Trump restricts federal employees' right to appeal dismissals
Kyiv • UNN
The Trump administration has completed a reform that restricts the right of 50,000 civil servants to appeal dismissals. The new Office of Personnel Management rules allow these specialists to be dismissed without lengthy procedures.
The Donald Trump administration has finalized a reform that strips tens of thousands of civil servants of protection from rapid dismissal. The new rules from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) significantly limit the legal avenues for officials to challenge their removal from office, which is part of the president's plan to reform the state apparatus. This is reported by Reuters, writes UNN.
Details
The reform introduces a "Schedule Policy/Career" category, which will include about 50,000 employees involved in developing state policy. These specialists lose their career civil servant status and become "at-will" employees, allowing them to be dismissed without lengthy procedures.
The main change is the de facto abolition of the right to appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) for this category of positions. The White House explains this by the need for rapid removal of individuals who may sabotage presidential directives.
Union opposition and legal consequences
Unions and Democratic Party representatives called Trump's move a return to a "patronage system" where loyalty outweighs professionalism.
Despite the fact that the vast majority of feedback during public hearings was negative, the administration plans to launch the mechanism in March 2026. Lawyers are preparing lawsuits, trying to prove that depriving people of the right to protection violates the stability of the state system.