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Civil Rights for Civil Servants
Hear Shaun Southworth and Lydia Taylor explain federal employee rights, public service, workplace systems, and the people navigating them.
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Federal Court Blocks FLRA From Stripping Career Staff of Union Election Authority
For once, the news out of the Federal Labor Relations Authority is good for federal employees and their unions.
Background: More Than 40 Years of Career Oversight
Since 1983, car...
NTEU Sues Treasury and HHS Over Thousands of Stalled Accommodation Requests
Federal employees waiting on disability accommodation requests at the IRS, HHS, or CDC just got some backing. On Monday, the National Treasury Employees Union sued the Treasury Dep...
OPM's Forced Distribution Rule: What It Means for Your Federal Performance Rating
Federal performance ratings are about to look very different. This week, the Office of Personnel Management finalized the biggest overhaul of federal employee performance ratings i...
OPM's New Suitability Rule Lets Agencies Bar Federal Employees for Up to Three Years
Starting July 30, 2026, federal agencies will have a new way to remove employees already on the job β one built for screening applicants, not managing an existing workforce. The Of...
Bureau of Prisons Closures and RIF Notices: What Affected Employees Need to Know
The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) announced this week that it is closing six federal correctional facilities across five states. The agency says many affected employees can transfer to a...
DoD Canceled Your Union Contract β Your EEO and MSPB Rights Didn't Go With It
Across the Defense Department, some civilian employees are reportedly being told by managers that their union no longer exists. That claim is false β and it matters, because employ...
OPM and MSPB Propose Retiring the Douglas Factors β What Federal Employees Stand to Lose
For 45 years, before a federal agency could fire, suspend, or demote an employee, it had to work through twelve factors set out in Douglas v. Veterans Administration, 5 M.S.P.R. 28...
The Declassification Double Standard: What Security Clearance Holders Need to Know
Every year, federal employees who hold a security clearance sit through mandatory training on handling classified information β and sign paperwork acknowledging they understand the...
Federal Employees: Communicate Before Crisis
For federal employees, communication is no longer a soft skill. It can be the difference between preserving your record and creating an avoidable problem. A rushed email to a super...
The Labor Leader Who Forced Federal Action
A. Philip Randolph is not always the first name federal employees hear when they learn about civil rights. But his work helped change the relationship between Black workers, federa...
OPM Finalizes Rule Letting Agencies Fire Current Employees as 'Unsuitable'
OPM has finalized a new suitability rule that lets agencies remove current federal employees for serious misconduct that happens after they're hired β closing a gap that, until now...
Supreme Court Ends Independent Agency Protection, Spares the Fed by One Vote
The Supreme Court has effectively ended ninety years of independent agency protection for federal officials. In a pair of decisions issued the same day, June 29, 2026, the Court ru...
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