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Show z T,- -e Apr i 5 NEWS 199' by Joyce Catanzaro Human Resources Directorate The United States Department of Defense is be- ing reduced by approximately 25 percent over a five year period, from fiscal 1991 through fiscal 1995. We will see incremental reductions each year, however, that does not mean Hill AFB will experience a reduction in force each of those years. Any speculation about future RIFs is just that, speculation. The current RIF at Hill, which will take effect April 19, is caused by a loss of workload and a shortage of Depot Maintenance Industrial Funds. RIF procedures are specified in Title 5, United States Code of Federal Regulations. These RIF procedures are public law, and cannot be altered by the Air Force or Hill officials. This law requires RIF be based on: (1) tenure; (2) veteran preference; 3) service computation date; (4) performance ratings and (5) qualifications, as specified for each person according to their civilian personnel records. This law does not have any provisions for considering a person's sex. race, national origin, marital status, handicap, or personal hardship when determining someone's RIF retention rights. The information contained in civilian personnel records is the responsibility of each individual, and is checked as part of each person's RIF counseling. If an employee finds errors, such as a veteran preference or service computation date, in his or her records, civilian personnel will update the records when the person provides documentation necessary to substantiate the change. The employee should do this as quickly as possible, prior to being downgraded or separated. There is a special hotline set up for individuals to call if they have general questions regarding the RIF. Call and a staffing specialist will help you, or if none is available at that time, you will be able to leave your question on voice mail, and a staffing specialist will get back to you with the answer. Be sure you state your name and phone number clearly, so that a staffing specialist can get the answer to you. If employees need specific RIF counseling, please call Ext. 75982, 75983 or 76806 and schedule an appointment. Bargaining unit employees may also work issues through union representatives. To date. 176 of the 828 people who have been given separation notices have been placed in other jobs. Here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions concerning the RIF: 777-593- 4, Q What is a tenure group? A A tenure group is a category who all have the same type of appointment in the federal service. Group I includes employees with career tenure (three years of continuous credible federal service) who are on unrestricted, permanent appointments. Group II includes employees with status (less than three years continuous service), who are on permanent appointments. Group III includes employees on temporary, non- al status appointments. Q What is a veteran preference subgroup? A A veteran preference subgroup is a category of employees who all have the same veteran preference for purposes of RIF. Subgroup AD includes employees entitled to veteran preference who have a d compensable disability of 30 percent or more. Subgroup A includes all other em- ployees entitled to veteran preference. Subgroup B includes all employees not entitled to veteran preference for RIF purposes. Q Who gets veteran preference for RIF? A Most persons who are entitled to veteran preference for hiring purposes also have veteran preference for purposes of RIF. However, employees who have retired from the military must meet one of the conditions listed below in order to be entitled to RIF veteran preference. Retirees below rank of major must meet one of the following conditions: Retirement based on disability that either resulted from injury or disease received in the line of duty as a direct result of armed conflict, or was caused by an instrumentality of war in the line of duty during a period of war. Retirement pay based on less than 20 years of service-connecte- service; service time creditable for RIF? A Retired military employees can get some of their service credited to length of service for RIF purposes. The length of time in active service in the armed forces during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized is creditable for length of service. Only a retired military employee who gets veteran preference for purposes of RIF, as defined in the previous question, will have his or her total length of time in active service credited. All other retired military employees get credit for combat time only. Q What is a RIF service computation date? A A RIF semce computation date shows the total creditable federal service an employee has, plus additional years credited for performance, based on the employee's last three performance appraisals of record? Q What is record? A. a performance appraisal of A performance appraisal of record is usual- ly an employee's annual rating. However, any offi- cial ratings given at other times during the year, y emsuch as the appraisal for newly-hireployees, or appraisals rendered when someone changed from WG to GS, also count as appraisals of record. If an employee does not have three performance appraisals of record, a presumptive rating of fully successful is given for purposes of RIF. 90-da- d Q How is credit for performance appraisals figured? A The last three performance appraisals of record are assigned a value for RIF purposes as follows: Fully successful is worth 12 additional years of service. Excellent is worth 16 additional years of service. Superior is worth 20 additional years of service. No additional years of service are given for appraisals of less than fully successful. If an employee has fewer than three appraisals of record, a presumptive rate of fully successful is given for any missing rating. of employees career-condition- Some spouses, widows, widowers and mothers of disabled veterans may get preference known as derivative preference. Derivative veteran preference is awarded to a nonveteran on the basis of a spouse's or child's service. This can occur if the veteran either is no longer living or is totally disabled for Federal semce. Derivative preference eligibles are placed into Subgroup A for RIF purposes. Q Is any of a retired military employee's Continuous federal employment in a position covered by RIF regulations since Nov. 30, 196 1. These three appraisals are then averaged mathematically, and this average number of years is added to the employee's length of service to make the RIF service computation date. Any fractions are rounded up to the next whole number. Q What is a competitive level? A A competitive level (or comp level) is a group- ing of positions that have the same grade and classification series and essentially the same duties, qualification requirements, pay schedules and working conditions. The jobs in a competitive level should be so similar that an employee on one position can be assigned to another position with very little loss in productivity. Q What A. is a retention register? A retention register is a list of competing em- ployees within a competitive level who are grouped in order by tenure, veteran preference and RIF service computation date. Q. What is an assignment right? A An assignment right is the right an employee has to be assigned to a position in a different com- petitive level that is held by another employee with lower "standing on a retention register. The two types of assignment rights are bump and retreat. Q What is a bump right? A. A bump right is an assignment right to a position that is held by an employee who is in a lower RIF subgroup, and who has a later RIF service computation date. An employee only needs to be basically qualified for the other position. An employee may bump only at the same grade or no more than three grade levels below that of hisher current position. An employee may not bump another person within their own subgroup, even if the other person has a later RIF service computation date. In bumping, employees can displace (bump) other employees in lower RIF subgroups. The employee must be bas ically eligible for the position. What is a retreat right? A retreat right is an assignment right to a series and grade that an employee previously held in the federal civilian service on a permanent basis. An employee may only retreat to a positicn held by another employee w ho is in the same RIF subgroup and w ho has a later RIF service computation date. An employee may retreat only at the same grade or no more than three grade levels below that of hisher disabled veteran in current position. (A or RIF Subgroup may retreat as low as five grade levels.) Q. What is a grade level for purposes of RIF? A The grade level used in RIF assignment rights depends on the normal progression of promotions for the classification series of the employee's current position. For example, some series progress Other series may progress In the GS pay schedule, series either have one grade interval or two grade interval progressions. This means that some series progress while others progress Q What is a representative rate of pay? A Representative rate of pay is the hourly rate used to compare pay in different pay schedules. In RIF, representative rates are used to ensure that an employee gets the best offer to which entitled without exceeding limits set by RIF regulations. Representative rate of pay is Step 4 for the GS pay schedule, and Step 2 for WG, WL and WS. How is a best offer determined in RIF? A Employees released from their competitive levels during a RIF are entitled to the best offer available within the constraints of RIF regulation. The best offer is the one that pays the most within an employee's bump and retreat rights. When an employee has assignment rights to positions in different pay schedules, representative rates of pay are compared to determine the best offer for purposes of RIF. An offer through RIF may not exceed the employee's current salary. Q How are vacancies filled in RIF? A When a vacancy is used as an offer of RIF assignment, the employee with the highest standing on the retention register is the first to be offered a position. There is no restriction on how many grade levels an employee can go down to be placed on a vacancy, and even basic qualifications are sometimes waived in order to use a vacancy in RIF. When more than one vacancy exists within an employee's assignment rights, the employee is offered the one with the highest representative rate of pay. If an employee had originally effected other employees in the RIF and is later placed in a vacancy, the entire chain of persons he or she originally affected is backed out of the RIF process and reworked. This means that even though the employees scheduled to be separated are not always the ones actually placed on vacant positions, for each vacancy filled, one less person would eventually go out the gate. Q. Am I considered for jobs at higher grades during a RIF? Q. A. 30-perce- nt D WG-5-8-10-1- GS-5-6-7-- II-A- D 2. GS-5-7-9-1- 8, A No. The law does 1. not allow an employee to be offered a position with a higher representative rate of pay than his or her permanent position on the effective date of the RIF. This means that you cannot be promoted through RIF, even if you once held a higher grade on a permanent basis, or you are actually making more money than the representative rate of pay for your grade. Q Some employees are getting new RIF let- ters with different offers than before. Can't the personnel office get it right the first time? A. RIF is very complex and involves many steps. It is never over when the first notices are issued. First, management identifies the positions (not the people) which must be canceled. Personnel then begins Round 1 of the RIF process. During this stage, employees compete to remain in their own competitive levels. Those with more retention rights displace those with less rights on the retention register. Finally, the employees who must be released from their competitive levels are identified. In Round 2 of RIF, employees compete for vacancies or an assignment to a position in another competitive level. This is done by bumping and retreating to positions held by employees with less retention rights. B Continued on following page . |