Officials discuss new civilian system in open letter

  • Published
  • By Jim Garamone
  • American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON (AFPN) --  A letter signed by Defense Department leaders asks DOD civilian employees to be patient as teams work to make the new National Security Personnel System a reality.

The April 1 letter, signed by David S.C. Chu, undersecretary for personnel and readiness, and Navy Secretary Gordon England, stresses that DOD sees the new personnel system as a combined effort.

The system, passed as part of the fiscal 2004 National Defense Authorization Act, allows DOD officials to transform the civilian personnel system to make it more agile and responsive.

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said the new system would make it easier for the department to make new hires and keep highly skilled employees. It also would allow DOD to move workers to shortage specialties as national security concerns change, he said.

In the letter, Mr. Chu and Secretary England state, "We are determined to take the time necessary to do the job right."

Taking time will allow the department to consult with employees, managers and unions, a DOD spokeswoman said. The letter encourages people interested in the system to present their thoughts, ideas, views and concerns.

Department officials are also working with other government agencies as they develop the new system. They are consulting with people at the Office of Personnel Management, the Office of Management and Budget and the Government Accounting Office as the new system takes shape. They are also taking lessons from the Department of Homeland Security, which built its own personnel system after it was formed last year.

Five teams within DOD are looking at process, personnel, programs, requirements and communications, officials said. A sixth team will draw recommendations from these five together in one package. That proposal is scheduled to be presented to Secretary Rumsfeld and other senior leaders in April.

Once approved, senior leaders will work with Congress on implementing the system.

Mr. Chu and Secretary England said that the system still is being formed, and few details about how the system would work are available because there is no system yet. Concepts and proposals will change over time and department leaders will do their best to keep employees informed, they said.

Information will be available on the DOD and DefendAmerica Web sites, the Pentagon Channel and local commanders' television programs. The new system also has its own Web site.