More than 200 technology employees at the Internal Revenue Service will lose their jobs as the agency realigns work in 10 locations, agency officials said yesterday.
It was the second time this week that IRS employees beat back bids from private-sector vendors but paid a price -- in jobs -- to keep the work in-house.
Out of a technology services staff of more than 275, 60 employees will remain to provide hardware and software services, such as management information reports, that support the processing of tax returns, officials said.
The IRS will conduct a "reduction in force," the government's jargon for the process that leads to layoffs, to determine which employees will be let go, said Terry Lutes, associate chief information officer for IRS Information Technology Services.
"We will do everything we can to try and place every employee we can," Lutes said. Displaced workers also will get a chance to take early retirement and buyout packages.
But Lutes added, "Realistically, there will be a RIF and people going off the rolls."
Among those at risk of losing their jobs are computer operators, computer specialists, tape librarians, supervisors and secretaries, Lutes said.
The IRS previously consolidated mainframe computer operations in Memphis and Martinsburg, W.Va., and printing operations in Detroit and Ogden, Utah. Those operations had been performed on its 10 campuses that process taxpayer returns. For those consolidations, IRS offered transfers to employees and did not resort to layoffs.
The agency decided to put the remaining work at the 10 campuses, mostly local services, up for a job competition with the private sector to determine whether contractors could do it as well for less money. The IRS employee team that won the competition offered creative ideas for improving efficiency, such as putting 87 percent of reports on the Web for electronic access instead of producing paper copies, Lutes said.
Under the new staffing plan, effective June 1, five employees will be assigned to each campus, and the remainder will be split between program management and quality control offices, Lutes said.
IRS officials declined to identify the losing bidders, saying that some companies were still being notified of the decision. Under the competition's rules, bidders have up to 10 days to file appeals.
Colleen M. Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union, said the IRS had made "an unnecessary and unfortunate choice" in an effort to comply with the Bush administration's outsourcing goals.
On Wednesday, the IRS announced that it was closing two warehouses and cutting staff at a third warehouse. More than 270 employees at the warehouses will face layoffs, the IRS said.
Retirements
James L. Pavitt, deputy director for operations at the CIA, retired Aug. 3 after a 31-year career at the agency. He had served as head of the clandestine service for nearly five years, the longest tenure in the job in the last 30 years. In a note to the staff, Pavitt praised his colleagues "for your extraordinary commitment, courage, skill and your passion for doing the business of espionage," an agency spokesman said
Mark Pitzer, senior counsel at the IRS, retired July 31 after 31 years of federal service.
Talk Shows
Roslyn Brown, director of the IRS's discrimination complaint review unit, will be the guest on "FEDtalk" at 11 a.m. today on federalnewsradio.com.
James C. Reardon, chief information officer for the military health system at the Defense Department, will be the guest on "The Business of Government Hour" at 9 a.m. tomorrow on WJFK radio (106.7 FM).
"Survival Guide for Federal Workers?" will be the topic of discussion on the Imagene B. Stewart call-in program at 8 a.m. Sunday on WOL radio (1450 AM).
Philip J. Bond, undersecretary of commerce for technology, will be the guest on "The Kojo Nnamdi Show" at noon Tuesday on WAMU radio (88.5 FM).
E-mail: barrs@washpost.com
