FELTG News Flash
Sometimes, the news can't wait until our next FELTG Newsletter is published! Check out the latest news, case decisions and developments in the world of federal employment law below.How Not to Handle Religious Accommodation Requests
By Deborah J. Hopkins, November 28, 2023 In the FELTG November newsletter, I wrote about a few cases involving hostile work environment claims based on religion. This week, our focus turns to claims of religious discrimination from another angle – reasonable...
And Now a Word With … OPM Deputy Director Rob Shriver
By Dan Gephart, November 6, 2023 As his term wound down three years ago, then-President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order that created a new category of Federal employees called Schedule F, much to the dismay of numerous Federal employees, unions, good government...
Can Using the Term ‘Master Bedroom’ be Considered Workplace Harassment?
By Deborah J. Hopkins, October 30, 2023 When I was in high school in the 1990s, students would usually refer to something they thought was stupid or ridiculous by saying: “That’s so gay.” I cannot imagine such a phrase being used among my peers today. Socially...
Expect More Religious Advocacy, Accommodation Requests
By Dan Gephart, October 2, 2023 During Pride Month this year, a group of employees at a tech firm were frustrated by what they deemed was their employer’s “overt” LGBTQ advocacy. The employees, members of a faith-based employee resource group, considered a walkout....
‘Consensual’ Relationships and Sexual Harassment in Wake of MSU Investigation
By Deborah J. Hopkins, September 18, 2023 About 10 days ago, news broke that Michigan State head football coach Mel Tucker allegedly sexually harassed Brenda Tracy, a rape survivor whom he brought in to provide training for his players on the meaning of affirmative...
Reasonable Accommodation Requests: Have You ID’d the Essential Job Functions?
By Dan Gephart, August 29, 2023 An agency should not make a decision on a reasonable accommodation request until it determines whether the employee is “qualified,” and that step can’t be completed until the agency has identified the essential functions of the job at...
Are Complaints About Requests for Reasonable Accommodation Time-Barred After 45 Days?
By Deborah J. Hopkins, August 21, 2023 If you’re at all familiar with EEO complaints, you’re likely aware that in the Federal sector, a complainant must make contact with an EEO counselor within 45 days of the alleged event of discrimination. 29 C.F.R. §...
The Marijuana Conundrum: Illegal Federally, But Legal in Many States
By Deborah J. Hopkins, August 7, 2023 If this happened in your agency, what would you do? A District Manager, who is a member of the Career Executive Service, went to a cannabis dispensary with several of her subordinate employees while attending a leadership meeting...
In Case You Need Another Reason to NOT Issue a Letter of Counseling
By Deborah J. Hopkins, July 24, 2023 FELTG readers who’ve been around a while know how many times we have preached against using letters of counseling, caution, warning, and the like. If an agency wants to counsel, caution, or warn an employee, that is absolutely...
And Now a Word With … New FELTG Instructor Susan Schneider
By Dan Gephart, July 5, 2023 On July 26, we debut a FELTG virtual training program aptly titled No Need for Fear: A Guide to Navigating EEO Challenges for Supervisors and Advisors. This course will be taught by FELTG President Deborah J. Hopkins and FELTG’s newest...