GPO Rider Information for Ordering Career Service and Retirement Certificates

GPO Rider Information for Ordering
Career Service and Retirement Certificates

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) offers agencies the opportunity to "ride" OPM's printing requisition for Career Service and Retirement Certificates. These certificates are available through the Government Printing Office.

What are Career Service and Retirement Certificates?

Career Service Certificates recognize various milestones in an employee's Federal career. Retirement Certificates recognize an employment career completed in the Federal service. Available since 1988, these certificates provide a form of honorary recognition and may be presented to employees alone or in combination with other career service and retirement emblems or pins as they complete these significant milestones or retire.

What do these certificates look like?

The certificates, which are suitable for framing or placing in a presentation folder, are available in two common frame sizes:

8" x 10" (203 x 254 mm) and
8 1/2" x 11" (216 x 279 mm).

The certificates are pre-printed on an off-white card stock with lines for entering the recipient's name, date, and appropriate signature. The length-of-service certificates have an embossed seal with the Great Seal of the United States within an octagonal medalion and the retirement certificate has the seal encircled with a laurel wreath. To distinguish the various certificates, the

5-, 10- and 15-year certificates are bronze embossed;
20- and 25-year certificates are silver embossed; and
30-, 35-, 40-, 45-, 50-year and retirement certificates are gold embossed.

How can I order them?

Agencies may obtain these certificates by riding OPM's printing requisition and placing an order through their printing officer. It is important to remember

these certificates are not stocked by the Government Printing Office, so riding OPM's printing requisition is the only way to obtain them;
to check with your agency's printing officer for specific details on how to place your order; and
you must process all GPO Rider requests through your agency's printing officer.

We encourage you to anticipate your needs over an extended time period and order accordingly.

What is the cost?

The estimated printing cost is $12.50 for 50 copies of any given certificate.

How often will this GPO Rider be offered?

In the past, we offered this Rider once a year. In response to customer requests, we now are offering the Rider twice a year. We will announce when the Federal Career Service and Retirement Certificate GPO Riders are open on this web site. We will continue to send mailings to agency awards administrators and publish reminders in our newsletter, Workforce Performance.

How can I get more information?

For the latest GPO Rider in a hard copy or Word 97, contact the Performance Management and Incentive Awards Division at 202-606-2720 or by email at: perform-mgmt@opm.gov. A copy of the November 2001 Rider Bulletin in Adobe Acrobat PDF format (17kb) is available here.

Click here to go to accessible version of the November Rider Info

For information on determining your agency's printing officer, how to complete the requisition form, or any other printing related questions, please call OPM's publications office at (202) 606-1844.