As Time Winds Down, Postal Service Bill's Provision Wins Support

Under the agreement, presented to a federal judge yesterday for approval, the Pentagon will not implement any changes in labor-management relations or employee appeals procedures before Feb. 1. A coalition of federal unions, led by the American Federation of Government Employees, has filed a lawsuit to stop changes in those areas.

The agreement lays out a series of dates for the unions and the government to file motions with the judge, starting Nov. 23 and running through Jan. 5.

The agreement permits Defense to continue working on internal directives to launch the National Security Personnel System and, if it chooses, to continue collaborating with the unions and the Office of Personnel Management on development of NSPS.

Defense had planned to start its new labor-management rules shortly after Thanksgiving. The Pentagon plans to roll out the first phase of its pay-for-performance system in February.

"AFGE is pleased that we have worked out a method of challenging the legality of NSPS in an orderly fashion. And if that results in the delay of implementation, which it does, that is a useful byproduct of the lawsuit," said Joseph Goldberg , assistant general counsel at the union.

Bush administration officials, including Gordon England , the acting deputy defense secretary, and union officials are scheduled to testify before a Senate committee this morning on NSPS.

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