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Shaun Southworth leading a federal employment training session with members of the Southworth PC team

Screwworm Outbreak Shows Risk of USDA Staffing Cuts

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The confirmed New World screwworm case in Zavala County, Texas, is more than an animal-health headline. For federal employees, it is a reminder that public service capacity is ofte...

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Federal NDAs and Whistleblower Rights

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Reports that some federal employees in the Trump administration have been asked to sign broad nondisclosure agreements raise a serious but often misunderstood question: what can an...

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Federal Workers Are Not the Villains

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A new peer-reviewed article in the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law gives federal employees language for something many have already felt in their bodies: the current att...

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Federal FMLA Rights: What Feds Should Know

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Most federal employees do not think about the Family and Medical Leave Act until a serious medical issue suddenly makes work impossible. By then, stress, fear, and paperwork can ma...

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Return-to-Office Is Not Just a Commute Issue

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For many federal employees, return-to-office has not felt like a neutral management preference. It has felt like a disruption to work, family obligations, health routines, and mora...

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Federal EEO and MSPB Settlements Under Scrutiny

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House Oversight Chairman James Comer has opened an inquiry into why the federal government pays to resolve so many federal employee grievances, pointing to federal-sector EEO and M...

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Federal Employees Deserve Recognition Without Fear

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The Service to America Medals—the “Sammies”—have long been treated as the Oscars of federal service. This year’s 25th annual ceremony carried a quieter message: many federal employ...

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Federal Employees and Off-Duty Free Speech

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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, an...

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FEMA Whistleblowers Reinstated After Administrative Leave

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Federal employees received a meaningful reminder this week: retaliation-flavored personnel actions are not always the final word. FEMA has reportedly welcomed back at least 15 whis...

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ICE Hiring Surge Raises Vetting Risks

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ICE’s reported hiring surge should concern more than immigration-policy watchers. According to the transcript, the agency moved to hire 12,000 new officers and special agents after...

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DEI Reassignments and Federal Employee Rights

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Recent developments at the Interior Department highlight a pattern federal employees should understand. Dozens of employees who spent more than a year on involuntary paid administr...

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4 Signs a Federal PIP May Be Pretextual

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For many federal employees, being placed on a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) can feel like the beginning of the end of a career. Agencies often describe PIPs as supportive tool...

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Civil Rights for Civil Servants

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About the people behind the work

Shaun Southworth & Lydia Taylor

Meet the federal employment attorneys behind this public-education work and the podcast Civil Rights for Civil Servants.

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