schedules can be
found on the Internet.
DOL Response 4:
In FY 2004, DOL completed the following actions:
- Surveyed the DOL National Contact Center to determine what
information is most frequently requested by customers and compared these
requests to the information that is available on DOL's Web sites to determine
where gaps exist;
- Developed initial guidance for DOL agencies and distributed
that guidance; and
- Developed detailed guidance for DOL agencies and distributed
that guidance.
DOL agencies will submit their content schedule items to OPA by
December 10, 2004. DOL will publish the final content schedule by December 17,
2004.
The content schedule will be published on the DOL Web site at
http://www.dol.gov/dol/aboutdol/content.htm.
Links to the content schedule will be available from the "About DOL" section of
the DOL Web site, found at . Additional links will be
added to the Site Index and other relevant content areas.
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