WASHINGTON, May 30 (UPI) -- The top human resources official at the Department of Homeland Security has resigned and will leave next month, officials confirmed Tuesday.
K. Gregg Prillaman, who held the post of chief human capital officer at the troubled department for less than nine months, will leave June 9, a department official confirmed to United Press International. Prillaman's boss, Undersecretary for Management Janet Hale, left her post last week. Scott Charbo, the department's chief information technology officer, will handle her duties in addition to his own according to a statement from the department Friday.
Prillaman's departure comes as the department struggles to put in place a new personnel system for the department's 185,000 staff -- with pay raises more closely linked to managers' assessments of employee performance and greater management flexibility in assignment and re-assignment.
But implementation of MaxHR, as the system is called, has stalled amid a successful union lawsuit and continuing congressional concern.
House lawmakers last week voted to cut funds for the management directorate in general and MaxHR specifically.
According to the Washington Post's "Federal Diary," the department is behind its original schedule for rolling out the new rules on how employees will be paid, deployed and disciplined. Officials now hope to introduce a new pay-for-performance system in February 2007 and continue in phases through 2008.
"Some officials fear that the changes, although a priority for the administration, may continue to slip because of more pressing issues, such as improving immigration and border controls, and preparing for the summer hurricane season," wrote the Post's Steven Barr.
