Abstract
Purpose. The study addresses the federal employees downsizing using voluntary retirement and separation buyout incentives to determine the affects on the diversity of the workforce. The purpose of this study is to determine the extent that the diversity of the Port Hueneme Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center, was affected by the federal government downsizing methods. Theoretical framework. Government reform and downsizing is being influenced by major legislation. The present Administration has implemented the National Performance Review to reinvent and reengineer the federal government. This study examined strategies of policy implementation related to downsizing. Methodology. Secondary data analysis was used to identify and assess the diversity characteristics of the PHD NSWC workforce. Five consecutive years of data were analyzed to establish a baseline for each year and to establish the general trend. Findings. A reduction-in-force, as mandated by law, with its "last-in, first-out" method for downsizing, tends to affect percentages of minorities and women at the lower echelons of the workforce. With the government paid incentives to downsize, employees are paid to leave federal service or retire. The top echelons of management, where there is an obvious absence of minorities and women, generally receive the buyout incentives. Government-wide, the buyouts have enabled agencies to downsize without disproportionately affecting women and minorities. Conclusions. This study found that the Port Hueneme Division of the Naval Surface Warfare Centers has maintained or increased the diversity of the workforce by deciding to use the employee incentive buyouts during downsizing. Recommendations. The workforce of the United States Government is among the most gender and race-ethnically diverse in the world. This diversity presents both challenges and opportunities as organizations compete for advantage in a global marketplace. One of the most critical challenges posed by diversity in the workplace is to eliminate barriers to entry and success in middle- and senior-manager jobs, which may be related to group identity factors such as gender and race. There is a need for additional research on a wide range of issues.