Office of Personnel Management (OPM) officials met with agency leaders across government Thursday and directed them to begin firing employees still in their probationary period a year or more after being hired.
Federal employees remain on probation anywhere from one to two years after being hired, depending on their agency, a status that still comes with workplace protections but makes them easier to remove.
A source familiar with OPM said agency leaders have directed agencies to fire all probationary employees “with some exceptions.” It was not immediately clear what those exceptions were or the extent of discretion given to agencies.
“The probationary period is a continuation of the job application process, not an entitlement for permanent employment. Agencies are taking independent action in light of the recent hiring freeze and in support of the President’s broader efforts to restructure and streamline the federal government to better serve the American people at the highest possible standard,” an OPM spokesperson said in a statement.
The move is a reversal from an OPM directive just days earlier, when agencies were told to remove probationary employees only if they were poor performers.
The Trump administration has also used two other methods to cull the workforce: an executive order from President Trump directing agencies to undertake a reduction in force and the “Fork in the Road” program offering federal workers a buyout.
Developing.
Source: The Hill
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