Statement of Senator Daniel K. Akaka
Aloha.
Thank you for that kind introduction Darryl Perkinson. I also want to thank your vice president Jim Mahlmann; your treasurer, Sherie Lewis,; and your secretary, Richard Oppedisano, for inviting me to help kick off your 69th annual convention and training seminars.
I am especially pleased than you have chosen Investing in America from Generation to Generation as your convention theme and Cultivating Today's Talent, Building Tomorrow's Leaders as the theme of your training day.
As federal managers, you know nothing could be more timely or more important than how managers, and those they supervise, are trained. And, as federal managers, you know that mentoring and training programs are needed for the federal government to attract, retain, and motivate the men and women who have chosen federal service.
As a former educator, I believe that individuals excel when they are nurtured. My personal interest in mentoring has been strengthened through my long and personal relationship with the Hawaii Federal Managers Association, represented here today by Wayne Wilcox, president of Chapter 19, who is accompanied by Layne Luke, Lloyd Fujimoto, Ileen Wong, Scott Shimizu, Mike Fitzgerald, and a good friend of all of ours, John Priolo.
These FMA members, along with others in from Hawaii, have worked with the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and its employee unions on what I consider to be one of the federal government's most successful ventures, the Shipyard's apprentice program. This program - which makes available 125 to 150 apprentice jobs annually - attracts about 5,000 applicants each year.
We need to do more to foster such apprentice and mentoring programs. I look forward to working with you because you understand that effective federal programs and services rely on well-trained employees and skilled managers.
That is one reason why we in Congress turn to FMA, when we are seeking input on how the federal government hires, fires, compensates, and evaluates its employees. And, it's no wonder that FMA has provided testimony four times over the past two years to the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Federal Workforce Subcommittee, which I chair.
You can be proud of John Priolo, who represented FMA at a subcommittee field hearing Senator Voinovich and I held in Honolulu last April on training and the National Security Personnel System. We've also been honored to have Darryl and Richard appear before us as well.
As members of FMA - which also belongs to the Government Managers Coalition - you know the value of cooperation and coordination. There is nothing more important in Washington than forming partnerships and strategic alliances to help get your views across to Congress and to the Administration.
For those of us who are privileged to work in the Senate or the House, we too value partnerships, and I can think of no stronger partnership than the one that I have with Senator George Voinovich of Ohio. Our hearings and legislative efforts have helped foster a positive image of public service just as you do through your membership in FMA .
George and I understand that the world is different than it was in 1999 when we first started to work together. The events of 9/11 solidified the need to have the right people in the right places in our government. To reach the goal of making the federal government an employer of choice, federal managers must have the tools to recruit - retain - and motivate a skilled workforce. Together, we have enacted legislation to allow for: categorical ranking instead of the Rule of 3; direct hire authority for critical need personnel; government-wide buyout and voluntary retirement authority; Chief Human Capital Officers and a Chief Human Capital Officers Council; and Compensatory time off for official travel.
I know it's not easy to institutionalize these changes, and it's an uphill job to make sure agencies use the flexibilities authorized by Congress. Although I'm disappointed that our hearings show these flexibilities aren't used regularly, I am pleased, however, that OPM Director Linda Springer, who I understand will address you later this week - is taking the problem seriously. I'm confident that under her leadership there will be greater cooperation between agencies and OPM in utilizing these critical tools.
I mentioned earlier that there must be meaningful employee training programs to better position federal employees. That is why I reintroduced the Federal Supervisor Training Act -
S. 967 - last week which will bridge the training gap that exists now and will make sure that federal managers have the necessary skills to manage and meet agency missions. My bill has three major training components.
First, new supervisors will receive training within 12 months of coming aboard and mandatory retraining every three years. Current managers can take up to three years to get their initial training.
The second part of my bill requires mentoring for new supervisors as well as training on how to mentor others. Lastly, the bill requires training on the laws governing whistleblowing and anti-discrimination rights. I initially introduced the bill last June with the unprecedented support of a broad group of employee organizations, including: FMA as a member of the Government Managers Coalition; AFGE; NTEU; IFPTE, AFL-CIO; Metal Trades Department; as well as the Partnership for Public Service. I thank FMA for its support, and I thank Darryl for testifying on behalf of the Government Managers Coalition at our Federal Workforce Subcommittee hearing in June of last year.
In closing, I want to assure you that in addition to strengthening employee training, we also agree on the need for pay parity, making federal student loans tax-free, and allowing federal and military retirees to pay for their health care premiums with pre-tax dollars.
I would also like to mention one issue raised by the Administration in the President's fiscal year 2008 budget proposal that would phase-out the non-foreign cost-of-living allowance (COLA) and phase-in locality pay for federal employees in Hawaii, Alaska, and other non-contiguous areas of the U.S. I know the FMA members in my state are very interested in this proposal, and I want to assure them and others who may be affected that no legislation has been introduced nor will any legislation move forward without their input. OPM advises me that a draft bill will be available once their extensive review process is completed.
I look forward to working with FMA in the 110th Congress on these and other issues that impact federal employees. I also want to thank you again for all you do on behalf of our great country. You are a critical part of the solution to the challenges facing the federal government because you are on the front lines of our effort to recruit and retain a 21st century federal workforce. You know, for example, whether or not the new personnel systems at the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security are fair to employees and credible.
You know first hand if your agencies are using hiring flexibilities to hire people more quickly, and you know that the future of the federal workforce depends on what we do today.
Thank you very much.
