Specifically, we outlined points that could provide a starting point for developing a set of statutory safeguards in connection with any additional efforts to expand pay for performance systems. We also identified the key practices leading public sector organizations both here and abroad have used for effective performance management. We have reported that Office of Personnel Management leadershi

Public sector organizations both in the United States and abroad have implemented a selected, generally consistent set of key practices for effective performance management that collectively create a clear linkage--"line of sight"--between individual performance and organizational success. These key practices include the following. (1) Align individual performance expectations with organizational

Employers face potential tax, regulatory, and liability barriers when they establish telecommuting programs for their employees. Telecommuting refers to working from remote locations rather than an employer-provided location. Even though telecommuting has grown, some proponents are concerned that various laws and regulations discourage employers from establishing these programs. Many telecommutin

GAO noted that: (1) the contingent workforce comprises many categories of workers, ranging from highly paid management consultants who are satisfied with their work arrangements to low-paid service sector workers who receive no benefits and would rather have full-time, permanent jobs; (2) the size of the contingent workforce, however, cannot be precisely estimated because no consensus exists on w

GAO noted that: (1) in FY 1997, about 30 percent of Labor's reported obligations were for grants, subsidies, and contributions, and about 60 percent were for the payment of insurance claims and indemnities; (2) object class data can be easily misunderstood and, because object classes group obligations according to the articles procured rather than the services provided, any conclusion about end r

GAO noted that: (1) unemployment rates for workers in IT occupations are well below those for all workers; (2) at 1.3 percent in 1997, the rate was less than one-third the rate for all workers; (3) employment in IT industries has grown steadily, as has employment of workers in IT occupations, which has nearly doubled in the last decade to about 1.9 million in 1997; (4) despite employment increase

GAO noted that: (1) the federal government's workers' compensation program is authorized under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA); (2) this program, which is administered by the Department of Labor, provides employees suffering from work-related injuries and occupational diseases with various types of benefits, depending on the nature and extent of the injury and their ability to retu

GAO noted that: (1) in calendar year 1996, the cost of lump-sum leave payments to separating civilian employees was about $562 million governmentwide; (2) between 1985 and 1996, lump-sum payments averaged about $595 million per year (in constant 1996 dollars); (3) the costs ranged from a low of about $355 million in 1991 to a high of about $700 million in 1992, when downsizing resulted in large n

GAO presented summary tables of GAO personnel assigned to congressional committees for fiscal year 1997, including their salary and other costs related to their work.

GAO found that: (1) in fiscal year 1995, the Department of Education had 72 field offices and the Department of Labor had 1,074 field offices; (2) Labor and Education spent a total of $867 million dollars in support of their field office operations; (3) about 94 percent of Education's field staff and 42 percent of Labor's field staff were located in ten regional cities; (4) Labor had a high conce