While there are expected to be changes to employment-related policies in both the federal government as well as the private sector when Donald Trump returns to the Oval Office in January 2025, what is likely at top of mind for federal workers is Schedule F.

Trump has made it clear he intends to reinstate Schedule F.  Specifically, in his current “Agenda47” platform, Trump lays out a 10-point plan where he states he plans “to shatter the deep state and return power to the American people,” with the number-one item being re-issuing his 2020 executive order — Schedule F — and “restoring the president’s authority to fire rogue bureaucrats.”

Schedule F

What is Schedule F? As federal employees are well aware, in October 2020, President Donald Trump issued an executive order regarding Schedule F that would have allowed federal government agencies to reclassify workers, remove certain civil service protections and make them at-will employees, which essentially makes it easier for agencies to fire these  employees for any reason.

Specifically, Schedule F would categorize certain positions as policy making or policy evaluating, and therefore would be more responsive to the political party. The action also limited federal unions’ abilities for collective bargaining, which limited their ability to negotiate and to use “official time” working on union activities.

Many say that reinstating Schedule F would politicize federal civil service, which has long been nonpartisan.

But just three months later, and before the order was fully implemented, President Joe Biden rescinded the Schedule F executive order when he took office in January 2021.

Further, in April of 2024, The Biden administration implemented a new rule designed to prevent any future attempts to revive Schedule F, possibly foreshadowing another Trump Administration.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued the new rule which was published in the Federal Register on April 9, 2024. OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said at the time that the final rule “rule honors our 2.2 million career civil servants, helping ensure that people are hired and fired based on merit and that they can carry out their duties based on their expertise and not political loyalty.”

What’s Next?

While the OPM rule is just that — a rule — it is not law. Therefore, there is the possibility that with Republicans having control of the White House and the Congress, any rules aimed at protecting against Schedule F could be rescinded, and any laws could potentially be passed to strengthen Schedule F.

Further, potentially adding to federal employees’ concerns about their future employment under a Trump Administration, a new “Department of Government Efficiency” will be led by Tesla founder Elon Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy. The non-government advisory entity is tasked to work with the OMB to restructure federal agencies and cut spending and regulations, apparently until the summer of 2026.

Musk and Ramaswamy, in an opinion piece published in the Wall Street Journal Nov. 20, 2024, stated that they support requiring federal employees to work from the office five days a week as part of their proposed overhaul of the civil service. That alone could result in a “wave of voluntary terminations,” as opposed to mass firings Ramaswamy has stated.

The Pendleton Act in 1883 instituted a competitive hiring process and protected workers from partisan-based removal. The U.S. government then slowly developed a professionalized, public-oriented civil service, and the Pendleton Act was followed by a series of statutes and regulations that culminated in the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, which largely created our current “merit system,” according to the website Protect Democracy.

Stay tuned, and buckle up.

If you are an employee in the federal workplace, consulting with an experienced Tully Rinckey attorney can make all the difference when issues arise. A skilled attorney can fight to get you the best possible outcome in your case. Call 8885294543 or contact us online today for a consultation and get an advocate who will fight for your rights and help secure your career and your future.

Michael C. Fallings, Esq. focuses his practice on federal sector labor and employment law. Mike has extensive experience litigating cases on behalf of employees at the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), and in both state and federal courts. He also has experience negotiating settlement agreements on behalf of federal employees.