GAO: Labor Dept. underestimated costs

WASHINGTON, Nov. 25 (UPI) -- The U.S. Department of Labor understated the costs of assigning some of its functions to private contractors, the U.S. Government Accountability Office found.

The watchdog GAO determined that Labor Department officials gave inaccurate and unreliable numbers concerning the costs of its privatization, or "competitive sourcing," efforts, which also served to demoralize workers, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.

"DOL's savings reports are not reliable: a sample of three reports contained inaccuracies, and others used projections when actual numbers were available, which sometimes resulted in overstated savings," the GAO report said.

The Post quoted the GAO report as saying since Labor Secretary Elaine Chao began the competitive sourcing program in 2004, few federal employees have actually lost their jobs or had their pay cut due to the privatizing effort.

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Rep. David Obey D-Wis., chairmen of their chambers' appropriations subcommittees, had asked for the GAO investigation. The results highlight "the negative impact the Bush Administration's failed policies have had" on the Labor Department, they told reporters Monday.

"DOL's competitions rarely resulted in lost jobs or salary reductions for DOL employees," a department official told the Post.