According to the 2006 Federal Human Capital Survey by the Office of Personnel Management, 68 percent of federal employees (compared to 71 percent of those in the private sector) are satisfied with their jobs. The federal and private sector employees have an equal feeling of personal accomplishment in their work. However, 83 percent of federal employees like their work, as opposed to only 76 percent of those in the private sector. Ninety percent of the federal government employees agreed that the work they do is important. The survey—intended to help ensure the “Federal Government has an effective civilian workforce”—has been issued three times since President Bush’s call to improve the strategic management of human capital in accomplishing agencies’ missions. More than 220,000 federal employees expressed their views in 2006.
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…
