Improving the Recruitment, Retention, and Utilization of Federal Scientists and Engineers (1993) / Chapter Skim
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1 INTRODUCTION
1 INTRODUCTION
Pages 17-26
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From page 17... ...
are critical components of the nation's economic growth, national security, public health, environmental safety, and other aspects of the public welfare. More than a quarter of federal scientists and engineers are engaged in research and development activities, primarily in laboratories in the departments of Defense, Agriculture, and Health and Human Services and specialized agencies such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
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From page 18... ...
They are located in every state, with only about 15 percent working in the Washington metropolitan area.2 PROBLEMS To carry out its important science and technology functions, the federal government must be able to attract, keep, develop, and effectively use its share of Me nation's well-qualif~ed scientists and engineers. There were several major reports in the 1980s that the federal government was losing its best scientists, engineers, and other professionals at the height of their careers to higher-paying positions in the private sector (National Commission on the Public Service, 1989a; OPM, 1988a; NAPA, 1986~.
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From page 19... ...
who retired or resigned between 1983 and 1988 found that the ceiling on SES pay was the most 3 These studies show that salary differentials between the federal and private sectors increased greatly in the late 1970s and 1980s. Unfortunately, the studies did not compare total compensation, including retirement, health, and other fringe benefits, nor did they take into account noncompensation factors such as greater job security.
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Similarly, concerning workforce quality, aggregate studies do not find a general decline in factors presumed to be quality related among recently hired scientists and engineers, compared with Rose hired earlier (Reck and Mann, 1991~. These factors include grade-point averages, 4 It should be noted that there have been significant improvements in federal pay levels since 1989.
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From page 21... ...
And, as with turnover statistics, favorable governmentwide averages concerning workforce quality indicators do not preclude the existence of serious problems in individual agencies, specific occupations, or critical areas. Although the OPM study of quality-related factors cited above indicated little change across age cohorts of scientists and engineers, a preliminary s Similar results were found in a special OPM study of computer specialists (Harns, 1991)
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From page 22... ...
OPM, which was then involved in the development and passage of FEPCA to reform the pay-related aspects of the civil service system, was supportive and supplied useful information e.g., data from the personnel management demonstrations, federal workforce quality assessment studies, and changes in recruitment activities and OPM officials attended the August 6 An additional recommendation for a study of the adequacy of the political appointment process for recruiting and retaining highly-qualified individuals in S&T-related positions was addressed in a companion study published in March 1992 (National Academy of Sciences, 1992~.
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Should there be a special personnel system for senior executive scientists and engineers, scientists and engineers engaged in research and development work, or all scientists and engineers? At what level of the federal government should personnel policies affecting scientists and engineers be implemented and managed?
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Who should be responsible for coordination and oversight in such a decentralized management system OPM, OSTP, or the Office of Management and Budget? There could be a special unit within OPM or there could be an interagency committee under the Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering, and Technology, which is overseen by OSTP and the President's science advisor.
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In arriving at answers to these questions, the committee took into account several background events that have dramatically changed the situation since the first report was written. These are discussed in the next chapter.
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