[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 31 (Friday, February 14, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9007-9013]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-03284]


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OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT


Personnel Demonstration Project; Pay Banding and Performance-
Based Pay Adjustments in the National Nuclear Security Administration

AGENCY: U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Notice of approval of a modification to a demonstration project 
final plan.

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SUMMARY: Title VI of the Civil Service Reform Act, codified in 5 U.S.C. 
Chapter 47, authorizes the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to 
conduct demonstration projects that experiment with new and different 
human resources management concepts to determine whether changes in 
policies or procedures would result in improved Federal human resources 
management. On December 21, 2007, OPM published a document in the 
Federal Register announcing final approval of a demonstration project 
plan for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), a 
separately organized agency within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). 
In accordance with 5 CFR 470.315, this

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notice constitutes OPM's approval of a modification of NNSA's final 
project plan, to make a participating organization change and to make 
two employee coverage changes.

DATES: These modifications to NNSA's demonstration project final plan 
are effective immediately upon publication of this notice.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: National Nuclear Security 
Administration: Rosa Benavidez, Demonstration Project Leader, (505) 
845-6683; Office of Personnel Management: Zelma Moore, (202) 606-1157.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

1. Background

    OPM approved NNSA's demonstration project final plan, and it was 
published in the Federal Register on December 21, 2007 (72 FR 72776). 
The demonstration project was implemented on March 16, 2008, and 
modified to include three technical corrections to the final project 
plan on July 31, 2008, as published in the Federal Register (73 FR 
44786). On March 11, 2013, OPM authorized an extension of the 
demonstration project to March 15, 2015, to provide time to validate 
the results of the interventions tested under this project.

2. Statement of Purpose

    The principal purposes of the NNSA demonstration project are to--
    (1) Modify and simplify the General Schedule (GS) classification 
system by establishing pay bands which may cover more than one grade; 
and
    (2) Modify the GS pay system to base pay increases on performance 
distinctions made under a credible, strategically-aligned performance 
appraisal program and thereby improve the results-oriented performance 
culture within the organization.
    The primary goals of the project are to:
    (1) Improve hiring by allowing NNSA to compete more effectively for 
high quality employees through the judicious use of higher entry 
salaries;
    (2) Motivate and retain staff by providing faster pay progression 
for high-performing employees;
    (3) Improve the usefulness and responsiveness of the position 
classification system to managers;
    (4) Increase the efficiency of administering the position 
classification system through a simplified pay-banded application of 
the current General Schedule grade structure, and reduce the procedural 
steps and documentation requirements traditionally associated with 
classifying positions;
    (5) Eliminate automatic pay increases (i.e., annual adjustments 
that normally take effect the first day of the first pay period 
beginning on or after January 1) by making pay increases performance-
sensitive, so that only Fully Successful (known as ``Fully Meets 
Expectations'' in NNSA) and higher performers will receive pay 
adjustments, and the best performers will receive the largest pay 
adjustments;
    (6) Integrate with, build upon, and advance the work of several key 
human capital management improvement initiatives and projects currently 
underway in NNSA, including--
    a. Advancing the ongoing refinement of NNSA's enterprise-wide 
performance management program, including automated refinements,
    b. Achieving greater parity, though not complete harmony, with 
NNSA's mature excepted service pay-banded and pay-for-performance 
system (e.g., will have a lower high-end pay band; no automatic pay 
increases, etc.),
    c. Building on the simplified position description (PD) format and 
automated PD library that are already in place,
    d. Continuing to develop improved performance management skills 
among first-line supervisors through increased program rigor, 
additional training, and better guidance materials, to better develop 
standards that reflect differences in performance,
    e. Establishing a system of career-enhancing career paths for the 
purpose of developing, advancing, and retaining employees,
    f. Building on the workforce analysis and planning system, already 
in place, to identify FTE needs and competency needs and skills gaps, 
to conduct a valid occupational analysis to construct meaningful pay 
bands.
    To accomplish these goals, NNSA modified and waived parts of the GS 
classification and pay systems by identifying broad career paths, 
establishing pay bands which often combined grade intervals, eliminated 
longevity-based step progression, and provided for annual pay increases 
based on performance.

3. Description of Changes to the Project Plan

    NNSA amends the demonstration project final plan to make several 
minor administrative changes, one participating organization change, 
and two employee coverage changes.

(1) Participating Organization Change

    Section II.D., ``Participating Organizations,'' of the final plan 
identifies the scope of participating NNSA headquarters components and 
field offices. One of the organizations cited in the final plan is the 
``Service Center in Albuquerque, NM.'' As this organization was 
disestablished by reorganization in June 2011, this organizational 
reference is deleted (page 72787).

(2) Employee Coverage Changes

    Section II.E., ``Participating Employees,'' of the final plan 
identifies the universe of participating NNSA competitive service 
employees.
(a) Bargaining Unit Employees
    When the demonstration project final plan was approved, there were 
16 bargaining unit employees at NNSA headquarters, the only bargaining 
unit employees among a GS workforce of about 1,950 employees. These 
employees were not covered by the demonstration project plan, and they 
were not converted to pay banding when the project was implemented.
    Subsequently on November 26, 2008, the President signed Executive 
Order 13480 (73 FR 73991) amending Executive Order 12171, as previously 
amended, exempting NNSA in its entirety from the Federal Labor-
Management Relations Program in the interest of national security. With 
the issuance of the new executive order, NNSA's remaining bargaining 
unit employees were excluded from the bargaining unit and were 
converted to pay banding.
    This change deletes the parenthetical explanation, ``The only 
bargaining unit in NNSA is at headquarters, and currently includes 16 
positions,'' in the ``Participating Organizations'' section of the 
project plan (page 72787).
(b) Schedule D Employees
    Through the issuance of a final rule (77 FR 28194) on May 11, 2012, 
OPM implemented the Government's new Pathways Programs to streamline 
hiring for student interns, recent college graduates, and Presidential 
Management Fellows. Pathways hiring is conducted under the Schedule D 
excepted appointing authority established under E.O. 13562.
    This change adds a reference to Schedule D to the ``Participating 
Employees'' section of the project plan (page 72787), which will allow 
employees appointed under Schedule D to be demonstration project 
participants. NNSA shall issue forthcoming policy through which to 
implement the Pathways Program under the demonstration project. This 
policy will be consistent with the Pathways Program Memorandum of 
Understanding between OPM and DOE

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(signed 8-31-12), and will adhere to the requirements of 5 CFR 470.313.

4. Notification Responsibilities

    As required by 5 CFR 470.315, NNSA has the following notification 
responsibilities for this project modification: Notify and make copies 
of this Federal Register notice available to all employees affected by 
the activities of the demonstration project.

Katherine Archuleta,
Director.

Approval

    Pursuant to 5 CFR 470.315, OPM approves the following modification 
to NNSA's final project plan.

Specific Textual Changes to the Project Plan

    In FR Doc. 07-6144, published on December 21, 2007 (72 FR 72776), 
make the following textual changes:
    (1) On Page 72787: ``Participating Organizations''
    Participating organizations is amended, as excerpted:
    ``Each headquarters and field organization in NNSA will 
participate. This includes HQ program and mission-support components, 
including NNSA's cadre of nuclear materials couriers, who are deployed 
at various locations in the United States, eight geographically 
dispersed Field Offices, and the Naval Reactors Laboratory Field Office 
. . .''

(2) On Page 72787: ``Participating Employees''

    Employee coverage is amended:
    ``The demonstration project will cover all non-bargaining unit 
competitive service (GS equivalent) employees in the participating 
organizations identified in the preceding paragraph. Included in the 
coverage are Schedule A, B, and D Excepted Service employees. Not 
included are Schedule C Excepted Service employees and Excepted Service 
employees authorized under the NNSA Act, National Defense Authorization 
Acts, and the DOE Organization Act. Table 1 (pages 72788-9) is amended 
to show the number of employees by occupational series and pay band who 
are participating in the demonstration project as of February 2013.''

(3) On Pages 72788-9: Updated Table 1

    Table 1 is revised to show the number of employees who are 
participating in the demonstration project as of February 2013; entries 
are by occupational series and pay band.
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[FR Doc. 2014-03284 Filed 2-13-14; 8:45 am]
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