Rapid Fire April 24, 2012: Workforce Challenges

* The US Department of Justice announced that ATK Launch Systems Inc. agreed to a $37M settlement to resolve allegations that ATK sold dangerous and defective illumination flares to the Army and the Air Force. * Machinists from Lockheed Martin in Fort Worth, TX, voted to go on strike on Sunday and have started picketing. Representatives of the International Association of Machinists union say they reject changes in retirement and healthcare benefits. In October last year Oshkosh faced a strike for about two weeks. * Cobham plc appointed [PDF] Robert (Bob) Murphy as its CEO, effective as of June 25. Murphy comes from BAE and previous worked at GE Aircraft Engines. * The Defense Business Board released two briefs last week on veteran employment and linking the defense Requirements, Acquisition, and Budget processes [both PDFs]. The task group that worked on the second memo reviewed *300* studies from DoD, Congress, think tanks et. al. on DoD’s acquisition. Aside from finding the whole thing way too ponderous, they assess that the acquisition workforce does not understand operational needs well enough and lacks organic engineering capabilities. * From the Congressional Research Service: Army Drawdown and Restructuring [PDF]: “Potential issues for Congress include […]