Takeaways from OPM’s 2019 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey
By Deborah Hopkins, November 13, 2019
It’s that time of year again. No, not the time when the stores put out Christmas decorations and pre-black-Friday sales begin (although that is happening, too). It’s the release of OPM’s 2019 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS). Each year as I await the report, I wonder what new pieces of information we’ll learn about how the federal government is doing as an employer. And each year, I learn something I didn’t know before. In case you haven’t had a chance to read it, here are a few takeaways, in ascending percentage order, from over 615,000 federal employees who participated:
- 17% of respondents said there were no poor performers in their work unit.
- 34% believe their supervisors take steps to deal with a poor performer who cannot or will not improve. Looking at it from the other side, this means that 66% of employees still don’t think supervisors are taking action against poor performers. Not a great number, but it is still the best percentage on this question in recent memory.
- 39% believe that differences in performance among employees in their work unit are recognized in a meaningful way. Again, this means that 61% do not feel recognized.
- 56% said that poor performers remain in their work unit and continue to underperform.
- 57% believe their training needs were assessed and addressed in the past year.
- 59% think their workload is reasonable.
- 66% would recommend their organization as a good place to work.
- 67% believe they can disclose a suspected violation of any law, rule or regulation without fear of reprisal – in other words, two-thirds of employees believe it’s safe to be a whistleblower in the federal government.
- 71% of respondents agree with their most recent performance rating.
- 83% believe their supervisors are holding them accountable for performance.
- And, and astounding 96% of employees who responded said that when needed they are willing to put in the extra effort to get a job done. This proves what FELTG has always known, that most of our readers are incredible, hard-working, dedicated employees who want to make the government a better place.
There’s also an entire series of questions related to the impact of the 35-day shutdown, which is not very eye-opening but because it’s new you might find it interesting. If you want to read it yourself, check it out here. Hopkins@FELTG.com