Trump revives ‘Schedule F’ rule to make firing federal workers easier
US President Donald Trump is pushing forward with a sweeping overhaul of the federal workforce, reviving a controversial rule that would give the executive branch broad power to fire tens of thousands of career civil servants.
In a move published Friday by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Trump’s administration announced a proposed rule invoking a revised version of “Schedule F” — a classification that would strip job protections from federal employees involved in policymaking and confidential duties. The rule, now renamed Schedule Policy/Career, was first introduced during Trump’s final months in office but was swiftly repealed by President Joe Biden on his first day.
Trump made the announcement on his Truth Social platform, saying, “If these government workers refuse to advance the policy interests of the President, or are engaging in corrupt behaviour, they should no longer have a job. This is common sense, and will allow the federal government to finally be ‘run like a business.’”
According to the OPM, the new rule could reclassify up to 50,000 federal workers, dramatically increasing the president’s ability to remove those deemed noncompliant or politically disloyal. The White House said the move aims to improve performance, root out corruption, and remove obstacles to enacting presidential directives.
“This rule empowers federal agencies to swiftly remove employees in policy-influencing roles for poor performance, misconduct, corruption, or subversion of Presidential directives, without lengthy procedural hurdles,” the White House said in a statement.
Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, warned that Trump’s plan would “erode the government’s merit-based hiring system and undermine the professional civil service that Americans rely on.”
The rule specifically targets “career employees with important policy-determining, policymaking, policy-advocating, or confidential duties.” While officials claim the rule will not require personal or political loyalty to the president, experts say it gives the White House enormous power to purge federal agencies.
The move is part of a broader effort by Trump to reshape the federal workforce ahead of a potential second term. Over 260,000 federal workers have already left their positions—through firings, early retirements, or buyouts—since Trump first took office, according to Reuters.
(With input from Associated Press)
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