Many of our association's members report that they are working with military or former military leaders not only in Department of Defense settings, but across the government. This can create some interesting challenges. There are few more structured environments than the military. The military chain of command is clear and specific and the expectation within the military is that the chain will be followed. Orders from a superior are to be followed and negotiation is not encouraged. That's not to say that the military expect blind obedience but the preferences of subordinates are often not a factor in making a decision. And the biggest two differences between military and civilian service—there are no unions in the military and GS/FWS employees are paid for the time they work, not on a 24 hour clock like the military.
The first thing any leader new to an organization that employs civil service employees should do is to ask if there is a bargaining unit (or units) in place. The next thing the leader should do is to actually read the negotiated agreement (often referred to as the union contract) between the organization and the union. These agreements are blueprints for communicating with the employees in that bargaining unit and being familiar with the agreement will save a new leader time and many potential problems.
I often get reactions of disbelief and surprise from military leaders who are accustomed to making changes in working conditions and then directly informing their military subordinates about the changes when I tell them that they cannot do that with bargaining unit employees unless they've discussed and possibly negotiated the change with the union first. For example, we often hear about office moves where the manager talks to the employee and that employee is happy so they make the move. However, that may make another bargaining unit employee unhappy and the union isn't included in the equation.
It does seem counter-intuitive unless the leader understands that there are three parties in federal labor relations and each one (management, labor, and employees) has their rights which are separate but related to the others. One of the rights of the union is to be recognized as the exclusive representatives of the bargaining unit employees they represent. To attempt to negotiate directly with bargaining unit employees is by-passing their union representatives and can result in an Unfair Labor Practice charge. It also creates ill-will and does nothing to foster a collaborative relationship between management and the union.
Another significant difference between leading military members and civilian employees is work schedules. Military members' schedules can be changed and/or extended at any time. When scheduling civilians, not only does bargaining unit status come into play but also the Fair Labor Standards Act. Many civil service employees are covered by the terms of this law. And that law basically says you must pay a covered employee for all of the time they work and, if that work continues beyond 8 hours/day or 40 hours/week (unless the employees work an alternate or compressed work schedule), you must either pay them overtime (1.5 times their hourly rate) or give them compensatory (comp) time off equivalent to the time they work beyond their regular schedule. Many negotiated agreements include provisions for how overtime work is distributed among qualified individuals in the work center. Use of accrued comp time is scheduled like annual leave.
Although there are interesting challenges for the military leader transitioning to leading civilians, many issues can be avoided if the leader pays attention to the existing agreements and keeps an open mind. The HR Specialists in the leader's new organization can be his or her best resource when learning to navigate the differences between military and civilian employees.
