📏New Performance Rules
Hey friend,
The Office of Personnel Management rolled out major changes to how federal agencies evaluate and discipline their employees and it could mean fewer top ratings, faster firings, and more pressure on supervisors to take action.
This could disrupt your future performance evaluations.
In a memo issued June 17, OPM told agencies to stop giving out so many top ratings during performance reviews. OPM’s Acting Director said the current system is too generous and fails to hold employees accountable.
“Ratings above ‘Fully Successful’ must reflect performance that far exceeds the position’s responsibilities”
Agencies are being urged to apply stricter standards and reserve awards and bonuses for only the most exceptional employees.
OPM is also pushing for faster consequences for underperformance. The memo encourages agencies to:
Swiftly remove, demote, or reassign poor performers
Limit Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs) to 30 business days
Skip progressive discipline when outright removal is appropriate
Agencies exempt from collective bargaining (those with national security missions) are expected to move especially quickly.
Deadlines:
July 31, 2025 – Agencies must report progress to OPM
October 1, 2026 – Full implementation deadline
😕Officers in Limbo
The State Department’s sweeping plan to downsize and reorganize has hit a major roadblock leaving nearly 2,000 employees, including many Foreign Service officers, in a state of uncertainty.
A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction last Friday that temporarily blocks the State Department from executing reductions in force (RIFs) and reorganization efforts under a recent executive order.
That means nearly 1,900 planned layoffs, including Foreign Service and civil service employees, are now paused. The department wanted to reduce its workforce by 18%, using both involuntary RIFs and voluntary separation incentives.
Foreign Service officers currently serving in domestic offices have been frozen in place, unable to transfer to new domestic or overseas assignments.
“Without being paneled into new assignments, over 160 Foreign Service employees sit in limbo,” one officer said.
Assignment panels were halted by verbal and email instructions last week while Deputy Secretary Michael Rigas reviews the reorganization plan.
What’s Next?
No layoffs or reorganizations can move forward under the current injunction.
The judge’s ruling buys time for legal challenges and employee advocacy.
Both Foreign Service and civil service employees remain in uncertain status, waiting for updates.
🤝Reinstatement
After one of the most sweeping workforce cuts in federal history, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is walking back some of the layoffs. Roughly one-third of its RIF'd staff have now been reinstated.
This development is part of a larger effort by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which cut approximately 25% of its workforce on April 1.
At an all-hands meeting this week, acting CDC COO Sara Patterson confirmed that the agency has reinstated about 800 employees who were let go in April’s reduction-in-force (RIF).
In addition to firings, CDC experienced a wave of voluntary exits:
500+ employees retired, many under early retirement offers
400 employees left through the deferred resignation program (still on paid leave)
180 accepted buyouts worth up to $25,000
400 probationary employees remain terminated
Some probationary employees were terminated and then rehired.
A group of fired HHS employees has filed a federal lawsuit, alleging that the agency used “hopelessly error-ridden” data to execute its April layoffs. Their attorney likened the process to “taking a hatchet to the agency with a blindfold on.”
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently stated in a podcast that NIH scientists will be barred from publishing in certain medical journals, calling them “corrupt.” He said HHS will build its own internal journals instead.
🤝Hiring Events
⚠️Hiring Freeze for the majority of the government impacts virtual events⚠️
June 25th from 3:30pm - 4pm EST
USAJOBS launched the Veterans Eligibility Tool (VET), on May 30th to educate job seekers who are veterans and families of veterans on the hiring preferences they could be eligible for when applying to jobs.
Join their demo as we share how to use the VET and ask any questions on their new feature.
Register here
June 25th from 8am - 11am PST
The Bureau of Prisons is participating in a Job Fair at the Wyndham Hotel
9000 W. Airport Drive, Visalia, CA 93277
This is part of the Visalia Industrial Job Fair sponsored by Visalia Economic Development Corporation. Meet with Bureau Recruiters and learn more about careers offered by the Bureau of Prisons.
Learn more here
June 25th from 12pm - 1:30pm EST
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC) Nuclear Regulator Apprenticeship Network (NRAN) is hosting a virtual event where you’ll learn how this 18-month entry level developmental program can build your skills for a variety of career paths, including engineering, physics and environmental science and apply them to nuclear regulation and inspections. The NRC is home for the NRAN and is an independent federal agency that oversees the safety, security and regulation of the civilian use of nuclear energy.
This event is ideal for students excited about advances in science, technology and nuclear who want to experience a variety of possible career paths in a supportive, intellectually challenging environment.
Register here
June 26th from 12pm - 1pm EST
Federal Bureau of Prisons is hosting another event. Kristen will be available to answer all your questions, including:
What is it like to work inside a federal prison?
What are the key skills and qualities needed for success in this field?
How do I start the application process, and what should I include in my resume?
What job opportunities and benefits are available at the Federal Bureau of Prisons?
Join using this information:
Microsoft Teams
Meeting ID: 992 795 226 612
Passcode: Hn2AP6cv
**Dial in by phone**: +1 202-235-7900,,766559683# (United States, Washington) **Find a local number** **Phone conference ID**: 766 559 683#
June 26th from 9am - 2pm EST
The Federal Bureau of Prisons is hosting a Federal Correctional Institution Safford Recruitment event at: 1529 W. Highway 366, Safford, AZ 85546.
Join them for a day and see the diversity of careers at the Bureau of Prisons (BOP). Learn from knowledgeable staff while exploring exciting, fulfilling career opportunities from Correctional Officers to Registered Nurses.
Learn more here
🏆Success Story
Check out the last livestream on the federal job news: here
(Skip to 05:51 for audio)
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