Workforce
Arbitrator restores telework and remote work at the Forest Service
The U.S. Forest Service violated its collective bargaining agreement with the National Federation of Federal Employees last year when it unilaterally canceled telework and remote work agreements en masse as part of the Trump administration’s return-to-office mandate.
The biggest story in the federal workforce cuts isn't how many left, it's who wasn't replaced
COMMENTARY | The data suggest the workforce reduction reshaped not just the size of government, but the expertise available to carry out its work, one expert argues.
Fired EPA dissenters sue for reinstatement, alleging First Amendment violations
Seven former EPA employees said they were targeted for removal for signing an open “declaration of dissent” in their personal capacities because they had fewer civil service protections rather than any wrongdoing.
Judges block Trump effort to narrow public service loan forgiveness
The rulings preserve existing eligibility rules for now while testing how much authority the Education Department has to reshape a popular benefit for public service workers.
Unions sue to restore DOD collective bargaining rights, asserting ‘chaos’
A new lawsuit alleges that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s order last April to terminate most union contracts led to a slapdash implementation process that stripped bargaining rights even from those exempt from President Trump’s anti-labor executive orders.
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Some disabled veterans say losing telework accommodations is making it harder for them to keep working at the VA
Employees with disabilities at several agencies have alleged that they’re being forced to return to the office, even though the Trump administration’s directive ending telework flexibility for the civil service exempted those with qualifying reasonable accommodations.
Trump wants to scrap a key framework for federal employee discipline
Officials said the Douglas factors, 12 criteria federal agencies have used for 45 years to devise and justify discipline for misconduct, are too restrictive and “mechanistic.” Practitioners disagree.
OPM proposes ‘decentralized’ FEVS with fewer questions and less transparency
Agencies would be expected to conduct their own workforce surveys each year, with little rules on how much, or how little, they divulge to the public about it.
OPM finalizes ‘Nixonian’ rule centralizing and enabling some federal firings
Under final regulations published this week, the federal government’s dedicated HR agency can remove federal employees from across government over suitability and conduct issues—blocking most avenues for appeal.
Union accuses Treasury and HHS of neglecting telework requests from employees with disabilities
The lawsuit highlights federal employees who have been waiting for more than a year to hear back about their reasonable accommodation requests as well as individuals whose need to telework ended before the agency responded.
IRS agrees to stop stealing workers’ pro-union decorations
The National Treasury Employees Union sued the agency earlier this month after multiple instances in which management confiscated and disposed of flyers and other decorations from employees’ workstations and communal bulletin boards.
Judge halts Trump administration effort to exert political control over union elections
U.S. District Judge Denise Caspar said the Federal Labor Relations Authority’s move earlier this year to usurp jurisdiction over some cases from career employees was arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act.
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Despite criticism of Trump’s SES reforms, senior executives group backs recent updates to training program
Officials from the Office of Personnel Management said that the changes to the training and development program are necessary to promote standardization across agencies.
OPM’s new suitability authority blurs the line between hiring vetting and employee discipline
COMMENTARY | A change allowing suitability actions for post-appointment misconduct could reshape how agencies respond to issues uncovered through continuous vetting, but the Office of Personnel Management’s willingness to use it will determine whether it becomes a routine tool or a rarely used exception.
Lawmakers, unions and civil society groups urge withdrawal of governmentwide NDA plan
The Office of Personnel Management received more than 30,000 comments on its plan to require federal workers sign nondisclosure agreements, which critics said would violate the First Amendment and chill whistleblowers.
Bill would limit federal relocations to states with abortion restrictions
Legislation introduced by Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., would block the Trump administration from relocating agencies to states that have instituted or revived abortion bans since the fall of Roe v. Wade, and grants feds the right to refuse relocations to those jurisdictions.
Lawmakers warn acting intelligence chief against major workforce changes
Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., pointed to reports of potential staff cuts and warned against using the temporary appointment to make lasting personnel or declassification decisions at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Unions urge court to force ruling in ‘loyalty question’ lawsuit
Three months after a hearing on whether to block federal agencies from asking four politicized essay questions of every federal job applicant, a federal judge still has not issued a decision.
NSF is using its HQ move to revoke telework for workers with disabilities, employees say
Most of the science agency’s workforce is currently teleworking, as they are being relocated to a new office building that is close to the former headquarters.
In rare move, full appeals court agrees to hear case challenging Trump’s ‘Article II’ firings
Federal circuit courts typically hear cases via randomized three-judge panels, reserving review by the entire judicial bench for its most important cases.
NTEU sues IRS over destruction of employees’ pro-union decorations
The Internal Revenue Service last month issued a directive barring employees from posting flyers and other decorations related to the National Treasury Employees Union, which the union says violates the First Amendment.
