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.

 
How OPM’s Push for Forced Distribution Could Impact Your Federal Career federal employment mindfulness at work mspb appeals opm policy performance ratings Dec 10, 2025

OPM’s recent announcement that it wants to “normalize” agency performance ratings should get every GS-9 and above employee’s attention. Behind the technical language is a major shift: capping how many...

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How the 2026 NDAA Draft Could Reshape DoD Civilian Careers dod civilians federal employment mindfulness at work ndaa 2026 workforce policy Dec 09, 2025

For GS-9 and above employees navigating an already shifting federal landscape, the draft 2026 National Defense Authorization Act carries quiet but significant implications. While this bill is not yet ...

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Federal Workers and the New Management Agenda: What It Really Signals federal employment mindfulness at work mspb appeals performance management workforce restructuring Dec 09, 2025

Every federal employee eventually asks the same quiet question: Is this it, or is more change coming? The newly released President’s Management Agenda — a brief two-page document — provides a surprisi...

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Supreme Court Signals Shift on Independent Agencies agency independence civil service rights federal employment mspb appeals supreme court Dec 09, 2025

When the Supreme Court devotes nearly two hours to questioning whether the President can fire leaders of “independent” agencies at will, federal employees should take notice. The arguments in Trump v....

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Presidential Removal Power and What It Means for MSPB Independence civil service protections federal employment mindfulness at work mspb appeals presidential removal power Dec 08, 2025

A divided D.C. Circuit decision on Friday did something federal employees can’t afford to overlook: it upheld the president’s ability to fire members of the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and t...

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Why Civil Service Protections Matter More Than Ever civil service protections federal employment law government reform merit systems workplace integrity Dec 08, 2025

Federal employees often feel the ground shifting under their feet, especially when political transitions accelerate. Beneath all the noise lies a simple truth: civil service protections are not perks....

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Presidential Removal Power: What Today’s Supreme Court Case Means for Feds agency independence civil service protections federal employment mspb appeals supreme court Dec 08, 2025

or many federal employees, the fear sits quietly beneath the usual stressors: Could a president fire people simply for not falling in line? Today’s Supreme Court arguments bring that question into sha...

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VA’s Non-Citizen Workforce Sweep: Legal and Workplace Risks eeo law federal employment immigration & vetting mindfulness at work va workforce Dec 05, 2025

A leaked VA memo has triggered understandable alarm: by December 30, every VA facility must submit a list of all non-U.S. citizens “employed by or affiliated with” the department. What looks administr...

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Judge Halts State Department RIFs: What Federal Employees Need to Know civil service protections federal employment mspb appeals rif workplace mindfulness Dec 05, 2025

Hundreds of State Department employees woke up on December 5 believing it was their final day in federal service. Overnight, that story changed. A federal judge issued an emergency order blocking thos...

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FEMA Whistleblowers and the Red Flags of Retaliation federal employment mindfulness at work mspb appeals osc whistleblower retaliation Dec 04, 2025

When fourteen FEMA whistleblowers were reinstated in the morning and removed again by the afternoon—right after national reporting embarrassed DHS—many federal employees saw something familiar. Not ju...

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Alleged DEI “Purges” and What Fell v. Trump Means for Federal Employees civil service protections dei federal employment mspb appeals rif rights Dec 04, 2025

A new class action, Fell v. Trump, alleges something no federal employee should take lightly: that the administration directed agencies to identify, isolate, and remove anyone linked to diversity, equ...

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Presidential Power vs. Civil Rights: What Nemer v. Bondi Means for Federal Employees article ii civil service protections eeo law federal employment mspb appeals Dec 04, 2025

A new lawsuit—Nemer v. Bondi—is raising a question most federal employees never thought they’d have to ask: Can a President legally fire you even if the motive is discriminatory? The Justice Departmen...

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