August 2019 Federal Employment Law Training Group Newsletter
Halfway Around the U.S. By the End of the Summer
Can you believe how quickly the end of summer is approaching? In many parts of the country, kids are back in school, college semesters are starting, and people are taking their remaining vacations before September arrives and it’s back to business.
Last week, I was on a flight to Las Vegas, where I was headed to train one of my favorite agencies. The wifi on the plane wasn’t working, so I made good use of my time and counted up all the states FELTG has been to in 2019. For a company that started 19 years ago with one two-day class organized on the back of a cocktail napkin, I’m amazed (and proud) that that already this year our instructors have been to 22 states and the District of Columbia, and there are several more remaining this year, including Advanced Employee Relations in New Orleans, LA. The farthest states we’ve traveled to are Alaska and Hawaii, and the places we’ve been to the most are (unsurprisingly) Washington, DC, Maryland, and Virginia.
If you want to get a jump on next year, FELTG is heading to San Juan, Puerto Rico, for the first time ever in February. Thanks for joining us, whether from home or somewhere far away. We wouldn’t be who we are without you.
Take care,
Deborah J. Hopkins, FELTG President
Can an Agency Track Down a Former Employee and Discipline Him?
By Deborah Hopkins and William Wiley, August 14, 2019 This hypothetical recently came across the FELTG Help Desk, and we thought it was a curious question that the rest of our readers might be interested in. It’s a multi-part scenario, so read carefully. Can a...
‘Legitimate’ Non-discriminatory Reasons – When Preselection is a Defense
By Meghan Droste, August 14, 2019 Before going to a new restaurant, I always check out the menu online. Part of this is probably a holdover from when I was a picky eater growing up and I needed to make sure there was at least one thing on the menu I would eat. As an...
We Don’t Need Civil Service Reform, Part II: Accountability Doesn’t Take as Much Time as You Think
By Deborah Hopkins, August 14, 2019 Last month, I published the first article in a three-part series We Don’t Need Civil Service Reform, where I discussed how holding employees accountable is not as difficult as you think. A couple readers took issue with that...
The Good News: Mulvaney is Wrong!
By Ann Boehm, August 14, 2019 Acting Chief of Staff to the President and Director of the Office of Management and Budget Mick Mulvaney recently spoke at a Republican Party event in South Carolina and boasted about the Administration’s clever way of getting Federal...
Accommodation and Performance Issues
By Barbara Haga, August 14, 2019 The topic of accommodation sometimes arises when an employee is having difficulties meeting the performance requirements of the position, and could also occur when the level of performance has dropped even though it is still acceptable...
Tips From the Other Side: August 2019
By Meghan Droste, August 14, 2019 According to the EEOC’s federal sector data, harassment is the most common issue in federal sector EEO complaints, with over 8,000 filed in fiscal year 2018. See Form 462 Complaints Tables. Unfortunately, the improper fragmentation...
Create a Healthy Environment for Employees with Mental Disabilities
By Dan Gephart, August 14, 2019 Two mass shootings earlier this month left America shaken. After the horrific event in El Paso, we went to bed saddened, only to wake to news of similar violence in Dayton. The aftermath of these tragedies is as predictable as the...