Attorneys for Federal Employees — Nationwide
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Today at a Glance
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BOP Union Contract Fight: The Bureau of Prisons has asked the judge who twice ordered its AFGE contract restored to say whether his injunction lets the agency terminate the agreement again on a "fresh" rationale. The union's response is due October 27, BOP owes the court a compliance report October 28, and the judge refused to fast-track dissolving the injunction.
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USDA Reorganization: Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins says the department is "full-bore ahead" on its reorganization even though a court stay blocks office closures and out-of-area relocations, and the Ninth Circuit has left that stay in place for now. In the meantime, USDA is filling hub-office jobs locally.
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Pentagon Data Breach Lawsuit: Two Marines have filed a proposed Privacy Act class action over the Defense Manpower Data Center breach that exposed the records of more than 3 million people. DMDC also holds records on current and former DoD civilian employees, and the case shows what the Privacy Act does and does not let you recover.
Top Stories:
1. BOP Asks the Judge for Permission to End Its Union Contract Again — the Union Answers by October 27, a Compliance Report Is Due October 28, and the Judge Refuses to Fast-Track Any Request to Dissolve the Injunction
Source: Government Executive, October 23, 2026
TL;DR: On Tuesday, October 20, the Bureau of Prisons filed an emergency motion asking U.S. District Judge Vernon D. Oliver to clarify whether his September 29 preliminary injunction "permits re-termination of the collective bargaining agreement ... on the basis of a fresh agency decision and explanation," or, in the alternative, to modify or dissolve the injunction. The motion follows the judge's October 16 order voiding BOP's October 7 re-termination notice as improper "self help" and declaring the AFGE contract in effect through May 28, 2029 unless the court grants a properly filed motion. On October 21, Judge Oliver agreed to expedite only the clarification question — the union's response is due October 27 and BOP's reply October 30 — and declined to speed up any request to modify or dissolve the injunction, writing that "there is nothing unique about this circumstance to set it apart from complexities encountered by most other litigants faced with a preliminary injunction." A separate order requires BOP to file, by October 28, a notice of the steps it has taken to comply with the contract since October 16 and its intended next steps. Local union presidents told Government Executive that compliance across the agency's roughly 120 institutions has been uneven, with compressed work schedules largely still missing. The union says it is preparing an amended complaint covering BOP's actions over the past month.
For federal employees, this means:
- If you work at BOP, the contract is in force today. Use it: file grievances under the negotiated procedure for denied official time, unrestored compressed schedules, or a disciplinary meeting held without your representative, and keep dated records of every request and every answer.
- Watch three dates — October 27 (the union's response on the clarification question), October 28 (BOP's court-ordered compliance notice), and October 30 (BOP's reply). The clarification ruling will decide whether BOP can attempt a new termination through the court rather than on its own.
- At other agencies covered by Executive Order 14251, note the pattern: once a court restores a contract, the agency must return to the court to change course, and the October 16 order sent individual contract violations to the grievance process, not the courtroom.
Legal Insight
The Federal Service Labor-Management Relations Statute gives employees the right to form, join, and assist a union, 5 U.S.C. § 7102, and allows the President to exclude an agency only on a finding that its primary function is intelligence, counterintelligence, investigative, or national security work and that the statute cannot be applied consistent with national security requirements, 5 U.S.C. § 7103(b)(1). Executive Order 14251 invoked that exclusion, and the judge found BOP's September 2025 termination rested on contradictory explanations. While the contract stands, official time is governed by the agreement under 5 U.S.C. § 7131(d), compressed schedules for bargaining-unit employees are set by the agreement under 5 U.S.C. § 6130(a)(1), and contract disputes run through the negotiated grievance procedure under 5 U.S.C. § 7121. If you are facing discipline and were denied representation, consult a federal employment attorney before your reply deadline passes.
2. USDA Says It Is "Full-Bore Ahead" on Reorganization While a Court Stay Blocks Closures and Out-of-Area Moves — the Ninth Circuit Has Left the Stay in Place, and Hub Jobs Are Being Filled Locally
Source: Government Executive, October 23, 2026
TL;DR: Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told reporters on Thursday that USDA is "full-bore ahead" with a reorganization that would move Forest Service headquarters to Salt Lake City, close nearly two dozen research stations, replace regional offices with state offices, and relocate about 2,600 employees. Judge Vince Chhabria's October 13 stay bars USDA from closing or eliminating offices at the affected components and from relocating or reassigning employees, positions, or functions outside the local commuting area; USDA appealed, and the Ninth Circuit has so far left the stay in place. A USDA spokesperson declined to explain the Secretary's statement and said further responses "will be filed with the court, not the press." Within the stay's limits, the Natural Resources Conservation Service is filling positions at its Fort Worth, Fort Collins, and Raleigh hub offices through a critical vacancy portal open until November 2 to local employees at their current grade or lower. The stay has also caught at least one employee's voluntary, self-funded relocation request, and several USAJobs postings now warn that covered USDA employees at the same grade cannot be selected if the job would move them outside their commuting area. The Forest Service workforce has fallen about 16 percent, to about 33,000, according to government data cited by the Associated Press.
For federal employees, this means:
- If you work at one of the eight affected USDA components, the Secretary's statement does not change your legal position: closures and out-of-area moves are stayed, and a letter of intent or directed-reassignment deadline cannot be enforced while the stay stands.
- The judge tied the stay to a restriction in the current funding law that expires December 11. Use the next six weeks to assemble your file: position description, any mobility agreement, your letter of intent, and every written response.
- Hub-office postings at your current grade or lower are voluntary. Before you apply, compare the offered grade and pay with what the grade- and pay-retention rules in 5 C.F.R. part 536 would give you if a reorganization later placed you in a lower-graded position.
Legal Insight
The stay rests on 5 U.S.C. § 705, which lets a reviewing court postpone an agency action to prevent irreparable injury while the case is decided. If the stay lifts and USDA directs a reassignment outside your commuting area, declining it counts as an "involuntary separation" for severance pay when your position description or other written agreement does not require mobility, 5 C.F.R. § 550.703, and a removal for declining a directed reassignment is an adverse action with notice, reply, and MSPB appeal rights under 5 U.S.C. § 7513; the agency must then show the reassignment served a legitimate management reason. If you receive a directed-reassignment letter with a deadline, consult a federal employment attorney before you respond.
3. Two Marines Sue the Pentagon Under the Privacy Act Over the DMDC Breach That Exposed More Than 3 Million Records — What the Law Requires, and What You Can Actually Recover When an Agency Fails
Source: Federal News Network, October 22, 2026
TL;DR: An active-duty Marine and a Marine veteran filed a proposed class action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Tuesday, October 20, alleging that the Defense Department violated the Privacy Act of 1974 by failing to safeguard records in the Defense Manpower Data Center's file-sharing system. DMDC discovered the vulnerability on July 16 after a "small number of unauthorized users" had access for nearly nine months, and affected individuals were not notified until late September. The exposed data — names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, contact information, military jobs, and other records — belonged to nearly 2.8 million living people and 294,000 who are deceased. The complaint cites inspector general warnings dating to 2021, and the plaintiffs describe fraudulent charges and a surge of spam since the breach; one says identity theft could jeopardize the security clearance his job requires. The suit seeks to represent more than 3 million people and asks for more than $5 million in damages. The Pentagon says it has no indication of misuse and is offering 12 months of credit monitoring through IDX. DMDC maintains records on more than 60 million troops, veterans, current and former civilian employees, contractors, and family members; the department has not said which groups the breach reached.
For federal employees, this means:
- If you received a DMDC breach notice — as a DoD civilian, a veteran, or a military family member — enroll in the credit monitoring, place a free credit freeze with all three bureaus, and keep the notice and any evidence of fraud. Under the Privacy Act, proof of actual financial loss is what makes damages possible.
- If you hold a security clearance, report identity theft that affects your finances to your security officer rather than waiting it out. The adjudicative guidelines treat responsibly handled identity theft as a mitigating circumstance; unexplained, unreported delinquencies are what cause problems.
- This is the second Privacy Act development involving federal personnel records in a week: on October 20 a judge in New York held that OPM violated the Act by giving DOGE agents broad access to employee records. The remedy there is still to be decided.
Legal Insight
The Privacy Act requires every agency to "establish appropriate administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to insure the security and confidentiality of records," 5 U.S.C. § 552a(e)(10), and allows an individual to sue when an agency's failure to comply has an adverse effect on them, 5 U.S.C. § 552a(g)(1)(D). Money damages are available only for intentional or willful violations, with a $1,000 floor for anyone who proves actual damages, 5 U.S.C. § 552a(g)(4), and the Supreme Court has held that "actual damages" means proven economic loss, not emotional distress, FAA v. Cooper, 566 U.S. 284 (2012). A suit must be filed within two years of when the person knew or should have known of the violation, 5 U.S.C. § 552a(g)(5). Those limits are why the DMDC plaintiffs lead with fraudulent charges, and why the remedy phase of the OPM case matters.
Legal Tip of the Day
When the Agency's Message and the Court's Order Don't Match
When a court order, an agency announcement, and what your supervisor tells you point in different directions, it is tempting to act on whatever you heard last. Slow down. Ask for any instruction that affects your job, location, schedule, or pay in writing, including who issued it and when it takes effect. Save every notice, email, and job posting, with dates, in a private file outside government systems. Write down each deadline you are given and the day you received it. If you are asked to sign, accept, or decide something quickly, ask for time to review it first. Do not assume a press statement changes what you must do, or that a pending lawsuit protects your individual rights or pauses your own deadlines.
In Case You Missed It
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Who Is DOJ Hiring to Enforce Civil Rights? What a New York Times Investigation Found
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Worried About Retaliation or Being Targeted for Speaking Up?
If you’ve reported misconduct, safety concerns, discrimination, or waste/fraud/abuse—and now you’re seeing sudden schedule changes, bad performance reviews, or threats of discipline—you may be in whistleblower or retaliation territory.
We represent federal employees who:
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Reported concerns and then saw adverse actions
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Were sidelined, reassigned, or given impossible workloads after speaking up
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Face investigations, PIPs, or proposed removals that look like payback
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Need help navigating OSC complaints, EEO claims, or MSPB appeals tied to retaliation
A free, confidential consultation can help you sort out what’s normal agency behavior and what may cross the line—and what to do before your options narrow.
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Disclaimer:
This briefing is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney‑client relationship. Federal employment law is fact‑specific and time‑sensitive; you should consult a qualified attorney about your own situation and deadlines. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.
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