Readers Speak Out on Hiring, Teleworking and Benefit Programs

Comments by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) on benefits drew a reaction. (By Katherine Frey -- The Washington Post)
Buy Photo

Discussion Policy

Comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. Finally, we will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site. Please review the full rules governing commentaries and discussions. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.

By Joe Davidson

Friday, April 10, 2009

The Federal Diary gets a lot of interesting mail, some of it fit to print in our occasional "speak out" columns. Here are some edited letters:

* * *

Recent columns on the federal hiring process generated lots of interest. Most readers who responded think it needs fixing, but some more than others.

Boy, is the hiring process ever broken!! A mess! It is frustrating, difficult, cumbersome, tedious, etc. The entire world hires on a résumé and interview. There are no KSAs [knowledge, skills and abilities essays] or narratives. I know of people in the private sector who have started the [federal] hiring process. They run into the tedious and unnecessary and they quit applying for fed jobs. What I hear is, "Why am I jumping through all these hoops for a job that will pay half of what I can get in the private sector?"

Until this is fixed, there will be a huge loss of potential talent for the federal sector.

-- Campbell Peterson,

Washington

* * *

CONTINUED 1 >