May 6 marks the beginning of Public Service Recognition Week. For this occasion, Federal Times invites you to share your thoughts on the state of federal public service.
These are trying and uncertain days for federal employees. Their compensation and contribution to the nation are under scrutiny like never before. Public support for federal employees is low. The nation’s leaders are engaged in an important debate on how to readjust the size and role of government. Meanwhile, federal employees are retiring in large numbers.
We invite you to write a short, candid essay — between 300 and 500 words — on the state of federal public service and on what, if anything, should be done to improve it. The essay will be considered for publication in our May 7 issue and on our website.
Please submit your essay no later than Friday, April 20, to Markie Harwood at mharwood@federaltimes.com.
3 Comments
Public service is supposed to be a priviledge, and with that comes the obligation to always be diligent in regards to spending tax dollars. Unfortunately, we see far too many incidents where dollars are needlessly spent because agencies are under pressure to spend every dime they receive———-or else!
Congress can go a long ways towards remedying the poor perception of public employees by revising budget laws that essentially penalize agencies that put fiduciary management at the top of importance in day to day operations.
Public service is just that…giving a service to the public; working for the greater good. It is unfortunate that today’s perception has become sullied with scandals, politics and personal feelings. Public service workers provide for the good of country in such manner as parks, libraries, defense bases, procurement, social programs, social security, justice, and many more too numerous to mention. Without these programs our country would not be the strong proud nation that it is.
While we, as public service workers, have taken many hits in the public perception lately we cannot let that deter us from being proud of what we accomplish day-to-day. We work for the greatest country in the world and provide necessary products and services; we work hard and proud. When the national anthem plays it means that much more to us because we are public service workers and work for the public and our country. Our jobs aren’t accomplished because we are given awards all the time, because we are paid alot or because we are patted on the back. We do our jobs because we are proud to do our part, alongside America’s military, to keep this country the best in the world.
I am proud to say I am a public servant and we should all hold our heads high and always profess our pride in our work and the work of others in our field. This will go a long way in showing everyone the great in public service, because I think there is far more, and not just the bad.
The Congress needs to lead the way remedying the poor perception of Federal employees. The pork in their budgets, the amount they get for offices, homes, their retirement benefits, etc. but then the talk about Federal employees like they are the cause of all the problems. No matter what company you work from there is always someone mishandling employees or money. How often do we see Congressman, Senators, their staff, etc. involved in a scandel?
So maybe we need to clean this up from the top down.