To comply with OMB’s M-23-15, released on April 13, 2023, which aims to increase meaningful in-person work at Federal offices, agencies must take the following steps: (1) Update Work Environment plans based on post-reentry plans, describing current policies for telework and related operational policies and anticipated future changes. These plans should be informed by agencies’…
Category: HR
How to Prepare Parties for a Mediation
Many of us are in a role to support mediation for our agencies or organizations. There is empirical data that demonstrates the most successful mediations occur when both parties come to the session prepared. Yet, there are many instances where the parties participating in the mediation don’t have a basic understanding of what to expect…
How To Move the Conversation from Diversity to Inclusion
As experts in our respective fields, we are often called as consultants or coaches to help managers in our organizations manage through an ever-changing, diverse workforce. It’s usually in these situations that you discover a basic challenge: most managers oversimplify the diversity issue and forget that diversity without inclusion can hurt an organization. We’d like…
Join our New LinkedIn Group!
We are delighted to announce that we have formed a group on LinkedIn called EEO and Diversity Professionals. We created this group as a virtual gathering place for EEO, diversity, conflict management (i.e., ADR) and human resources professionals to exchange perspectives and learn about the latest developments in our fields. The group is founded on the…
Investigating Non-Selection Complaints
In our last post, we discussed how to defend non-selections from a selecting official’s perspective. In this post, we’ll discuss this issue from an investigator’s perspective. Those of us trained as EEO investigators, are familiar with the shifting burdens of proof outlined in McDonnell Douglas v. Green. Of specific note is management’s burden to articulate…
Making a Bullet Proof Selection – Part 3
In part 1 we talked about recruiting for the best applicants; in part 2 we talked about making the right selections and now, in this 3rd and final part, let’s talk about defending the selection. By doing the work upfront that defines how the selection process will be handled, you have already laid the foundation…
Making a Bullet-Proof Selection, Part 2
Last week in part 1, we discussed the importance of having an accurate position description and the need for it to describe the skills needed to be successful in the position. The next thing I do is work with the manager to ensure a plan is in place that differentiates among applicants and to gets…
57,000 Federal Employees on Paid Administrative Leave? Five Basic Steps to Keep You Out of the Headlines
The numbers reported in the October 20th Washington Post article of federal employees placed on administrative leave after being accused of misconduct are staggering: More than 50,000 on leave up to three months; 4,000 on leave three months to a year; and Several hundred on leave from one to three years. This is probably not…
