CDC Reinstates Some Employees
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reinstated nearly 800 of the roughly 2,400 employees who were terminated in April via a reduction-in-force. According to Federal News Network, the CDC processed more than 500 employee retirements between April and May, the majority through VERA. More than 400 employees accepted the deferred resignation offer, and an additional 180 took VSIP.
USPS Continues Progress with Unions
The U.S. Postal Service and the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association have reached a collective bargaining agreement that will remain in effect through May 20, 2027. With a final vote of 9,730 to 4,880, 67% of NRLCA members approved the contract. Next up is the American Postal Workers Union, which began mailing members ballots early this week. The ballots, due by July 10, will determine the fate of a 3 year tentative agreement that the APWU has reached with USPS.
Judge Blocks State Department Layoffs
Judge Susan Illston’s preliminary injunction, initially issued on May 22, 2025, to block reductions in force (RIFs) and reorganizations across approximately 20 federal agencies, was explicitly clarified and expanded to include the State Department’s planned layoffs on June 13, 2025. The preliminary injunction blocking the Trump administration’s large-scale reductions in force (RIFs) and agency reorganizations, issued in response to a February 11, 2025, executive order, is currently under consideration for Supreme Court review. The administration appealed the injunction to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and, on June 2, 2025, asked the Supreme Court to stay Illston’s order while litigation proceeds. The Ninth Circuit previously declined to lift the injunction, and the Supreme Court has requested plaintiffs respond to the administration’s stay request by June 9, 2025. No final ruling from the Supreme Court has been issued yet.
OPM Issues Performance Management Guidance
An Office of Personnel Management (OPM) memo, titled “Performance Management for Federal Employees,” issued June 17, 2025, introduces reforms to enhance accountability and address performance issues in the federal workforce. It directs agencies to ensure performance ratings are not inflated, limiting “outstanding” ratings to truly exceptional performers, and to implement a new mandatory performance metric for supervisors within 30 days. This metric evaluates supervisors on their ability to reward excellence and swiftly address poor performance, including through disciplinary actions like removal. Agencies are also encouraged to update policies to facilitate quicker termination, demotion, or reassignment of underperforming employees and to avoid progressive discipline when removal is appropriate.
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