Category Archives: Performance

DHS CHCO PREFERS PASS-FAIL EVALUATIONS Not long ago Jeff Neal was the Chief Human Capital Officer of the Dept. of Homeland Security. Today, he is consulting and out here in the blogosphere letting folks know what he really thinks. We … Continue reading

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HOW TO CHALLENGE VAGUE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS Do your members work under performance standards that require tasks be completed “in a timely manner” or that the employee efforts “result in timely service?”  If so, MSPB just issued a decision that will … Continue reading

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WHEN CAN EMPLOYEE “LEADS” EVALUATE CO-WORKERS? Answer:  They can’t or never are the only acceptable answers. But while the answer is easy, trying to convince managers not to ask Leads to draft performance appraisals is a lot harder. Delegating the … Continue reading

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HOW TO VOID CRITICAL ELEMENT RATINGS Way back in the late 70’s agencies could only fire poor performing employees using the adverse actions statutes.  Managers complained that made it too hard because they had to prove their allegations by the … Continue reading

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AFGE PULVERIZES PERFORMANCE STANDARDS No one on the union side of the table should ever argue that it is easy to evaluate employee performance.  It is not.  But at the same time, AFGE just showed that OPM, a wholly-owned subsidiary … Continue reading

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FMLA OFTEN REQUIRES PERFORMANCE STANDARD ADJUSTMENTS Often an employer must adjust an employee’s performance standards once it approves the employee’s FMLA leave request.  Not long ago a Federal Circuit Court spelled it out for LR practitioners on both sides of … Continue reading

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AFGE WINS WTH UNCOMMON DEFENSES TO PERFORMANCE CRITICISM If the average federal employee only knew how vulnerable he/she is to being fired for performance-based reasons, employee pharmaceutical bills would double. Management can unilaterally set the performance standards, need only produce … Continue reading

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HOW TO STOP PERFORMANCE STANDARD CHANGES While death and taxes may be the more commonly recognized guarantees of life, not far behind are changes in performance standards.  Employees everywhere can count on managers trying to change their expectations, even if … Continue reading

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POST-PIP PROTECTION Employees who successfully make it through a PIP walk on very thin ice for the 12 months afterwards.  If their performance falls below the required standard during those 365 days, they can be terminated without another PIP opportunity … Continue reading

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SPOTTING DISCRIMINATION VIOLATIONS & GRIEVANCES Every time a member comes to the union for help with some personnel action, the union rep should not only look for violations of the contract, regulations, and past practice, but also whether management’s action … Continue reading

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