A federal employee who had been arrested and convicted of assault for biting off a portion of her neighbor’s thumb found herself in a confrontation with her supervisor. The employee argued in court that her past work record should not be used in determining the penalty.
A fired federal employee who appealed to the Merit Systems Protection Board about 19 months after the deadline has managed to persuade the federal appeals court to overturn the Board’s dismissal of her appeal as untimely and therefore has won the right to have her case heard on the merits. A court found that the agency’s notice of appeal rights was incorrect at one point in the 4-year history of the case.
A Customs and Border Protection Officer who has been on the city council for a Texas town was told by the agency to resign his seat because of an apparent conflict of interest. The employee went to court and district court has issued a preliminary injunction in his favor.
How much information is enough to meet the due process requirement when taking an adverse action against a federal employee based on the suspension of the clearance? A new decision may create problems for agencies–and a possible trip to the US Supreme Court before the issue is finalized.
An unsuccessful job applicant took his case to court arguing an agency violated the veterans preference legislation. Not so, said the agency, as veteran’s preferences do not apply to a non-competitive appointment list.
If you are a federal employee and happen to have strong views about the program you work on in your job, what do you do if the agency is taking a position with which you disagree? Is an attempt to undermine your agency’s case in court the protected action of a whistleblower? The Federal Circuit provides an answer.
It is a common perception that it is impossible to fire a federal employee. As this case proves, it may take time, effort, expert human resources and legal advice, and patience but it is not impossible to fire a federal employee.
Does a federal employee have a 5th Amendment right to refuse to obey a request to appear and answer questions in connection with an agency administrative interview?
Absolute performance standards can be permissible in a federal agency. In this case, the “zero tolerance” policy against threats in the workplace was upheld by a federal court and a federal employee is out of a job after 20 years of working for the federal government.
A senior executive with the Treasury Department found himself on the losing end of an appeal after his denials were called into question as a result of the agency reviewing his e-mail.
