CBS News: At least 17 members of Congress had sensitive information exposed in data breach. “The hacking of the DC Health Benefit Exchange Authority data system has triggered at least three investigations and a federal civil lawsuit against the District of Columbia government, CBS News has learned. It has also sent a significant shock through Congress and its staffers.”
Haaretz: Deal Reached With Israeli Gov’t to Protect National Library’s Independence. “Israel’s education minister and the National Library of Israel have reached an agreement on the appointment of senior library officials, ending government efforts to undermine the institution’s independence.”
Gizmodo: Pentagon Employees Are Too Horny to Follow National Security Protocols. “The list of what DoD employees are downloading in spite of bans includes dating apps, Chinese drone apps, third-party virtual private networks, cryptocurrency apps, games, and apps related to multi-level marketing schemes.”
NextGov: OPM Previews Its New Cyber Workforce Dashboard. “The Office of Personnel Management plans to launch a federal cyber workforce dashboard to provide agencies with a better tool to address workforce needs, according to a demo of the proposed dashboard held during a National Institute of Standards and Technology webinar on Tuesday.”
City of Philadelphia The City of Philadelphia’s New Workforce Diversity Dashboard Provides Ongoing Access to the City’s Workforce Progress. “The City of Philadelphia has launched a Workforce Diversity Dashboard, an interactive tool that provides monthly insight into many aspects of the City’s workforce. The dashboard is a product of extensive collaboration by leaders within the City’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), Office of Innovation & Technology (OIT), and the Office of Human Resources (OHR).”
CoinDesk: Ethics Watchdog Bars US Government Employees From Writing Crypto Policy if Invested. “U.S. officials who are personally invested in cryptocurrencies are now disqualified from working on crypto-related policy and regulation that could affect the value of their assets.”
BBC: Japanese man loses USB stick with entire city’s personal details. “For many, after-work drinks are a common way of relaxing after a busy week. But one worker in Japan could be nursing a protracted hangover after he lost a USB memory stick following a night out with colleagues. Why? It contained the personal details of nearly half a million people.”
Route Fifty: NYC Employees Eyeing the Exits as Mayor Insists on In-person Work. “Mayor Eric Adams has been adamant that workers come into their offices full time. But municipal employees looking for remote work flexibility warn of a morale crisis and service slowdowns.”
State of New York: Governor Hochul Announces Launch of New Online Wage and Employment Tools as Part of Continued Commitment to Transparency. “Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the launch of two new interactive online resources designed to improve transparency and enhance access to employment statistics and occupational wage information. The Current Employment Statistics dashboard provides monthly estimates of non-farm employment, hours, and earnings by industry for New York State, metropolitan areas, and counties outside of metropolitan areas. The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics dashboard provides estimates of employment and wages for nearly 800 job titles across New York State.”
Federal News Network: Exposed to COVID-19 on the job? New website lets you join class-action lawsuit for hazard pay. “Federal employees who were exposed to COVID-19 while working can now join a class-action lawsuit. The American Federation of Government Employees, along with the law firm Kalijarvi, Chuzi, Newman & Fitch have created a new website for those who want to join the suit.”
Gothamist: Some Unvaccinated City Employees Could Be Fired, But Thousands More Are Still In Limbo. “Three months after the city’s vaccine mandate took effect for all municipal workers, the Adams administration has yet to make a determination about thousands of city employees who sought an exemption from the shot.”
CNET: Judge blocks COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal workers. “A federal judge in Texas has blocked US President Joe Biden’s mandate requiring federal workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. The Friday decision is the latest blow to the Biden administration’s efforts to boost vaccination rates. The decision comes after the US Supreme Court last week blocked the administration’s COVID-19 vaccine-or-test mandate for businesses with 100 or more workers, which confined the mandate only to federal workers.”
State of North Carolina: Governor Cooper Announces Policy Allowing State Employees to Use Volunteer Days to Provide Support in Schools. “Governor Roy Cooper today announced plans to help combat staff shortages in K-12 school districts across the state during the current surge of COVID-19 cases. The policy will allow state employees to use volunteer days with supervisor approval to work in North Carolina public schools as substitute teachers, bus drivers and cafeteria staff.”
BBC: Covid: Workplaces told to plan for absences of up to 25%. “Ministers have been tasked with developing ‘robust contingency plans’ for workplace absences, as the government warned rising cases could see up to a quarter of staff off work. Public sector leaders have been asked to prepare for ‘worst case scenarios’ of 10%, 20% and 25% absence rates, the Cabinet Office said.”
Concord Monitor: Flush with federal COVID relief funds more states consider employee bonuses, wage increases . “Like private-sector employers, state agencies nationwide are struggling to find and keep workers amid a tight labor market and burnout because of the COVID-19 pandemic. And governors, like business owners, are proposing higher pay in a bid to recruit workers and convince them to stay, helped by federal aid and huge budget surpluses in most states. They include even some Republican governors, who tend to frown on spending increases and can be openly antagonistic to state workers and their unions.”
