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

VA Staffing Caps: What Federal Employees Need to Know

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Starting October 1, the Department of Veterans Affairs will begin enforcing what it calls “baseline” staffing caps across all divisions—health, benefits, and cemeteries. According ...

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Finding Strength in Transition: How Federal Employees Can Use Mantras to Regain Focus, Peace, and Confidence

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Introduction: The Weight of the DRP Decision

For many federal employees, the Discontinued Service Retirement (DRP) or early-out options feel like a lifeline when they first appear...

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Why Moving U.S. Space Command Risks National Security

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U.S. Space Command is not a symbolic outpost—it is the nerve center for tracking missiles, defending satellites, and guarding against hostile actions from nations like China, Russi...

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Unmasking ICE Agents: Privacy, Power, and Legal Risks

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In recent weeks, a provocative use of artificial intelligence has surfaced: citizens are using AI tools to digitally strip away the masks worn by Immigration and Customs Enforcemen...

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Fifth Circuit Blocks Trump’s Use of Alien Enemies Act

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In a striking decision, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals—one of the nation’s most conservative courts—ruled that President Trump could not use the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to de...

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CDC Shake-Up: Protecting Federal Employees Amid Political Turmoil

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The removal of CDC Director Susan Monarez after just weeks on the job—and the immediate resignation of several senior leaders—has left the agency in turmoil. While headlines focus ...

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How Federal Employees Can Prepare for a Government Shutdown

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Step One: Know Your Status

The single most important action to take today is clarifying whether you are exempt, excepted, or furloughed. Exempt positions remain funded, excepted e...

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2026 Federal Pay Raise: What Employees Need to Know

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Federal employees have been bracing for a pay freeze in 2026. But the White House’s just-released alternative pay plan delivers a modest surprise: a raise is back on the table—thou...

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CDC Vaccine Expert Resigns Over Politics in Science

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The resignation of Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, one of the nation’s leading vaccine experts, is not just another D.C. headline. His departure signals something far more personal: federa...

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FLETC Training Freeze Leaves Federal Agencies Vulnerable

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The Trump administration has announced that the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) will pause nearly all training for non-ICE agencies through year’s end. This decisi...

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Why Lisa Cook’s Case Matters for Every Federal Employee

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When President Trump announced he was firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, it looked at first like another political flashpoint. But for federal employees, this lawsuit carri...

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CDC Leadership Crisis and Federal Governance Breakdown

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The attempted removal of CDC Director Susan Monarez highlights a critical legal issue: under federal law, only the President—not agency heads or political appointees—can dismiss a ...

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Hear Shaun Southworth and Lydia Taylor explain federal employee rights, public service, workplace systems, and the people navigating them.

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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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