OFFICE OF WORKER AND COMMUNITY TRANSITION
April - June 1998
WORK FORCE RESTRUCTURING ACTIONS
WORK FORCE REDUCTIONS AT PORTSMOUTH, OHIO AND PADUCAH, KENTUCKY
Approximately 54 protective force employees at Portsmouth received separation notices in June with actual separation scheduled for July 31, 1998. These reductions are related to completion of the Highly Enriched Uranium Refeed Program at Portsmouth. An opportunity was provided to protective force workers who chose to voluntarily separate to receive a payment equal to their earned severance, if by so doing an involuntary separation could be avoided. Less than ten workers chose to participate in this program. In addition, 6 to 10 workers who received notices have been offered employment at Paducah. The remaining workers were to receive regular severance, along with a package of separation benefits provided for in the Portsmouth/Paducah work force restructuring plan that included medical, relocation, education and outplacement assistance.
Subsequently, a memorandum of agreement between the Department of Energy and the United States Enrichment Corporation was signed, which provides for a more generous enhanced voluntary separation benefit program for workers affected by privatization. Consistent with discussions during development of the memorandum of agreement, a decision was made to provide this more generous benefit package to workers at Portsmouth and Paducah who may be separated during the coming two years at the Gaseous Diffusion Plants as a result of reduced Department of Energy work.
As a result, the enhanced voluntary separation program is being offered to protective force employees whose skills are no longer required for the continued security of the Portsmouth site. These enhanced benefits include an additional one week's pay per year of service to the severance program, and an option to receive a lump sum payment of $7,500 or be eligible, under conditions defined in the Portsmouth/Paducah work force restructuring plan, for medical, education, relocation and outplacement assistance.
DOE CONSIDERS SINGLE CONTRACTOR FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX AND SEEKS PUBLIC INPUT
On June 4, 1998, a proposal to consider consolidation of as many as six existing contracts at U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear weapons program production facilities into a single management contract was released for industry, community and other stakeholder comments.
Existing contracts at the DOE Kansas City Plant in Missouri, the Y-12 Plant in Tennessee, the Pantex Plant in Texas, and the production program at Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico, and potentially the production program at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, and tritium operations at the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, would be candidates for consolidation. The analysis leading to this approach is documented in a concept paper which is available on the internet at http://www.doeal.gov/nwic/.
"The DOE nuclear weapons industrial complex is in the midst of significant restructuring and downsizing of its infrastructure and work force to support a smaller nuclear weapons stockpile," said Dr. Victor Reis, DOE Assistant Secretary for Defense Programs. "As part of our strategic planning, we have been exploring various ways to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our management of contractors in the complex. The proposal is a concept paper and no decision has been made on whether to proceed with a single contract."
The analysis in the concept paper indicates that a consolidated contract approach would provide clearer lines of authority and responsibility among the six sites; improve information sharing, cooperation and technical integration; and provide cost savings through single business and technical support efficiencies and elimination of duplicate functions among multiple contractors.
The Department is seeking public comment on such issues as the potential impact on the federal and contractor work force, potential cost savings, timetables, and transition costs. After a careful review of industry and other stakeholder input, DOE will decide whether to pursue a consolidated contract strategy. The earliest date that a new contract could be implemented is in the year 2000.
Each of the affected sites has distinct production and industrial responsibilities to DOE:
The missions of these sites are described in the December 1996 Record of Decision on the Stockpile Stewardship and Management Programmatic Impact Statement, and will not be changed by this concept.
Contract consolidation would also support the Department's on-going efforts to improve the organization and management of the Defense Programs federal staff at Headquarters in Washington, D.C. and Maryland, and at field organizations. Adjustments in staffing would be scheduled to be in place before award of a new contract.
LAWRENCE LIVERMORE NATIONAL LABORATORY WORK FORCE RESTRUCTURING PLAN TRANSMITTED TO THE U.S. CONGRESS
On June 29, 1998, the Secretary of Energy transmitted to the U.S. Congress the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Work Force Restructuring Plan. This plan covers all work force restructuring at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) beginning in Fiscal Year 1996. The Laboratory will provide the Department of Energy with notification of any future proposed restructuring, and revisions in the plan may be proposed from time to time to meet emerging circumstances. Any future requests for funding enhanced restructuring benefits will be considered by the Office and will be fully communicated to interested stakeholders consistent with section 3161 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993.
OAK RIDGE WORK FORCE RESTRUCTURING PLAN TRANSMITTED TO THE U.S. CONGRESS
On June 29, 1998, the Secretary of Energy transmitted to the U.S. Congress the Oak Ridge Work Force Restructuring Plan. This plan succeeds the prior Oak Ridge Work Force Restructuring Plan which was transmitted to Congress on November 29, 1995, and the addendum, transmitted on November 20, 1996. This plan is intended to govern any future restructuring that may occur at the Oak Ridge site, including the Department's direct contractor employees at Portsmouth, Ohio and Paducah, Kentucky.
The plan recognizes a shift in emphasis from budget-driven
employment reductions to work force restructuring that is resulting from implementation of
a variety of changes in the way the Oak Ridge Operations mission is accomplished. The plan
also incorporates new direction provided by the U.S. Congress, included in section 304 of
the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 1998. Section 304
provides that enhanced benefits developed pursuant to the objectives of section 3161 of
the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993 may only be funded through the
Worker and Community Transition appropriation account. As a result, provision of enhanced
benefits is dependent on the availability of funds from this appropriation.
COMMUNITY TRANSITION ACTIVITIES
PLANNING GRANT PROVIDED TO THE PADUCAH AREA COMMUNITY REUSE ORGANIZATION
On April 10, 1998, the U.S. Department of Energy awarded a $400,000 grant to the Paducah Area Community Reuse Organization (PACRO), the local community reuse organization. The grant will be used for planning and start-up activities for the organization over an 18-month period.
The Paducah Area Community Reuse Organization was formed as a pro-active community initiative to help communities in western Kentucky and southern Illinois adjust as the Department of Energy restructures its mission at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant in McCracken County, Kentucky.
A significant restructuring began in 1993 when DOE leased production facilities at the plant to the U.S. Enrichment Corporation which continues to operate the plant for the production of enriched uranium. An estimated 700 positions were expected to be reduced through FY 1999 primarily as a result of completing the Highly Enriched Uranium program. Additional reductions are expected through the year 2000 as a result of privatization activities at the site.
The grant will be used to perform a market analysis for new economic development strategies for new business ventures, training and other assistance; a feasibility study to evaluate potential for alternate uses of some of the facilities and land at the plant if available in the future; and an assessment of how to enable people to find new jobs if the plant workforce size is reduced due to additional restructuring or change in mission.
The PACRO membership of approximately 50 citizens from the region includes people involved in industry, education, economic development, business, labor and local government.
EFFORTS TO CREATE NEW JOBS IN COMMUNITIES NEAR FERNALD GET $262,000 BOOST FROM U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
On May 7, 1998, the U.S. Department of Energy announced a $262,000 grant to aid Ohioans affected by the closure process at the Fernald Environmental Management Project near Cincinnati. The grant will help the Fernald Community Reuse Organization (CRO) provide economic development planning assistance to workers and communities impacted by the closure process.
"This important investment will build on the strengths of these communities to attract high-skill, high-paying jobs to the Fernald area," said Energy Secretary Federico Peņa. "These funds will help diversify the regional economy, create jobs and improve resources for economic development throughout the area."
The Energy Department established the Fernald Community Reuse Organization in 1996 to help Fernald workers and local communities offset adverse impacts resulting from downsizing and eventual closure of the site. The organization's membership includes Fernald salaried and union workers, regional planners, business and community leaders, local elected officials and educators. As part of its mission, the group will facilitate public dialogue on work force transition and local economic development planning, and potential reuse of Fernald's land and resources.
The community transition grant from DOE will be used to inventory Fernald's resources (including its work force, land and materials) to assess their economic potential and develop plans to transition the resources for productive use by the community.
DOE awarded the group a $150,100 start-up grant in 1997 to organize and develop an infrastructure to establish itself within the community. Since then, the CRO has been recognized as a priority in the Hamilton County U.S. Economic Development Administration Economic Development Plan, and was recently awarded $50,000 from the State of Ohio to accelerate its economic transition efforts through an entrepreneurial assistance program.
The Fernald CRO is a nonprofit corporation under Ohio statutes. DOE, and its cleanup contractor Fluor Daniel Fernald, are remediating the 1,050-acre Fernald site following a 37-year uranium metal production mission. Over the next decade, Fernald will experience sharp workforce reductions as phases of site cleanup are completed.
COMMUNITY TRANSITION GRANT PROVIDED TO THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE
On May 28, 1998, the U.S. Department of Energy awarded the city of Albuquerque a grant of $350,000 to prepare a strategic economic analysis and action plan for the Albuquerque region and Sandia National Laboratories. In addition, the city will contract with the Laboratory to develop a real estate plan for the proposed Sandia Science and Technology Park, to be located just outside of the laboratory gates. The goal of this work is to promote technology commercialization and economic diversification.
"This important step enables the city of Albuquerque to leverage the world class technology resources of the Sandia National Laboratories to expand the economic base of the region," said Secretary of Energy Federico Peņa.
The strategic analysis will focus on the following:
The results of this analysis will form the basis of an action plan that will help define a new and more dynamic relationship between SNL and the region's economy.
The project will build upon an economic development
planning process for Albuquerque and Bernalillo County that was funded, beginning in 1993,
by an Economic Development Administration (EDA) Section 302 (a) Urban Planning Assistance
Program grant. This process produced fourteen strategies that the city and county adopted
as the basis of their economic development program.
PUBLIC OUTREACH ACTIVITIES
SIXTH NATIONAL STAKEHOLDER'S WORKSHOP HELD IN ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA
The Office of Worker and Community Transition held its sixth National Stakeholder's Workshop on June 17-18, 1998 at the Ramada Plaza Hotel Old-Town in Alexandria, Virginia. Approximately 300 stakeholders attended representing DOE headquarters and field offices, contractors, labor organizations, state and local government, education and community interest groups. The meeting addressed the progress made on the issues and challenges identified at the last stakeholder's meeting in Oakland, California on April 9-11, 1997. Also discussed were the full range of the Department's work force issues and creative solutions to the inherent challenges of simultaneously implementing the Department's post Cold-War mission, work force restructuring guidance, contract reform objectives, asset disposition, performance-based management requirements, and business process improvement policies. The format of the meeting focused on discussions of best practices and lessons learned in the process of obtaining an effective and efficient work force.
The Office of Worker and Community Transition is in the
process of preparing a Meeting Summary Report from the Workshop.
All attendees will receive a copy of the report; however, if you did not attend and would
like a copy of the report, please fill out and mail or fax the document request form at
the end of this Program Update. Once completed, the report also will be posted on the
Office's website.
ASSET MANAGEMENT
ASSET SALES/LEASES
To date, $31.03 million has been deposited in the
Department of Energy's asset sales account at the Department of Treasury. An additional
$2.33 million in asset sales are pending completion and verification prior to deposit in
the appropriate accounts at Treasury.
LABOR RELATIONS
CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS
The following is a list of collective bargaining agreements that have been recently negotiated or are scheduled to be negotiated in the second quarter of calendar year 1998:
| Site | Union | Type of Employees |
| Fernald | FATLC | All metal trades crafts |
| Fernald | IGUA | Guards |
| Idaho | UPGWA, Local 3 | Guards |
| Idaho | OCAW | Operation personnel |
| LBNL | UPTE | Lab technicians |
| Mound | OCAW | Operation personnel |