Some civilians to convert to NSPS in January

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Eugene Bird
  • 97th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
ALTUS AFB, Okla. --  In a letter to all civil service employees involved, Col. Michael Mendonca, 97th Air Mobility Wing vice commander, explained the Air Force's plan to convert over all non-bargaining unit employees at Altus to the National Security Personnel System on Jan. 21, 2007.
NSPS consists of new policies implementing reform of civilian service personnel rules and pay. 

"NSPS represents a unique opportunity to attract, retain, reward and grow a civilian workforce to meet the demands and missions of the Department of Defense in the twenty-first century," said Colonel Mendonca. 

"Over the coming months, employees and supervisors - including military supervisors - will receive training on the elements of NSPS," he said. Employees will be notified of the dates and times of the classes once they are firmly established. 

Until the class dates are announced, he said he strongly encourages both employee and managers to learn about NSPS through online classes, such as "NSPS 101" at http://www.cpms.osd.mil/nsps/.

No loss, increases for many 

According to the Office of Personnel Management, no employee converting to NSPS will lose pay, but pay may increase for employees who are eligible for a one-time, prorated Within-Grade-Increase buy-in. 

The WGI buy-in is added to employees' base salary and along with the local market supplement is considered the "NSPS adjusted base salary", explains the Web site.
Who is eligible? GS- and GM-series employees below step 10 on their pay scale can estimate their WGI buy-in using a calculator on the NSPS web site. 

In NSPS, salaries for particular positions can fall into wide ranges, called 'pay bands'. The conversions to the new pay bands will be automated, for most positions.
 
If an employee's base salary exceeds that of the position's pay band, the employee will be granted grade retention for two years after the conversion to NSPS, typically. 

"We are committed to ensuring our employees and managers have an appropriate understanding of the system and their roles," said Col. Mendonca.
 
For more information about NSPS, call Richard Bram, 481-6804.