Employee dissatisfaction at the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board has hit a four-year low, according to the results of the 2014 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, which the DNFSB posted on its website yesterday. The survey found a drop in positive responses from Board employees in four key areas—leadership and knowledge (48 percent compared to 54 percent in 2013); results-oriented performance (46 percent compared to 48 percent in 2013); talent management (50 percent compared to 53 percent in 2013); and job satisfaction (50 percent compared to 54 percent in 2013). According to a white paper outlining the results of this year’s study, performed by the Office of Personnel Management, DNFSB employees have reported a steady drop in positive response in the four areas since 2011.
While describing this year’s survey results as “disappointing,” the Board sought to stress what it described as “signs of progress” seen in response to actions taken over the past year to address employee morale concerns. First, despite the overall dissatisfaction expressed in the survey, Board employees still like the work they do and feel that it is important (positive responses to these items were 70 percent or higher),” the Board’s white paper says. “In addition, employee satisfaction with their immediate supervisors is trending upward. More significantly, the Board noted marked improvement in key questions related to performance management,” the white paper says, adding, “Over the last 3 years, new performance systems were implemented to address persistent employee concerns about accountability for work, dealing with poor performers, and ensuring differences in performance were recognized in a meaningful way. The 2014 survey results show that the Board’s efforts to address performance management issues are finally beginning to bear fruit.”
DNFSB Chairman Peter Winokur told WC Monitor yesterday that, to learn more about employees’ concerns, the Board has brought on the Logistics Management Institute to conduct focus groups and the Board’s new Inspector General will be conducting a “fairly extensive” safety culture and climate assessment of the DNFSB. “So we’re putting a lot into trying to understand why, despite the fact that I formed an employee committee, and despite the fact that we felt we were making progress in some areas, we’re still seeing these concerns,” Winokur said, adding that he expects to have the results from the Logistics Management Institute’s efforts by the end of this year, with the safety culture assessment expected to be a longer-term project.
Winokur also emphasized the DNFSB is doing “a great job executing its mission” despite employee morale issues. “I think generally across the complex, when you look at the communications the Board has with the Department of Energy, this staff is doing a great job. So they’re professional. Whether morale is high or low, they’re getting the job done and I’m very confident of that and that’s the most important thing to me,” he said. “This staff is getting the job done. I hope anybody can objectively look at that and see that we are doing our work and doing it pretty dang effectively throughout the complex. These issues are issues we can address. … There’ve always been management challenges, and this is the latest round of management challenges we need to deal with.”
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