Did the government change job rules to make firing easier, and who sued?

"Individuals appointed to a position under 5 CFR 213.3501 acquire competitive status after completing one year of continuous service in the position."

"Schedule Policy/Career allows agencies to move certain career civil service positions into a category that can be removed at will—without the notice, cause, and appeal protections that typically apply to career employees."

"flatly reject the notion that Schedule Policy/Career will politicize the Federal service or lead to high turnover."

"Close to 8,000 career federal employees will be moved into a new employment category with limited job protections"

"Schedule Policy/Career will make it easier for agencies to discipline or fire affected employees for any reason, with no opportunity for employees to appeal adverse actions to the Merit Systems Protection Board."

"Historically, that language has been used to describe political appointees—particularly Schedule C positions—rather than career employees who entered government service through competitive hiring."

"The Trump administration is facing a lawsuit against its efforts to remove civil service protections from a swath of career federal employees. Plaintiffs allege that the creation of Schedule Policy/Career violates due process rights, exceeds presidential authority and contradicts federal statute."

"the new classification could potentially reach tens of thousands of career civil servants whose jobs involve policy work but who were hired under merit system rules."

"In April 2025, OPM’s proposed regulations on Schedule Policy/Career received over 40,000 public comments, with about 94% of commenters opposed to the regulation."

"The plaintiffs argue that OPM justified the rule by asserting that agencies struggle to discipline poor performers. Yet the rule itself does not turn on employee performance—it turns on the type of work performed."

"[EXTERNAL] OPM Memo\_ Executive Order – Excepting Administrative Law Judges from the Competitive Service..."

"The regulations were one of the last required steps before agencies begin converting career federal employees in “policy-influencing” positions to the new employment classification, in effect removing their civil service protections and make them easier to fire."

"President Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order formally converting nearly 10,000 career federal workers into Schedule Policy/Career, making them effectively at-will employees."

"The Executive Order reclassifies thousands of senior “policy-influencing” career civil service roles — primarily at the GS‑15 and senior levels — into a new excepted-service category that significantly reduces traditional civil service protections."

"The purpose of the provision is to increase the president's control over the federal career civil service by removing their civil service protections and making them easier to dismiss, which proponents stated would increase flexibility and accountability to elected officials."

"Once finalized, agencies will be able to suspend, demote or fire any Schedule Policy/Career employee without going through standard adverse action procedures."

"Employees placed into the new schedule would no longer be able to challenge adverse personnel actions before the Merit Systems Protection Board, and whistleblower complaints filed by Schedule F employees would be investigated by their own agency, rather than the Office of Special Counsel."

"Reclassified employees placed into Schedule Policy/Career will become “at‑will” employees, generally meaning that they can be fired more easily, have their traditional due‑process protections reduced or removed and their agencies can take faster disciplinary action."

"The classification, then known as Schedule F, existed briefly at the end of the first Trump administration during 2020 and 2021, but was never fully implemented and no one was appointed to it before it was repealed at the beginning of the Biden administration ."

"The American Federation of Government Employees, in partnership with other federal unions and employee organizations, is expected to soon file a lawsuit challenging the Schedule Policy/Career final rule. It follows an initial lawsuit against Trump’s day-one executive order calling for the creation of Schedule Policy/Career."

"contrary to the administration’s prior estimates that 50,000 feds would be converted to the new job category, just 8,000 jobs are targeted in Wednesday’s executive order."

"It was reinstated as Schedule Policy/Career at the beginning of the second Trump administration in 2025, and an updated rule allowing reclassifications was issued in February 2026."

"Turning tens or maybe hundreds of thousands of these professionals into at-will employees doesn’t make government more accountable. It makes it more vulnerable to pressure, retaliation and political interference"

"The policy remains the subject of multiple lawsuits by federal employee unions, who have accused the administration of violating the Constitution, the 1978 Civil Service Reform Act and the Administrative Procedures Act."

"Schedule Policy/Career positions will, for the most part, no longer be eligible for student loan repayment options, nor will they be able to receive recruitment, retention or relocation incentives."

"OPM’s final rule implementing the new job category took effect in March."

"OPM, however, has stated that agencies are prohibited from requiring Schedule Policy/Career employees to pledge personal or political loyalty to the President or his policies"

"Schedule C appointments were created in 1956 and are part of the excepted service"

"career positions do not end when a presidential administration changes"

"In July 2008, members of Congress criticized the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Justice for improperly allowing political employees to convert to career positions"

"Officials estimate that around 50,000 federal workers will be stripped of their civil service protections beginning in around a month, as unions, employee associations and good government groups decry their positions’ politicization."

"Trump fires one-third of federal employee appeals board"

"First developed during Trump’s first term and revived last year, Schedule F—now renamed Schedule Policy/Career—is a new job classification within the government’s excepted service for “policy-related” positions."

"It was rescinded by President Biden as soon as he took office in January 2021."

"And Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, promised an “imminent” court challenge to the rule, in coordination with other employee groups."

"Merit Systems Board Member Harris Sues Trump Over Firing (2)"

"Fully 94% of the more than 40,000 comments submitted on the proposed rule were opposed to the policy."

"Federal judge rules Trump's firing of merit board chair was illegal"

"“This new designation can be used to remove expert career federal employees who place the law and service to the public ahead of blind loyalty and replace them with political supporters who will unquestioningly do the president’s bidding.”"

"Judge orders thousands of federal workers reinstated; slams 'sham' government declaration"