Social Security ranks 9th on the list of best large federal agencies to work for in 2016, which is the middle of the pack. NASA ranks first. DHS ranks last. Social Security suffered the largest decline in rating between 2015 and 2016 of any large agency. In fact, it looks like Social Security has been in a fairly steady decline since 2010. While Senior Executive Service (SES) employees at Social Security are happier than employees generally, they are actually quite a bit less happy than SES employees at agencies generally. The agency's leadership scores generally compare poorly with other agencies
By the way, all the other large agencies have cabinet rank but not Social Security.
That is because the leadership at SSA has been under a decline this decade. The leaders at SSA care more about their ego than having competent people advising them. For example, in order to get into SSA's SSA SES program you have to submit a letter of recommendation from a current SES person if want to be accepted as a current employee. The agency no longer pays for relocation, so they don't get an infusion of field/operation staff in central office, which further causes bad operational policies.
ReplyDeleteOverall the agencies policies make it difficult to get fresh voices into headquarters and continues the agency decline.
Management has declined at the FO level. When CDRs and OPs have higher priority over paying RSI and DIB claims the place has gone downhill.
ReplyDeleteTo piggy back 3:54....Staffing levels issues in general are incrementally suffocating the FO's. Staffs are overworked because EVERYONE is doing public service (even management) and there is no time to work items on thier desks. This causes stress, which eventually causes leave issues, which causes more demand on the remaining staff, which causes more stress. So the only people who even responded to the email with the survey where people who were so mad they felt an obligation to voice their anger.
ReplyDeleteThe downward trajectory is not unexpected but the standing number is? We, in this case, they, should be at near the bottom because of the lackluster leadership from each and every level. Local Area's field offices and their Regional counterparts are filled with incompetent relatives and friends of the SES that we can't even use the word "nepotism" anymore! true public service and stewardship of our country's $$ is in a decline directly due to those corrupted and incompetent idealists. It is now such a tragedy of great proportion and out of control that only God can help us at SSA.
ReplyDeleteHow low could we good now a matter of when not how. I have to give it to the people at the top for ceasing their leadership role. No wonder we even have people from the field offices complaining about internal racial strifes. Would any Asian-American or LGTB employee raised their voices years ago about the lack of unequal treatment at SSA??? It's time to get real and be concerned!!!
ReplyDeleteFrom what I have witnessed, there are SSA employees with stress related psychological issues directly due to increased workloads. Many are discretely turning to EAP. They are now inundated with SSA employees' requests. Is this the sign of the time?!
ReplyDeleteIt will be interesting to see what happens in next years survey.
ReplyDeleteThe beatings will continue until morale improves.
ReplyDeleteYes, but what Management does NOT understand is the "Beatings" are the very reason morale is so low. I am not sure if this is because they simply do not get it, or do not care beyond what benefits their own self-interests.
DeleteI have seen the decline in the 9 years that I have been at the agency. We all start out bright eyed and bushy tailed and after seeing 1st hand the wasted money the cronyism and nepotism going on and repeatedly getting slapped down and overlooked we begin to do the base minimum required to get the job done because by this time our skill set is ONLY needed as SSA and we couldn't find a job anywhere else. I don't expect it to get any better. We just do our jobs and look forward to retirement......SAD!!!
ReplyDeleteThe steep decline will likely steeper. There are no true basic values on paying more emphasis on Human Resources or simply the employees' well-being. The rank and file in the field are so extended and stretched so thin that it is now irreversible and for years to come. This is why the term "drain the swamp" is reluctantly more of an acceptable and soon-will-be mainstream at SSA.
ReplyDeleteOverworked and probably underpaid. Same old story.
ReplyDeleteOverworked due to lack of human caring internall and externally. It is the same old story that can be fixed for those who are trying to fix part of a society that wholly dependent on a broken system.
ReplyDelete