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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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TSA Shutdown Pay Rights for Federal Employees
TSA officers are once again doing essential federal work without a current paycheck. Since the DHS-only shutdown began on February 14, officers classified as “excepted” have been l...
Boston Judge Halts RFK Jr. Vaccine Overhaul
On March 16, 2026, U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Boston issued a 45-page order blocking key parts of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s recent vaccine-policy overhaul. ...
VA Union Rights Restored: What It Means for Feds
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 ...
Managing Federal Job Anxiety Before It Spirals
For many federal employees, anxiety doesn’t arrive during business hours—it shows up late at night. Shutdown chatter, Reduction in Force (RIF) rumors, and shifting telework policie...
Forced Distribution Ratings and Federal Law
Federal employees across multiple agencies are hearing a new message about performance ratings: only a small percentage of employees can receive the highest ratings. At first glanc...
4 Signs a Federal PIP May Be Pretextual
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...
VA Mental Health Staffing Crisis and Veteran Rights
For veterans already struggling to get mental health care, the most troubling part of this story is not a single bad experience. It is the pattern. According to the transcript, the...
EPA Grants Audit Warns of Federal Overwork Risks
A new EPA Office of Inspector General audit should get the attention of federal employees far beyond EPA. The report found that EPA lacks a grants workforce plan even as it manages...
DOE and NASA Move to End Federal Union Bargaining
Federal employees at the Department of Energy (DOE) and NASA just witnessed one of the most consequential labor developments in decades. DOE issued notices terminating collective b...
Telework Arbitration Wins for Federal Unions
Federal employees have been watching telework policies change rapidly across agencies. Yet a series of arbitration rulings is sending a clear message: when telework protections app...
Why Federal Employees Should Review Their Performance Plan
Federal employees often focus on the latest policy changes or agency announcements. Yet one of the most consequential documents affecting a federal career may already be sitting qu...
DHS Shutdown and TSA Pay: Your Back Pay Rights and Key Deadlines
During the ongoing partial Department of Homeland Security shutdown, tens of thousands of Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers are continuing to report to work wit...
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