Management
OPM's subtle shifts could redefine federal HR
COMMENTARY | A longtime federal HR chief welcomes the Office of Personnel Management's push to modernize pay and promotions, but warns against the legal tactic the agency is using to make it happen.
Workforce
Federal employee NDAs aren’t new, but expanding them requires careful guardrails
COMMENTARY | A new proposal would expand federal nondisclosure agreements beyond classified work. Will it curb leaks or chill legitimate whistleblowing?
Workforce
OPM moves to allow agencies to promote workers faster
Officials said the nearly 80-year-old requirement that federal employees serve in their current positions for at least one year before they may be promoted is “outdated.”
Workforce
OPM proposes requiring all feds to sign an NDA
Experts warned the measure, when combined with the federal HR agency’s new power to target employees’ suitability for federal employment, creates a new pathway for Trump administration officials to purge those deemed insufficiently loyal to the president.
Pay & Benefits
NTEU asks Trump administration to ease telework rules as gas prices spike
The union also called for an increase in gas reimbursement rates as the president’s war against Iran continues to disrupt the world’s oil supply.
Workforce
Feds wary of skills-based hiring survey after 15 months of attacks
The combination of a lack of outreach around a newly deployed survey of federal workers’ skillsets with the recent flood of layoffs, purges and reorganizations has made some reluctant to participate in the bipartisan initiative.
Management
10 years after OPM data breach, identity protection benefits for affected feds start to expire
A federal identity monitoring program created after the hack is ending, affecting employees whose information was exposed and raising questions about long-term responsibility once protections expire.
Workforce
From bowling repairs to zoology, Trump admin consolidates job titles affecting 5,000 feds
The impacted employees will not lose their jobs and OPM says it will help them be more agile.
Pay & Benefits
They did everything right and still haven’t been paid
Months after retiring, some federal workers are stuck in a bureaucratic maze with no checks, no answers and no clear end in sight.
Pay & Benefits
OPM proposes hazard pay for more federal firefighting activities
Under recently unveiled regulations, federal wildland firefighters would be eligible for a 25% increase in pay when they work on prescribed burns, a proactive tool to mitigate the risk of wildfires.
Management
GSA and OPM will soon share the same headquarters
The General Services Administration will temporarily move into the Office of Personnel Management’s building before both agencies ultimately transfer to a renovated GSA headquarters.
Workforce
OPM cuts degree requirements for government tech jobs in new standards
The changes have been years in the making and represent a federal hiring apparatus more focused on applicable skills than specific backgrounds.
Oversight
House Dems: OPM ‘omitted’ employee departures from retirement backlog investigation
In responding to a December 2025 congressional inquiry, the Office of Personnel Management noted the separation of around 35 customer service representatives last year, but failed to mention more than 100 departures from its Retirement Services division.
Pay & Benefits
OPM to FEHB carriers: Cut costs, MAHA style
In the federal HR agency’s annual letter to insurers, officials called for the end to cash incentives for childhood vaccine adoption and urged insurers to require therapy before prescribing GLP-1 drugs to combat obesity.
Workforce
OPM wants federal workers’ medical records
A proposal would require insurers to turn over detailed, identifiable health data on 8 million feds and their families.
Management
Trump admin uses Kid Rock and football to recruit young people to government
A good government group contended that the president’s broader civil service reforms, including previous cuts to early-career staff, would undermine efforts to recruit younger workers.
Workforce
Top Oversight Dem criticizes OPM’s forced distribution plan for federal worker appraisals
Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., said that the federal government’s dedicated HR agency failed to sufficiently grapple with past OPM policy or the wealth of research finding that forced distribution models for performance appraisals is counterproductive to organizational health.
Workforce
Defense workers' morale has plunged under Trump, survey finds
Only 9% of Army civilians found Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s leadership motivating.
Workforce
Survey of 11,000 feds underscores ‘layer cake of trauma’
A new survey from the Partnership for Public Service, aimed at replicating the cancelled 2025 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, reveals just 7% of federal workers believe their political leaders engender high motivation.
Workforce