In March 1978, I submitted the Civil Service Reform Act to Congress. I
called it the centerpiece of my efforts to reform and reorganize the
government. With bipartisan support from Congress, the bill passed, and I
am pleased to say that implementation is running well ahead of the
statutory schedule. Throughout the service, we are putting into place the
means to assure that reward and retention are based on performance and not
simply on length of time on the job. In the first real test of the Reform
Act, 98 percent of the eligible top-level managers joined the Senior
Executive Service, choosing to relinquish job protections for the challenge
and potential reward of this new corps of top executives. Though the Act
does not require several of its key elements to be in operation for another
year, some Federal agencies already have established merit pay systems for
GS-13-15 managers, and most agencies are well on their way to establishing
new performance standards for all their employees. All have paid out, or
are now in the process of paying out, performance bonuses earned by
outstanding members of the Senior Executive Service. Dismissals have
increased by 10 percent, and dismissals specifically for inadequate job
performance have risen 1500 percent, since the Act was adopted. Finally, we
have established a fully independent Merit Systems Protection Board and
Special Counsel to protect the rights of whistle-blowers and other Federal
employees faced with threats to their rights.
In 1981, civil service reform faces critical challenges, all agencies must
have fully functioning performance appraisal systems for all employees, and
merit pay systems for compensating the government's 130,000 GS-13-15
managers. Performance bonuses for members of the Senior Executive Service
will surely receive scrutiny. If this attention is balanced and
constructive, it can only enhance the chances for ultimate success of our
bipartisan commitment to the revolutionary and crucial "pay for
performance" concept.