Would the Federal Supervisor Training Act Make a Difference?
The Federal Supervisor Training Act is likely to be reintroduced. The author looks at what is in the bill and how it could be improved.
Management
Tips on Counseling for Supervisors: Part 1 – What is Counseling?
Counseling employees is an important part of every supervisor’s job. The author provides some fundamentals of counseling and how to use it in a supervisory role.
Knowing Which Medication to Take When You Have a Problem Employee
The author says there are two common disciplinary measures federal managers can utilize, but only one of them allows for applying discipline progressively in the event the problems continue.
Grievances Can Make Things Worse… or Better
The author looks at the grievance process in federal HR, its history, effectiveness and current alternatives to settling disputes.
Federal Employee Conduct and Discipline – A Suggested Fix
The author says that the possibility of wrongdoing on the part of agency managers has led to many avenues for protecting employees which has created an overly complicated appeals system. He proposes a simple fix that would protect employees while making for a smoother process.
Fixing Federal HR Begins With Staffing
The author says that the entire federal HR process and structure, from top to bottom, needs to be completely reimagined.
‘Job Restructuring’ as a Reasonable Accommodation in Federal Employment (Part 2)
In the second of two series of articles on job restructuring as a reasonable accommodation, the author explores how job restructuring could affect other employees besides the disabled person being accommodated, and examines the limitations on the burden that an agency may place on other employees.
‘Job Restructuring’ as a Reasonable Accommodation in Federal Employment
In the first of two articles on job restructuring as a reasonable accommodation, the author explores how managers ascertain what an employee’s essential functions of his or her job position are, how to restructure a job position to accommodate an employee, and explores some cases that shed light on how the EEOC and federal courts look at these issues.
Federal Employee Accountability: 7 Essential Characteristics of Reform
The author outlines seven basic principles that he says have the potential to design a more accountable civil service that is free from political influence.
Is It Probation If No One Gets Fired?
The common argument in the realm of human resources in the federal government is that it is close to impossible to fire a federal employee, so few federal managers go to the effort to do it. The author says that he doesn’t believe that wholesale firings would be a good solution to the government’s personnel problems, but he does say that more needs to be done to hold non-performing federal employees accountable.
