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

Why Federal Employees Should Still Trust the Legal Process

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For federal employees, the pace of workplace disruption since January 2025 can feel overwhelming. Reclassifications, removals, DOGE-related agency actions, and attacks on collectiv...

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Russell Vought and Federal Employee Rights

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ProPublica’s recent video on Russell Vought is not ordinary political commentary. For federal employees, it is a warning about how ideas discussed in private strategy rooms can bec...

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HHS Schedule Policy/Career Reclassification

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Federal employees at HHS are reportedly facing the first major rollout of Schedule Policy/Career, the revived version of what was formerly known as Schedule F. According to Governm...

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Federal Pay Freeze, Schedule F, and Union Rights

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Last week’s House Appropriations Committee votes were not isolated policy disagreements—they reflect a coordinated shift in how the federal workforce is compensated, protected, and...

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Federal Workforce Cuts and Political Pressure in 2026

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Federal employees are hearing the phrase “good government” a lot lately—but a new report suggests the reality inside agencies looks far less reassuring. The Partnership for Public ...

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President’s Management Agenda: What 2026 Means for Feds

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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...

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OPM’s Draft Schedule F Rule and the Risk to Career Civil Service Rights

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Federal employees have heard whispers for months, but the recently leaked draft regulations go further than expected: nearly 50,000 career employees could lose core civil service p...

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Schedule F Returns: What the New FOIA Lawsuit Means

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A new FOIA lawsuit seeks OPM’s secret Schedule Policy/Career lists. Here’s what federal policy employees need to know about potential at-will conversion.

Federal employees in poli...

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The Banner vs. Reality: Workers First or Workers Forgotten?

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When a towering banner with the words “AMERICAN WORKERS FIRST” was draped across the Department of Labor, the image was meant to project strength and reassurance. But for federal e...

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OPM’s New Directive Reshapes Federal Performance Evaluations

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On June 17, 2025, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued an 18-page memorandum that redefines the performance appraisal landscape for all federal employees. Among the swee...

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OPM’s New Hiring Memo: Loyalty Tests, Legal Risks & Schedule F 2.0

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The Hidden Agenda Behind OPM's New Hiring Memo

Federal employees are no strangers to shifting political winds—but a recent 19-page memo from the Office of Personnel Management (OP...

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A Return to “Schedule F”? What Every Policy-Facing Fed Needs to Know

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If your federal job involves influencing policy—through writing, advising, or analyzing—you could be on the verge of losing your civil service protections. A newly proposed rule by...

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Shaun Southworth & Lydia Taylor

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