February 2018 Federal Employment Law Training Group Newsletter
So, what did you think about the recent negotiations on Capitol Hill, the ones that led to the recent government shutdown(s)? I hope you didn’t take notes and plan to use the tactics you saw the next time you are trying to negotiate a settlement, or a Last Chance Agreement, or a collective bargaining agreement. Both during and after the bargaining, the negotiators engaged in name calling and gloating. “I hope they see the mistake they made.” “They finally came to their senses.” “What were they thinking? They got nothing.” Several members of Congress and the Senate could be seen on television posturing for their side in the bargaining, taking the position that “We were right and those idiots over there are idiots.” Folks, if you’re in the business of federal employment law, please appreciate that stuff like we saw on FoxNews and CNN is politics; it is not intended to be a lesson in effective negotiation. If you and I negotiate a resolution to a mutual problem, and later I hear you telling people how foolish I was and how smart you were to force me into a one-sided resolution favorable to your side, how do you think I’m going to react the next time we sit down and you suggest we work together on a new issue? We saw too many leaders after the negotiations saying politically, “Those guys were stupid; we won!” As we teach in our negotiations classes, the more productive approach would have been to say something like, “Both sides had strong feelings. There was a lot of productive discussion and compromise. We congratulate our counterparts and thank them for their hard work and flexibility.” Because, my friends, civil service negotiations are not politics nor are they divorce court; they are like marriage counseling in which the long term is more important than the immediate feel-good gain. Come to our seminars and learn how to negotiate like a pro, not like a politician.
Bug Bites: How Do You Handle an Employee Who Brings Bed Bugs in to the Office?
By Deborah Hopkins, February 14, 2018 A few days ago, I got an interesting hypothetical question from a long-time FELTG reader, and it was such a good one I thought I’d share it with the rest of you. It’s something I hope is always hypothetical and you never have to...
How to Write a Robust Critical Element
By William Wiley, February 14, 2018 Few supervisory responsibilities are less clear than how to write a good critical element. Goodness knows it’s not for lack of “guidance.” The performance management world is full of important-sounding words and concepts: maximizing...
EEO Contact: No Mind Reading Required
By Meghan Droste, February 14, 2018 The federal sector process is made up of many steps with many deadlines. Complainants must do several things, most of which involve filling out forms, before their cases go to hearing before an EEOC administrative judge. Even one...
More on the Dangers of Charging Intent: Threat and Willful Misconduct
By Deborah Hopkins, February 14, 2018 Last month we discussed charges that carry an element of intent. If you didn’t get a chance to read it, check it out here: https://feltg.com/the-dangers-of-charging-intent/. As a reminder, if a charge includes an element of...
Surprise: We Start with the Position Description!
By William Wiley, February 14, 2018 When we think about writing a performance plan, we don’t usually start with the employee’s position description. We read goals and objectives passed down to us from higher up, often from people with important ideas and...
Tips from the Other Side, Part 2
By Meghan Droste, February 14, 2018 Confession time—I’m a rule lover. Now, I don’t just mean that I follow the rules; I mean that I really like when there are rules, I enjoy reading the rules, and I derive some not insignificant amount of joy from following the...
But, What if I Want to Go Performance-Rating Crazy?
By William Wiley, February 14, 2018 Let’s say that you’ve drunk the Kool-Aid and think that there just must be more than this to holding employees accountable for performance. You want not three levels of ratings, but five. Maybe some of your important tasks are more...