FederalDaily - December 7, 2007
USAJOBS Connects with Major Search Engines
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced on Dec. 5 the launch of a new data feed that will
send federal workforce vacancy announcement information to major Internet search engines. As a result,
users of the major search engines will have access to information previously available only through
the USAJOBS Web site. For example, someone who types a job title such as “IT specialist” into
Google or other engines, now also will see links to federal vacancy announcements, OPM Director Linda
Springer said. “By doing this, we’re making information about the tens of thousands of
federal job openings posted at any given moment on USAJOBS as broadly accessible as possible on the
Web,” said Springer. The USAJOBS site, which averages about 10 million visitors each month, features
more than 60,000 vacancy announcements from throughout the federal government, OPM said. To see more,
go to: www.opm.gov/news/usajobs-connects-with-major-search-engines,1346.aspx.
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VA Speeds Up GI Bill Education Benefits
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) this week announced it had significantly reduced the amount
of time it takes to process applications for GI Bill education benefits from veterans and servicemembers.
For first-time recipients of educational benefits, the average processing time decreased from 40 days
in 2006 to 32 days in 2007—a 20 percent reduction, VA said. Claims from veterans re-enrolling
for subsequent school terms or additional training programs were processed in an average of 13 days,
down from 20 days in 2006. “Our processing time is good, and it’s going to continue to
get better,” said acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs Gordon H. Mansfield. “These improvements
come despite a 40 percent increase in applications for GI Bill benefits since 2001.” For next
year, VA performance goals call for another 20 percent reduction in processing time. In 2007, 524,000
veterans and beneficiaries received approximately $21 billion of education assistance. To see more,
go to: http://www1.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=1427.
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Arbitrators Set Contract Conditions for NRLCA, USPS
The U.S. Postal Service said on Dec. 5 that an arbitration panel had set terms of a new four-year
collective bargaining agreement between USPS and the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association
(NRLCA). The new contract will cover 123,000 USPS employees who deliver mail to residences and businesses
on rural delivery routes. USPS and NRLCA reached a tentative four-year contract agreement in December
2006, but the parties entered arbitration after the union membership failed to ratify the agreement. “We
are pleased to have contracts in place with all four of our major unions, bringing the 2006 labor negotiation
process to an end,” said Doug Tulino, Postal Service vice president of labor relations. To see
more, go to: www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/allnews.htm.
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