House legislation seeks to add protections for probationary employees 

Some House members are seeking to push back against widespread layoffs, firings and deferred resignations across the federal government with new legislation. 

A bill put forth by Rep. Johnny Olszewski, D-Md., on April 10 as the Protect Promoted Workers Act (H.R. 2880). It proposes to add more protections for federal employees who have entered a probationary period due to promotion to a competitive service, excepted service or Senior Executive Service position.

Olszewski said in a statement that the bill was inspired by one of his constituents, an Interior Department employee of six years who was let go as part of recent Department of Government Efficiency actions only months into a promotion. That person not have customary civil service protections due to being within a probationary period. 

“Workers were fired for being good at their jobs. They were offered no notice, no severance and no healthcare,” Olszewski said. “It’s not fair to them or the taxpayers who rely on the vital services they excelled at providing.”

Under the legislation, Subchapter II or Subchapter V protections within Chapter 75 of U.S. Title 5 statutes would be extended to recently promoted competitive service, excepted service or Senior Executive Service employees. They would get due process protections of more than 14 days of suspension, reduction in grade or pay, or furlough of 30 days or less and requires actions to be taken for cause. 

The bill would give SES members further protections, such as at least 30 days advance written notice of any job action taken by the agency — unless there is reasonable cause to believe that the employee has committed a crime. The bill also provides the employee no less than seven days “to answer orally and in writing and to furnish affidavits and other documentary evidence”, have legal representation and a written decision and specific reasons for the action, provided by the agency. 

SES employees would also be entitled to the option of a hearing, the opportunity to appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board, and other evidentiary rights. 

The bill has been endorsed by the American Federation of Government Employees. It has also been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

OPM memo offers pay extensions for some federal civilian employees 

An April 10 memo from the Office of Personnel Management extended the authority for agency heads to waive the normally applicable pay cap for certain federal civilian employees through the remainder of 2025. 

The memo outlines the enactment of several sections of the fiscal 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, including the extension of section 1101 of the fiscal 2009 NDAA Duncan Hunter, which allows the pay waiver to reach up to the vice president’s salary in 2025, or $289,400, and any pay in addition to basic pay during the waiver is not counted as compensation in applying aggregate pay limitations under statute. 

The waiver applies to federal employees working overseas in an area overseen by U.S. Central Command, Africa Command, in support of a military operation or in response to a national emergency declared by the president.