For Immediate Release

November 7, 2003

REP. DICKS SEEKS TO EXEMPT SHIPYARDS
FROM NEW DOD PERSONNEL RULES

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Though a compromise version of new personnel rules affecting defense department civilian workers has been approved by a House-Senate conference committee this week, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks said the provisions still diminish important worker protections and said he is optimistic that public shipyard workers can be exempted from coverage under the rules.

            “I worked hard, along with Congressman Jay Inslee and other colleagues, to remove the unnecessary limitations of workers’ rights that were inserted into the House version of the Defense Authorization bill,” Rep. Dicks said.  The lawmakers organized an active effort to pressure members of the House-Senate conference to set aside the House-passed language, an effort that resulted, Dicks said, in some improvements in the provisions.  He cited three major positive changes:

• Giving the director of the Office of Personnel Management joint authority with the Secretary of Defense to design the new personnel system.  The original legislation only required that the Director of OPM be consulted by the Department of Defense;
• Providing for independent third party review of disputes arising in the labor relations system.  The original legislation eliminated the ability of the Merit Systems Protection Board to review and overturn DOD decisions; and,
• Maintaining veterans’ preferences, stipulating that civilian pay should not be lowered under the new “pay for performance” system, and requiring parity of pay increases for both military and civilian personnel.
  

            But Rep. Dicks said he believes further changes to the new “Department of Defense National Security Personnel System” are required.  Though there was no opportunity to amend the House-Senate conference report when the House considered it Friday, passing it by a vote of 362-to-40, Dicks said he was pursuing another avenue of relief.  In a move that could stave off the impact of the new rules on Puget Sound Naval Shipyard workers, he said it may be possible to include PSNS under an exemption that was adopted in the defense bill for defense warfare centers, including Keyport. 

            Rep. Dicks said he has drafted legislation – to be introduced next week – that would exclude Naval Shipyards from the new personnel system until 2008, in order to allow time for additional worker rights protections to be adopted.  

            “With all of the changes that have affected workers at PSNS and at other yards, including the shift to mission funding status, I think we have a valid case for adding the yards to the already-approved exemption that was created for the DOD warfare centers,” Rep. Dicks said.

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