(TruthAndLiberty.com) – On Thursday, the Biden administration revealed a definitive regulation designed to safeguard federal employees, making it more challenging to dismiss them. This move is seen as a strategy to block potential attempts by ex-President Trump to deplete the federal workforce should he win another term.
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) promulgated the regulation, which solidifies the status of nonpartisan career civil servants, ensuring they cannot be deprived of their protected status and barring their reassignment as political appointees.
In 2020, Trump had initiated an executive order enabling the reclassification of numerous federal workers, thereby removing their job protections. Upon assuming office, President Biden annulled this order, criticizing it for jeopardizing the merit-based civil service system that has been a hallmark of American governance.
The administration criticized Trump’s “Schedule F” order for attempting to undermine the job security of career civil servants, which would have allowed hiring and firing decisions to be influenced by political biases.
The newly established rule aims to forestall any similar actions by Trump if he returns to power, stipulating that policy-making roles should be confined to political appointees and not affect nonpartisan career civil servants.
President Biden, commenting on the rule, emphasized its role in protecting 2.2 million career civil servants from political meddling, asserting that it would help ensure government employees can focus on serving the American populace effectively. He framed the rule as an initiative to curb corruption and political interference, enhancing the capacity of civil servants to perform their duties diligently.
During the rule’s development, the OPM analyzed over 4,000 public comments, reflecting a comprehensive engagement with stakeholders to inform the finalization of the regulation.
Copyright 2024, TruthAndLiberty.com
