Merit Pay Reform Act of 1982

Merit Pay Reform Act of 1982 - Requires determinations as to which Government positions are supervisory or managerial for purposes of the merit pay system to be made according to position classification guidelines issued by the Office of Personnel Management.

Requires that the merit pay system provide for comparability pay increases, merit step increases, and merit pay awards based on performance.

Directs each agency to establish a performance appraisal system for merit system employees which provides for: (1) periodic appraisals of job performance; (2) the joint participation of the supervisor and the employee in establishing performance standards; (3) rating performance at two levels below fully successful, one level for fully successful performance, and two levels above fully successful; (4) communicating performance standards to each employee at the beginning of each appraisal period; (5) assisting employees in improving less than fully successful performance; (6) removing, reassigning, or reducing the grade of employees who continually perform below fully successful; and (7) making base pay and merit pay increase decisions as a result of annual performance appraisals.

Provides that an employee whose performance is rated at: (1) the second level below fully successful shall receive no pay increase; (2) the first level below fully successful shall receive one-half of the comparability increase; (3) the fully successful level or above shall receive the full comparability increase and a merit step increase; and (4) the levels above fully successful may receive a merit award of up to ten percent of the employee's basic pay. Makes the comparability increase equal to the cost-of-living adjustment in General Schedule pay rates. Specifies the amounts of merit step increases which are based on step increases under the General Schedule. Declares that an employee may be paid less than the minimum rate of basic pay of the grade of the employee's position as a result of the employee not receiving a full comparability increase because of a less than fully successful performance rating.

Entitles an employee to appeal a performance rating of less than fully successful as an adverse action only when the employee alleges that such rating is a result of a prohibited personnel practice.

Prohibits the Office of Personnel Management from prescribing, or requiring any agency to prescribe, any specific performance standard. Directs each agency to establish one or more performance standard review boards to review such standards before they are implemented.