The Federal Employee Survival Blog
Cut through the jargon and get the clarity you need to stay a step ahead of agency politics. Each article unpacks new policy shifts, court rulings, and workplace trends, then turns them into actionable tactics—so you can head off discipline, invoke EEO or whistleblower protections with confidence, and keep your documentation airtight. We also archive our most popular social-media explainer threads here, giving you the same insights followed by more than 150,000 people online even if you never scroll on those sites. Read, prepare, and keep your federal career firmly in your control.
For nearly a decade, VA facilities have included LGBTQ+ Veteran Care Coordinators—roles created in 2016 after the agency identified that LGBTQ+ veterans were not consistently receiving the support and...
For Department of Veterans Affairs employees represented by AFGE’s National VA Council, the First Circuit’s recent ruling is more than procedural news. A unanimous three-judge panel left in place a pr...
Federal employees do not stop being citizens when they leave the workplace. That principle matters when an employee attends a public vigil, speaks on a matter of public concern, and then faces an inte...
Recent reports involving senior military promotions raise a deeper concern that extends beyond any single agency: the erosion of merit-based decision-making. Allegations that promotion decisions may h...
When agencies and courts move quickly, uncertainty follows. Right now, VA employees are asking a simple but urgent question: does the union contract still apply while the case is on appeal? The answer...
A federal court order is not a suggestion—it is binding law. Yet the Department of Veterans Affairs recently tested that boundary by claiming compliance with a court-ordered reinstatement of its Maste...
On March 13, 2026, a federal judge ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to reinstate its Master Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with AFGE, restoring rights for more than 300,000 emplo...
A March 13, 2026 court order has immediate, practical consequences for more than 300,000 Department of Veterans Affairs employees. A federal judge required the VA to fully restore its collective barga...
VA employees—especially those working in clinics, hospitals, and regional offices—are hearing a familiar phrase again: reorganization. This time, VA leadership has told Congress it plans to restructur...
For many VA employees, being told “it’s not layoffs, it’s just vacancies” does not feel reassuring. When teams are already stretched thin, vacant positions represent hope: reinforcements, backfill, an...
If a VA hospital bans rainbow lanyards or warns employees they can be fired for wearing Pride colors, that’s not just poor optics—it’s likely unlawful. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which a...
On September 5, leaders from seven major unions—including AFGE’s National VA Council—sent a joint letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins. Their request was urgent: use authority under the President’s new...
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