employees | Voter.org

The New Danger in Trump’s Washington: Honoring Federal Employees

June 19, 2025 Washington, federal, employees, trumps, danger', honoring0 comment

In some ways, last night’s Sammie awards—also known as the Oscars for federal employees—proceeded just as they do every year. In a packed auditorium a few blocks from the White House, government luminaries handed out medals to some of the nation’s most talented civil servants, recognizing groundbreaking research, major improvements in customer service, and top-notch stewardship of taxpayer money. The ceremony, however, was unusual in one respect: Hardly any of the honorees took the stage to accept their awards. Instead, they stayed at their seats, away from the cameras. Public…

Unions, lawmakers urge federal employees to be cautious, stay in their jobs

January 30, 2025 unions, Jobs, urge, Their, Lawmakers, federal, employees, stay, cautious0 comment

Democratic lawmakers, as well as many federal unions and organizations, are urging federal employees to exercise extreme caution in response to the Trump administration’s request for voluntary resignations from the career federal workforce. Many organizations, including the National Treasury Employees Union, are encouraging federal employees to remain in their jobs and reject the Trump administration’s offer of what it called a “deferred resignation program” to the majority of the roughly 2.2 million career federal employees. “The so-called ‘deal’ is a hostile effort to disparage federal employees, weaken agencies and disrupt…

9 GOP bills for federal employees to track in the new Congress

January 18, 2025 employees, bills, Congress, Track, federal0 comment

At the start of the 119th Congress, lawmakers were quick to introduce a flurry of bills that would have lasting consequences for the federal workforce. Much of the GOP-led legislation will be familiar to federal employees — a majority of the bills have been reintroduced for at least the last couple of years. But now that Republicans hold a majority in both chambers of Congress, and with the incoming Trump administration, the prospects for the legislation may be shifting. Here are just a handful of bills from Republican lawmakers in…

House VA Committee leader demands ‘airtight case’ for VA IT employees getting pay boost

August 3, 2024 Demands, Getting, leader, Committee, boost, employees, ‘airtight, case, House0 comment

A top Republican on the House VA Committee is scrutinizing the number of the employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs who are receiving a pay raise meant for hard-to-keep IT and cyber experts. The VA implemented a Special Salary Rate last summer, giving more than 7,000 employees in its Office of Information Technology (OIT) a substantial boost in pay. The SSR resulted in a 17% average pay increase for VA tech and cyber workers in 2210-classified positions. VA OIT has over 7,500 employees in these positions, and they account…

Lawmakers press agencies on ‘employment barriers’ for federal employees teleworking overseas

May 7, 2024 federal, employees, Overseas, Agencies, Employment, Barriers, teleworking, Press, Lawmakers0 comment

The Biden administration is stepping up plans to make the federal government an employer of choice for military and Foreign Service families. Now lawmakers are pressing agencies for an update on these efforts. Democrats on the House Oversight and Accountability Committee are asking agencies how they’re “eliminating employment barriers and advancing employment opportunities” for military and civilian families who serve overseas. The 11 committee members, led by Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) are specifically asking the 24 largest federal agencies about how many of their employees are holding jobs while teleworking…

Congress ponders new discrimination protections for older employees

February 13, 2024 Congress, employees, discrimination, Older, Protections, ponders0 comment

A bill in the House would boost protections against discrimination of older workers, protections that were weakened by the Supreme Court back in 2009. It is called the Protecting Older Workers Against Age Discrimination Act (POWADA). For specifics, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin talked with Tully Rinckey attorney Michael Fallings. Interview Transcript: Tom Temin Now, this law applies to everyone in the public and private sectors. This proposed bill. Correct? Michael Fallings Correct. Tom Temin And in your experience, I mean, what types of discrimination occur against older workers…