Podcast
Civil Rights for Civil Servants
Hear Shaun Southworth and Lydia Taylor explain federal employee rights, public service, workplace systems, and the people navigating them.
Listen to the podcastNews, rights, tools & learning
Federal Employee Resource Center
Search timely updates, plain-English explainers, practical guides, podcasts, and mindful-action resources. Start with the question you are trying to answer.
Merit or Loyalty? Measuring OPM's Merit Claim Against the Record
Merit system principles are back in the public conversation. OPM Director Scott Kupor argued in the Washington Post that this administration is reviving merit in the federal workfo...
The Loyalty Question and DoD’s Sealed Hiring Boards: What Federal Applicants Should Know
The loyalty question on federal job applications — the essay asking how you would help advance the President’s executive orders — now sits alongside a second change most applicants...
Public Trust in Federal Employees Is Rising
After a year of uncertainty, criticism, reorganizations, and shifting workplace rules, federal employees received something rare: encouraging data. According to recent polling desc...
Military Promotions and Merit Principles
For federal employees watching the military’s senior ranks, the recent reporting on blocked officer promotions deserves careful attention. According to the transcript’s account of ...
Federal Hiring Essay Questions and Political Loyalty
Federal job applicants are reporting a troubling disconnect between what the Office of Personnel Management says publicly and what USAJOBS applications appear to require in practic...
Proposed OPM Rule Could Replace Seniority in RIFs
Federal employees have long understood one principle about reductions in force (RIFs): years of service matter. Seniority has historically been a key factor protecting experienced ...
President’s Management Agenda: What 2026 Means for Feds
Federal offices rarely shrink quietly. When headcount drops but the workload stays the same, phrases like “efficiency” or “modernization” can land with a thud. The President’s Mana...
OPM’s New Awards Guidance: What Federal Employees Need to Know
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has issued new, government-wide guidance aimed at “targeting the highest-performing” federal employees for the largest awards and bonuses. ...
DHS Secretary Wants Loyalty Purge?! Know Your Rights, Federal Employees
Yesterday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reportedly asked her advisors how to “fire people who don’t like us.” For federal employees, this isn’t just an eyebrow-raising p...
More ways to learn
Choose the format that helps you understand what is happening.
The Mindful Federal Employee is part of a broader public-education ecosystem from Shaun Southworth, Lydia Taylor, and Southworth PC. Use the resource that fits the question and the moment.
Mindfulness
Work Peacefully
Use practical mindfulness tools to create space between workplace pressure and the decision you make next.
Explore mindfulness resourcesAbout 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.
Meet Shaun & LydiaThe Federal Employee Briefing
The important developments, without the all-day scroll.
Join 3,900+ federal employees getting sourced workforce news and practical next steps on weekdays. It is a free public-service resource from Southworth PC.