Is there an alleged Great Resignation right around the corner with employees demanding remote work? While cleared candidates reported a higher likelihood this year of sticking around in national security, over 80% were at least somewhat likely to find a new employer. So while the Great Resignation might not be leading to long unemployment lines, it could be the beginning of job hopping. The reality of remote work in national security is only possible if employees, companies, and agencies work together towards a viable solution. As agencies and contractors alike make decisions on how to best fully reopen, the DoD has lifted all capacity limits and mask mandates for those who are fully vaccinated. And some congressional leaders are urging the federal workforce to return to work ahead of the current fall telework timetable.
“I write today to urge the federal workforce to return to the fullest possible degree to its normal places of work,” Rep. Jody Hice (R-Ga.) said Tuesday in a letter to the Office of Personnel Management. “It is time to begin transitioning to the workplace. If it is the administration’s intention to prolong remote working arrangements, then it is appropriate to hold a comprehensive policy discussion around related issues.”
While employees clearly feel more productive with improved commute times, productivity levels continue to be a key component in how decisions on remote work are finalized. It may not be the best option to threaten to quit – unless you have another cleared job waiting for you.
Layoffs Impacting the Cleared Industry
| Lumentum | Lumentum, an optical component manufacturer in California sent out layoff notices for 165 jobs. Layoffs begin to take effect this week. As Lumentum lost its bidding war for to acquire Coherent Inc, the decision was made to cut costs as they plan to compete against the merged Coherent/II-VI force. |
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Hiring impacting the Cleared Industry
| Technica | With a recent $38 million contract win with the FBI on their Network Services and Engineering Support Task Order (TO), Technica is hiring in the D.C. region and the Huntsville, AL region, as well. Technica also has open positions in in San Antonio, TX, with more than 50 open positions throughout the U.S. Technica provides high-end system engineering services to Defense, Intelligence, Law Enforcement, and Federal civilian agencies. The company specializes in systems engineering, integration and testing, cybersecurity and product development, deployment, and support. Technica invests heavily in R&D and is leveraging big data, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and high-performance computing to support its customers.
“Technica has supported the FBI for more than 15 years in various critical engineering and network architecture roles, delivering essential innovation,” said Technica President and CEO Miguel Collado. “This award reinforces our commitment to the FBI’s intelligence-driven organization through low-risk, high quality, and innovative information services to establish efficient retrieval, sharing, and use of information, securely enabling the FBI to protect America from criminal and terrorist threats.” |
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Cleared Employer at Work: Leidos
Opportunity to Watch
As cleared hubs grow throughout the country, employment options for cleared candidates grow in more places than just the DMV area (D.C., Maryland, and Virginia). However Virginia, Maryland, District of Columbia, California, Florida, and Texas accounted for 62% of all the respondents in the United States, with 22% based in Virginia. But not everyone offers six-figure salaries. Cost of living is a driver for many locations, and in others, competition for cleared talent increases the compensation. Higher paying technical jobs that require graduate degrees also factor into the annual salary. So, while D.C., Maryland, and Virginia are in the top five states for compensation, Massachusetts, with its aerospace and cyber options beats out everyone with an average total compensation of $112,702. Hawaii just makes the cut, coming in a little over the $100K threshold for those candidates who enjoy the island life in national security.
