Memo from KSC Center Director Regarding “Workforce Re-Shaping and Potential Buyout”
CENTER DIRECTOR’S COMMUNCIATION
CD COMM #83
November 14, 2001
AA
TO: All KSC Civil Service Employees
SUBJECT: Workforce Re-Shaping and Potential Buyout
As many of you are aware, NASA is facing a number of significant fiscal challenges in the FY 2002 budget year and beyond. The International Space Station (ISS) Program is particularly challenged to reduce costs to meet the President’s Budget Blue Print. We have been brainstorming and studying some potential approaches over the summer as part of the agency Strategic Resources Review (SRR) (which I have addressed in previous CD Communications). We also have some challenges within our local civil service workforce. Some organizations have critical skill gaps that impede their ability to accomplish their assigned tasks. KSC has reached the maximum number of authorized headcount and unless we do something different, we cannot effectively address these critical skill issues. Because of the budget issues, we will have to find an answer which is relatively budget neutral and keeps our headcount at or below the limits imposed by the Office of Management and Budget.
We are considering the potential for a focused buyout for certain positions at KSC as one possible solution to the critical skill problem. The buyout, if approved, will be very different from those used in 1999 and prior years to reduce our total headcount. To correct skill mix issues rather than merely reduce numbers, we intend to use the vacancies to fill new positions. Subsequently, great care has to be taken to avoid both the fact or appearance of replacing individuals who take a buyout with new hires performing essentially the same tasks.
We will restrict our plans to offer a buyout to employees who are both eligible for optional retirement and who are not in fields that have been identified as understaffed or critical. Therefore, those in such fields as Quality Assurance, Information Technology, Security, Safety and Procurement will not be offered a buyout opportunity, even if they are eligible for optional retirement. In addition, buyout opportunities will not be authorized for most SES and supervisory positions. Some other positions, having skills critical to the Center, will also be denied a buyout offer even though others in the general discipline may take advantage of it.
At this point, we are seeking approval of our proposal from NASA Headquarters, and then the Agency must get approval from the Office of Management and Budget before we can make buyout offers. It is possible that our request will be denied, or changed in ways that are not acceptable. If approval of a buyout does not allow us to use vacancies to staff shortage areas without delay, we will not offer it.
If our proposal is accepted, we would try to make it effective as fast as reasonably possible. Subsequently, we must use the vacancies to staff critical positions as quickly as possible. Therefore our window of opportunity for a buyout will be very short. We hope for approval by early December, and would offer a buyout through January 3, 2002.
Once again, as a caution, we are preparing a proposal that must be integrated into a total NASA approach and must be compatible with the objectives of the Office of Management and Budget. For a number of reasons, we may not get approval for the actions we propose, or may find that they have changed to ways that do not meet our objectives. Should this happen, we will not proceed with a buyout. We feel that our proposal is sound and will be well received, but we cannot guarantee approval. In all cases, I will do my best to keep you informed as I get relevant information.
/Original Signed By/
Roy D. Bridges, Jr.
Distribution:
STDL-I
