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Make every federal job a good job, where all employees are engaged, supported, heard, and empowered, with opportunities to learn, grow, join a union and have an effective voice in their workplaces through their union, and thrive throughout their careers.
Designated a Cross-Agency Priority (CAP) Goal
Goal 2.1
Agencies will engage and empower all employees to create a more inclusive and equitable work environment.
The goal is focused on supporting agencies in identifying federal employee groups who are under-engaged based on the most recent Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) results and developing targeted engagement strategies. Agencies are also aligning these efforts with implementation of Executive Orders 14003 on Protecting the Federal Workforce and 14025 on Worker Organizing and Empowerment.
Goal 2.2
Agencies will develop equitable, transparent, and transferrable career development pathways that promote career growth and agency mission delivery.
Agencies are exploring opportunities to address challenges with career development and cultivate a senior leadership corps, including the Senior Executive Service (SES), that has the skills necessary for current and future needs and reflects the diversity of our country. OPM, with agency support and engagement, will pilot tools to make talent development options within the Federal Government more transparent and accessible and to support existing federal employees in identifying the skills necessary to grow in their careers. This aims to support attracting, retaining, and growing the skills needed to support agency mission delivery. Lessons learned from implementation of Executive Order 13714 on Strengthening the Senior Executive Service are informing this effort.
Goal 2.3
Agencies will promote awareness of employee well-being and support initiatives that extend beyond the workplace.
Like workers nationwide, federal employees across agencies have historically – and more acutely during the COVID-19 pandemic – dealt with a spectrum of challenges related to well-being. Some agencies have led the way in developing evidence-based support services and tools for employees and creating an inclusive, supportive culture. These efforts serve to both support federal employees and help ensure agency mission delivery. Agencies are identifying promising and scalable efforts across government and exploring how to foster cultures within agencies that support mental health and well-being, as well as potential benchmarks or measures to monitor progress.
Goal 2.4
Agencies will use the full suite of available tools, including pay and benefits, to encourage public service and retain dedicated employees.
Agencies are exploring opportunities to attract and retain mission-critical roles through pay and benefits while fostering greater pay equity.
Goals
Goal 2.1
Agencies will engage and empower all employees to create a more inclusive and equitable work environment.
Goal 2.2
Agencies will develop equitable, transparent, and transferrable career development pathways that promote career growth and agency mission delivery.
Goal 2.3
Agencies will promote awareness of employee well-being and support initiatives that extend beyond the workplace.
Goal 2.4
Agencies will use the full suite of available tools, including pay and benefits, to encourage public service and retain dedicated employees.
Success Metrics
Goal 2.1: Agencies will engage and empower all employees to create a more inclusive and equitable work environment. Success metrics for Goal 2.1 include:
Increase the percentage of Senior Executive Service (SES)/Leadership employees with DEIA outcomes in their individual performance goals.
Increase the percentage of agencies that implement federal sector worker empowerment strategies, which remove barriers and obstacles to worker organizing in the federal workplace and advance positive and productive labor-management relations.
Goal 2.2: Agencies will develop equitable, transparent, and transferrable career development pathways that promote career growth and agency mission delivery. Success metrics for Goal 2.2 include:
Increase opportunities for skill development and flexible pathways as measured by an increase in the percentage of employees who agree to the OPM FEVS question: “I am given a real opportunity to improve my skills in my organization.”
All agencies will conduct barrier analyses on both the senior leadership pipeline and employee retention rate with respect to institutional/structural, attitudinal, and physical barriers, and act on findings of those analyses, to the extent they have not done so already, as provided in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) Management Directive 715.
Goal 2.3: Agencies will promote awareness of employee well-being and support initiatives that extend beyond the workplace. Success metrics for Goal 2.3 include:
Increase the percentage of employees who are aware of available mental well-being support and services.
Goal 2.4: Agencies will use the full suite of available tools, including pay and benefits, to encourage public service and retain dedicated employees. Success metrics for Goal 2.4 include:
Increase the utilization of administrative retention incentives and pay flexibilities for top agency mission-critical occupations.
Create greater pay equity by reducing inquiries into past salary history when setting pay.
Join the action
Looking for an internship?
Explore federal internships and get ready to #GrowWithGov. Your career journey starts HERE.
Members of the workforce: join one of the three cross-agency communities of practices to identify promising practices and potential pilots:
Mental Health & Well-Being Community of Practice; the Chief Human Capital Officers (CHCO) Council Recruitment & Outreach Community of Practice; and CHCO Council Employee Engagement Community of Practice. If interested, please reach out to CHCOCouncilCoPs@opm.gov.
Be a part of the Tech and AI Surge!
Interested in bringing your tech and AI savvy to the government? Agencies across government are hiring for a variety of tech talent roles. For example, the Department of Homeland Security recently launched a new AI Corps, and OPM issued implementation guidance for the Federal Rotational Cyber Workforce Program. This program allows for 6-month to 1-year interagency details for cyber employees, enabling them to enhance their knowledge and skills. This not only supports their professional growth but also allows them to bring new expertise back to their home agencies. Check out ai.gov for the latest opportunities to join us!
Training for Federal Employees on Skills-Based Hiring!
Are you a federal employee and interested in learning how to design assessments for skills-based hiring? Take this two-part self-paced online training course provided by OPM’s Workforce Policy and Innovation Virtual Training Center. Register HERE.
Federal AI Training!
Federal employees:
- Agencies are developing AI training programs for the federal workforce. In the meantime, you can access the 2023 training modules hosted by the AI Community of Practice here.
- Find out how a mindfulness lens can help navigate the opportunities and challenges posed by Artificial Intelligence by attending this OPM webinar on August 14: Mindful Approaches to AI: Navigating AI’s Uncertainty & Anxiety with mindfulness expert Sharon Salzberg.
Leaders
Roland Edwards
TitleChief Human Capital Officer
AgencyDepartment of Homeland Security
Kristin McNally
TitleBranch Chief of Employee Engagement, Division of Worklife and Engagement in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management
AgencyDepartment of Labor
Zev N. Goldrich
TitleActing Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Civilian Personnel Policy
AgencyDepartment of Defense