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The Organizational Culture of Contractors vs. Furloughed Government Civilians
INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND
The impacts of the Budget Control Act of 2011 will no doubt be far reaching, even as an
additional round of spending cuts loom on the horizon. When a solution is finally
achieved, and government furloughs are behind us, this Norfolk cadre asks, “What impact
will the furloughs have had on the culture of our organizations?" Typically, we think of
government contractors being less secure than government civilian positions, but will that
still be the case now that government civilians have been furloughed one day a week? With
future cuts a possibility, even Defense Secretary Hagel offered little hope saying “if the
$52 billion cut remains in place, “there will be further cuts in personnel, make no mistake
about that."
(http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/to-troops-and-furloughed-defense-civilians-hag
el-offers-empathy-but-no-hope-for-budget-help/2013/07/22/f40256f2-f2a2-11e2-8464-57e
57af86290_story_1.html)
To illuminate the effects of the current round of budget cuts, we looked at two
organizations within the support structure of Airborne Command, Control, and Logistics
Wing: One of the major support contractors for the wing and the government civilians that
manage them.
Organizational Descriptions
Airborne Command, Control, and Logistics Wing (ACCLW) Government Civilians
At the Airborne Command, Control, and Logistics Wing detachment, Norfolk, government
civilians manage the multitude of contractors that support the C-2A, E-2C, E-2D aircraft
on the east coast. There are four government civilians in Norfolk two of whom, Glen
Smith and Derek McCord, manage contractors. Both government civilians were formerly
in the Navy and are fiercely loyal and hard working.
The ACCLW Commodore is located in Point Mugu, California and calls these gentlemen
regularly to solve a myriad of problems, not because it is in their job description, but
because they are reliable and effective. Their actual job descriptions do not cover the range
of services they perform, with both having picked up collateral duties ranging from
government purchase card managers to International Military Student Officer Manager.
The Commodore entrusts Mr. McCord and Mr. Smith to be fairly autonomous. They
provide weekly updates via email on projects on which they are working. The Commodore
provides initial direction and little to no oversight. Mr. McCord says, “The Commodore
sets the tone, and we don’t hear anything until we are complete with the assignment."
Mr. Smith and Mr. McCord work in a decrepit building that leaks when it rains and
frequently loses power. Glenn Smith takes Monday as his furlough day so as not to conflict
with Derek McCord, who takes his furlough day on Friday. During the workweek they
