Retention Allowances: Usage and Compliance Vary Among Federal Agencies.
Abstract
This report reviews federal agencies' use of retention allowances as salary supplements to retain essential employees. The General Accounting Office (GAO) was asked to report on (1) the total and average values of the allowances, as well as the highest values of individual allowances, at selected federal agencies for the period 1991 through 1994; (2) the extent to which Senior Executive Service (SES) employees are receiving retention allowances; (3) any compliance issues identified during limited review of agencies' retention allowance awards; (4) whether agencies are preparing retention allowance plans in accordance with Office of Personnel Management (OPM) regulations; and (5) the extent to which OPM is performing oversight of the use of retention allowances. The retention allowance authority was established by section 208 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990 (FEPCA).' The act required OPM to issue government wide regulations on retention allowances, which it did on March 28,1991. The act and OPM'5 implementing regulations require agencies to document that (1) each allowance paid is based on a determination that unusually high or unique qualifications of the employee or a special need of the agency for the employee's services makes it essential to retain the employee and (2) in the absence of such an allowance, the employee would be likely to leave federal employment. The agency must also document the extent to which the employee's departure would affect the agency's ability to carry out an activity or perform a function deemed essential to the agency's mission.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA306877
Entities
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office