Washington, D.C. -- Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) said the final personnel rules issued yesterday by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) establishing a new human resources management system at DHS are an improvement over the proposed regulations issued last February. However, he said it's not enough.
"More work needs to be done to reflect the goals we all share: protecting the merit principles and enhancing the recruitment and retention policies of the federal government to ensure an effective and efficient workforce to meet the challenges and fulfill the missions of DHS. To meet this goal it is essential that any human resources system be both fair and perceived as fair in order to be credible. I am afraid that as a whole, the final regulations fall short of this requirement," said Senator Akaka.
Senator Akaka is the Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on the Oversight of Government Management and author of legislation to strengthen federal whistleblower protections.
He praised DHS and OPM for the collaborative and open manner in which employee groups and stakeholders were involved in the development of these regulations. "All agencies should undertake organizational change in a similar open, cooperative, and inclusive manner," said Senator Akaka.
The final regulations make dramatic changes in the way DHS hires, fires, classifies, and pays employees as well as to the procedures for collective bargaining and employee appeals.
In addition, the final regulations create internal agency panels for adjudicating labor-management disputes and employee appeals for certain offenses; eliminate bargaining for a majority of routine issues; eliminate opportunities for employee input on policy implementation; and restrict the ability of the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) to mitigate unjust agency discipline.
Senator Akaka added, "These regulations will curtail employee bargaining rights and eliminate opportunities for employees on the front lines to give input on departmental programs and directives. I am concerned that these changes will be detrimental to the successful implementation of the Department's programs and directives. Without employee input up-front, these policies could lead to more government mismanagement and low employee morale."
"Whenever undergoing a government reorganization, we should strive to do it right the first time. We should avoid making the mistakes of the past, especially as the DHS regulations will be used as a template for future civil service reform. For this reason I urge DHS to develop a process to ensure employee input on policy decisions and agency missions. I look forward to working with DHS to provide increased opportunities for employees to bargain over issues such as scheduling and posting of employees, to increase employee input, and to provide opportunities for meaningful and independent oversight." Senator Akaka concluded, "We must find a way to improve agency efficiency while at the same time protecting employee rights."
Senator Akaka has been actively involved in overseeing the development of the DHS regulations and submitted letters to both DHS and OPM as well as lengthy comments to the Federal Register calling for stronger protections for federal employees and warning of the dangers of internal appeal and labor-management boards.
The Subcommittee on the Oversight of Government Management is expected to hold hearings on the new human resources system.
