U. S. OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT
WELFARE TO WORK PLAN
1. MAKING THE TRANSITION EASIER
As the personnel agency for the Federal Government,
the Office of Personnel Management is committed to the success of the welfare
to work program and making the transition easier for all concerned. As
Chair of the Interagency Advisory Group of Federal Personnel Directors,
we are providing leadership to the Federal community in developing guidance
and resolving operational issues as they arise. In our role of administering
the merit system, we are working with agencies to identify opportunities
and proper methods of hiring to make this Presidential initiative a success.
As shown below, the Office of Personnel Management plans to provide recruitment
opportunities for all individuals who can be identified through our efforts
and we will hire the best qualified candidates for all positions. Once
these individuals are hired, OPM will provide them with every possible
opportunity to succeed through on-the-job and formal classroom training,
mentoring, and one-on-one assistance. Every Associate Director,
Head of Staff Office, and Union President in the Office of Personnel Management
received a copy of this plan. We plan to fully involve all managers, supervisors,
employees and local unions in efforts to implement this plan.
I. AVAILABILITY OF WORK
HIRING SURVEY
A memorandum, dated March 12, 1997, issued
to all Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Associate Directors and Heads
of Staff Offices, requested them to determine what work within their organizations
they anticipate could be accomplished by individuals currently on the welfare
rolls. In addition, they were asked whether they could provide mentors
within their organization to work closely with these individuals as well
as provide funding for any necessary training.
In response to this request, OPM managers identified a number of positions
which could be filled within the next several months through the Worker
Trainee appointing authority. The positions identified are located primarily
in Washington, DC, and Boyers, Pennsylvania; however, a few positions are
located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; St. Louis, Missouri; and Denver, Colorado.
In addition, each OPM organization agreed to fund training opportunities
and to provide an organizational mentor to assist the welfare to work employee
in making the adjustment to full time employment.
TARGET POSITIONS
The categories of positions initially identified by OPM management
that could most easily and quickly be filled by individuals currently on
the welfare rolls include:
* GS-303, General Clerk. Incumbents of these positions perform work
which is of a general or miscellaneous character to include meeting and
greeting visitors, answering phones, xeroxing, and/or typing.
* GS-305, Mail and File Clerk. Incumbents of these positions perform
duties which involve processing incoming or outgoing mail and/or systematic
arrangement of records for storage or reference purposes.
* GS-962, Customer Service Representative. Incumbents of these positions
provide personal contacts with the public to provide information on retirement
and insurance benefits and procedures.
* GS-303, Test Administrator. Incumbents of these positions administer
civil service and military entrance examinations nationwide.
* WG-3566, Custodial Worker. Incumbents of these positions perform
janitorial and custodial work, such as sweeping, scrubbing, waxing floors,
washing windows and emptying trash.
* WG-3502, Laborer. Incumbents of these positions perform duties
involving little or no specialized skill but requiring mainly physical
ability necessary for work such as loading and unloading trucks or moving
furniture.
* WG-4749, Maintenance Mechanic. Incumbents of these positions are
involved in the maintenance and repair of grounds, exterior structures,
buildings, and related fixtures and utilities.
At the entry levels, these positions require the incumbents to perform
simple tasks and give them an opportunity to learn good work habits and
marketable work skills. Qualification requirements for these positions
are minimal.
It is anticipated that the greatest number of entry level appointments
of welfare to work employees will be made in the Retirement Operations
Center, located in Boyers, Pennsylvania. This office routinely hires employees
as GS-1 file clerks to maintain the Government?s retirement files. In the
last fiscal year, 56 employees at the GS-1 level were hired in Boyers.
From this entry level position, these employees have an opportunity to
compete for and possibly advance to federal benefits specialist positions
at the GS-9/11 levels. The Office of Personnel Management in Boyers has,
in the past, hired persons from the welfare rolls referred to them by the
Pennsylvania Job Center in Butler, Pennsylvania.
We have identified some possible positions that are not immediately available.
In 1998, we plan to relocate our Eastern Management Development Center
from Lancaster, Pennsylvania to Shepherdstown, West Virginia. At that time,
we plan to review these positions to possibly restructure some of the work
in order to provide hiring opportunities for individuals in the Shepherdstown
area under the welfare to work initiative.
While a number of positions have been initially identified for recruitment
of welfare to work individuals, the Office of Personnel Management plans
to consider this applicant population for every position in the organization
where the area of consideration is determined to be external to the agency.
We view this as a permanent change to the way we recruit to fill all jobs,
not just entry level.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR PLACEMENTS WITH CONTRACTORS
Several of OPM?s organizations who contract services also indicated
they will work with their contractors to encourage their support in this
hiring initiative. The Retirement and Insurance Service has included language
in its Call Letter to 375 health insurance carriers urging their support
of this effort, beginning with the start of the next contract year, January
1998. The Investigations Service plans to work with the employee owned
corporation (USIS) to encourage their participation in this initiative.
The Office of Contracting and Administrative Services plans to include
a provision in all contract solicitations that would encourage contractors
to consider hiring welfare recipients for any jobs that are created as
a result of their getting a contract with OPM. These contracts are primarily
for services such as building maintenance and office renovations.
II. RECRUITMENT AND HIRING PLAN
OUTREACH EFFORTS
The Office of Personnel Management is working
to identify the most appropriate sources of recruitment and establish points
of contact and working relationships. In the Washington, DC area, we will
work through the Maryland, Virginia and District of Columbia points of
contact identified by the Interagency Advisory Group to coordinate efforts
in establishing relationships with local welfare recipients.
Our sixteen service centers and five field oversight divisions are located
in areas that are, for the most part, served by local Federal Executive
Boards and Federal Executive Associations. These managers will be working
closely with those organizations to establish networks to target recruitment
efforts in their local areas. These field managers have been delegated
authority to determine their own recruitment avenues. OPM's Office of Human
Resources and EEO will also issue a letter to managers outside the Washington,
DC, metropolitan area listing Job Partnership Training Act (JPTA) sites.
As previously indicated, the greatest number of entry level appointments
of welfare to work employees will probably be made in Boyers, Pennsylvania.
OPM's Office of Human Resources and Equal Employment Opportunity has a
satellite office located in Boyers and that staff will work closely with
the managers there in this effort. An ongoing working relationship has
been established with the Pennsylvania Job Center in that area. In the
last several years, some candidates have been referred by that office and
hired as GS-1 file clerks and data transcribers.
Additionally, the Pittsburgh Federal Executive Board (FEB) is approximately
ninety minutes from Boyers, and the staff in our Personnel Service Center
in Boyers has an excellent working relationship with the FEB Executive
Director. It is likely that our Boyers office can take advantage of some
of the work which the Pittsburgh Federal Executive Board will do to develop
recruitment sources.
In addition to using state employment and job service offices, we plan
to establish points of contact with local outreach organizations, including
religious organizations, community job centers, recreation centers, and
schools. We will work closely with local unions in identifying and carrying
out additional outreach activities.
In addition, the Director of OPM will issue a letter to all OPM employees
asking for their assistance in identifying welfare to work candidates through
their own outside personal sources, such as volunteer activities, religious
organizations, and local community groups.
HIRING AUTHORITIES
OPM will use the following appointing authorities in efforts to
hire welfare to work individuals:
- Worker Trainee Program. This program is aimed at unskilled workers
for positions at the GS-1, WG-1 and WG-2 level. It is designed to provide
individuals the opportunity to learn marketable skills and good work habits
to succeed in the workplace. Under this program, individuals are provided
both formal and on-the-job training. Employees are eligible for conversion
to career appointments after completion of three years of satisfactory
service and performance.
- Veterans? Readjustment Appointment (VRA). This authority is used
to appoint certain veterans, without open competition, to positions in
the Federal service. Depending on the qualifications of the individual
and the positions available, these veterans can be appointed to positions
up to GS-11. Training plans are provided to each VRA appointee. After completion
of two years of service, employees are converted to permanent positions
in the competitive service.
- Student Educational Employment Program. This program is designed
to assist students in gaining valuable work experience while pursuing their
education. Individuals must be enrolled as a degree-seeking student and
taking at least a half-time course load in an accredited school. Grade
level is dependent upon education and experience of each individual.
- Special Appointment of Severely Physically Handicapped Persons.
These positions are filled by severely physically handicapped persons.
Upon completion of two years of successful performance, the employee may
qualify for conversion to the competitive service.
- Special Appointment of Mentally Retarded Persons. These positions
are filled by mentally retarded persons. Upon completion of two years of
successful performance, the employee may qualify for conversion to the
competitive service.
We plan to focus our initial efforts on the positions filled under the
worker trainee appointing authority. This will provide immediate hiring
opportunities for the largest number of individuals because the qualification
requirements are minimal. However, as managers continue to identify additional
positions, we plan to explore other avenues, such as veterans' readjustment
appointments, temporary and career student appointments, clerical appointments,
and reinstatements. In most cases, the hiring authority used will depend
upon the qualification requirements of the positions being filled and the
qualifications of the individuals referred in response to our vacancy announcements.
In addition to filling the positions already identified, the Director of
OPM will issue a directive to all OPM managers requiring them to consider
this applicant population for all vacant positions. Personnel specialists
in the Office of Human Resources and Equal Employement Opportunity will
work closely with supervisors who submit recruitment actions to ensure
the appropriate areas of consideration are identified. In addition to the
welfare population, we will also ensure all displaced and downsized Federal
employees and veterans receive consideration for these positions.
III. ON THE JOB TRAINING/ASSISTANCE PLAN
Once we are able to recruit and hire these individuals,
a number of support systems will be put into place:
- Orientation. All employees, regardless of how they are hired,
receive a comprehensive orientation when they first enter the agency's
workforce. We will review our current orientation program to ensure it
provides welfare to work employees with required information to succeed.
This will include not only the completion of required forms and documents
which are part of the appointment process, but also an overall orientation
to the workplace and the agency. Local unions will be included in the orientation
process, both in planning and presentation. Basic employee responsibilities
such as time and attendance, hours of duty, lunch/rest periods, and customer
service will also be included. An orientation handbook will be provided
to all employees which they can use as a reference document to inform them
about the agency and employee benefits.
- Training. After the initial orientation process, employees hired
under the welfare to work program will receive additional training. Training
needs will be identified in conjunction with the employee, supervisor,
and personnel office staff. This training will include basic workplace
skills such as time management, teamwork, and conflict resolution. Individual
skills assessments will be conducted. In addition, depending on the skills
needs, individual training plans will be developed for each employee.
- Mentoring. Each organization will assign a mentor to every individual
appointed under the welfare to work program. The mentor will maintain constant
communication with the employee to answer any organizational questions
that arise, serve as a reference resource, and help to make the transition
to the workplace as smooth as possible. The Office of Human Resources and
Equal Employment Opportunity will provide training for all persons assigned
as mentors.
In addition, a staff representative from the Office of Human Resources
and Equal Employment Opportunity will be assigned to each employee to respond
to their questions and concerns and conduct frequent follow up contacts
with the employee, supervisor and organizational mentor to track the progress
of these employees and provide them every opportunity to succeed.
- Employee Benefits. Information regarding a number of OPM employee
programs will be made available to welfare to work hires. These programs
include:
-- Child Care Services. OPM, in partnership with the General Services
Administration and the Department of the Interior, participates in a Child
Development Center for our employees in the Washington, DC area. The Center
offers some tuition assistance to employees. We are working now to provide
additional financial support to the Center's tuition assistance program
through agency fund raising initiatives. In addition, OPM provides information
to employees regarding other child care services in the local area. In
OPM's field locations, information regarding child care services is provided
through the local Employee Assistance Program.
-- Employee Assistance Program (EAP). OPM has a very successful
nationwide employee assistance program. Where agency EAP employees are
not on site, consortiums have been formed by a number of agencies to provide
a variety of services to their employees. This program is designed to assist
employees with personal or work problems before they interfere with productivity
and affect attitudes. Types of problems handled by the EAP program include
family and marital problems, legal concerns, financial issues, alcohol
and drug use, job stress, child and elder care concerns, grief, mental
health, and emotional stress. The Employee Assistance Counselor in the
headquarters office will be an active participant in the agency's orientation
program. In addition, special focus seminars will be scheduled for these
individuals based on the needs identified by managers and Office of Human
Resources and Equal Employment Opportunity staff.
-- Benefits Counseling. The Benefits Officer in the Office of Human
Resources and Equal Employment Opportunity will provide follow-up contact
and work closely with each new welfare to work employee hired by OPM nationwide
to ensure full understanding of the employee benefits being offered. She
will explain the health insurance, life insurance, thrift savings plan,
and retirement systems available to them based on their type of appointment.
In addition, she will ensure they have received necessary information regarding
the earned income tax credit and answer questions.
-- Family Friendly Assistance Program. OPM has established a model
family friendly assistance program for its employees over the last several
years. Each new employee is provided with information about the many aspects
of the program and is encouraged to call the Office of Human Resources
and Equal Employment Opportunity with any questions or concerns. Appropriate
staff members are identified in information provided new employees as part
of their orientation. Each new employee receives information regarding
the use of leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act, flexiplace, and
alternative work schedules.
-- Earned Income Tax Credit. The Office of the Chief Financial Officer
will provide information to each new employee regarding eligibility requirements
for the earned income tax credit. In addition, annual notices are issued
to all OPM employees regarding this benefit.
-- Fare Subsidy Program. The Office of Personnel Management provides
a tax free subsidy to eligible employees who certify that they have used
an approved public transit system for the required number of instances.
We currently provide a benefit of $42 a month. Based on the guidance expected
from the General Services Administration and the Department of Justice,
OPM will review the current fare subsidy program for possible changes.
-- Employee/Supervisor Seminars. Special follow up discussion groups
will be held periodically with supervisors and employees to discuss common
concerns or problems that need to be addressed. Topics and schedules will
be developed based on feedback received from local unions, mentors, supervisors,
and employees.
Page created 27 June 1997