The United States’ largest union representing Federal employees has expressed concern about hiring provisions in a pair of Bills aimed at rejuvenating the National Science Foundation (NSF).
The Australian Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) says elements of both Bills grant the Agency’s Director with a waiver of Public Service rules in order to more easily hire new employees.
Under that legislation, employees could earn salaries equivalent to that of the Vice President.
It would also give the NSF Director the same hiring authorities already enjoyed by the Director of the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency.
National President of the AFGE, Everett Kelley (pictured) said that although his union supported the aims of the two Bills, their hiring provisions were reminiscent of former President Donald Trump’s abortive effort to move Federal policy-making positions out of the competitive service.
This would have made it easier to hire political lackeys and have stripped thousands of current Federal workers of their Public Service protections.
“The waiver of Civil Service appointment laws on such a vast scale bears a striking resemblance to the Trump Administration’s attempt to impose a new Schedule F hiring authority on a large portion of the Civil Service.” Mr Kelly said.
He said fortunately that had failed “and the integrity of the Civil Service was not subject to political corruption”.
“However, dispensing with Civil Service pay schedules in such an unbridled manner would, at a minimum, be damaging to the integrity of the merit-based pay system for the majority of those who work at the NSF,” he said.
Mr Kelley also noted that the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency’s waiver to some Federal hiring rules existed in part due to its purpose as a National Security Agency, “which is not the case for NSF”.
Washington, 22 April 2021
