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If anyone thinks Chuck Riechers was sitting around his house in a "no work" status, they didn't know him and don't understand how the government works. Chuck could probably get almost as much accomplished in a contractor status, less giving guidance and making decisions, as he did when employed by the USG. Chuck was a dynamic, mission-oriented professional who had a gift for successfully managing complex situations. He loved his country and his family. His tragic death is a great loss for the Dept of Defense and those who knew him all know we lost a great guy. My God have mercy on him.

Bill McCormick  | Saturday, October 20, 2007 |  08:59 PM

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I don't buy it the whole "I ain't to blame for cutting corners, OPM made me do it" argument.

If the hiring process is really so onerous, then it should be a priority to change it.

Getting hired by the Federal Government can take a long time, but from my experience, most of that is due to poor management controls. Paperwork sits until some boss invokes "crisis mode" and then it moves to the next person down the line.

From my experience in the ranks of the general service, there is no reason why hiring can't take weeks instead of months.

a fed  | Thursday, October 18, 2007 |  04:14 AM

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Steel workers and bus drivers are an apples to oranges comparison. Neither of those two professions, nor any other private sector person, has to go through the federal Office of Personnel Managament. They can takes months to get something done, leaving a legitimate hire dangling. The feds have constructed this situation to pay good people a decent wage while OPM gets with the program. Otherwise, the feds would not be able to attract the people they need or candidates would be forced to live off their savings for an undetermined time if they really wanted to serve. Not corruption, but a 19th century HR system at work in the 21st.

E.L. Allen  | Wednesday, October 17, 2007 |  11:47 AM

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Hiring personnel from contractors is big business in Washington. As much as 25 percent of many offices are contract hires. They are on the payroll of a corporation but never go there. Thus the "no work" tag but they are fully employed.
They work a regular 40 hour week in the office of the government client.
Most have more allegiance to the Government than to their firm but that could be very debateable as as a conflict of interest obviously exists.

Why do we use them? Because the Human Resources Office won't increase the number of personnel as the mission increases (we are at war you know)and because Govt pay does not allow you to hire the quality personnel you need. Some mid level managers get $20 to $30K more in the private sector than doing the same job in the government. They wind up in the same office anyway. That is just another problem with hiring them - it wastes my tax dollars.

Govt veteran  | Tuesday, October 16, 2007 |  04:57 PM

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Then what does it mean? This sounds like flat-out corruption to me. I don't think anyone pays your average steel worker or bus driver while they're waiting to be officially hired.

Bob Schilling  | Tuesday, October 16, 2007 |  12:06 PM

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It means the military industrial complex.

Wise Old Owl  | Tuesday, October 16, 2007 |  11:27 AM

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