Federal Daily - October 7, 2009

FLRA Launches New Web Site

The Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) on Oct. 5 announced the launch of a new user-friendly Web site designed to give federal employees easier access to agency information and resources. New features include a fully searchable FLRA decisions database, training materials from the Office of the General Counsel and a more efficient layout. The site provides answers to the most common questions, and continues to include information on FLRA’s processes for dealing with unfair labor practices, representation issues, arbitration appeals and negotiation disputes, the agency said. “The modernized FLRA Web site has a fresh new look and feel that provides easier and quicker access to agency information,” said FLRA Chairman Carol Waller Pope. The FLRA administers the labor-management relations program for 1.9 million non-postal federal employees: approximately 1.1 million of whom are represented in 2,200 bargaining units. It also is charged with providing leadership in establishing guidance related to federal sector labor-management relations. To see more, go to: www.flra.gov/webfm_send/145.

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Bill Would Give Vets Educational Credit for Military Training

Rep. Joe Sestak, D-Pa., has introduced a bill that would—if signed into law—help veterans convert past military training into credit that would be accepted by civilian institutions of higher education. The legislation would permit enlisted members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard to participate in programs of higher education at the Community College of the Air Force—a one-of-a-kind program that currently allows students from the Air Force to transition military training into academic credit toward associates degrees, which then can be counted toward degrees at civilian four-year institutions, Sestak said. Currently, only Air Force enlisted members and enlisted members of other services who are serving as instructors at Air Force training schools are eligible to receive associates degrees from the college, Sestak said. “Assistance in obtaining a college degree is critical to ensuring the smoothest possible transition to civilian life for our veterans,” Sestak said. The legislator outlined the proposal at an Oct. 5 University of Pennsylvania forum on veterans education programs. To see more, go to: http://sestak.house.gov/apps/list/press/
pa07_sestak/091005_GIBillPennDrexel.shtml.

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GAO Counsel Tapped for OMB Procurement Post

President Obama on Oct. 2 nominated Dan Gordon, the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) acting general counsel, to serve as administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). As head of OFPP, Gordon will be tasked with carrying out efforts to reform procurement through increased competition, reduced use of risky contracts and better acquisition workforce planning and management, OMB Director Peter R. Orszag said in a blog posting on the OMB Web site. In 2006, Gordon was named GAO’s deputy general counsel, and he has served as GAO’s acting general counsel since May of this year. John Gage, American Federation of Government Employees president, applauded the move and voiced the union’s expectation that OMB will continue to reduce the government’s reliance on contractors. “We know that reliable and experienced federal employees perform more efficiently and at a greater service for American taxpayers,” said Gage. “We anticipate that Dan Gordon, if confirmed, will build on this promising foundation.” To see more, go to: www.afge.org/Index.cfm?Page=PressReleases&PressReleaseID=1056 or www.whitehouse.gov/omb/blog/09/10/02/ARealProforProcurement.

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