July 2021 Federal Employment Law Training Group Newsletter
Interviewing a Difficult Witness? It Begins With Understanding
A few weeks ago, during a training class with agency investigators, an interesting discussion arose about the best way to interview a witness whose behavioral health condition or experiences with trauma make them difficult to talk to. How can an investigator get the answers needed, not trigger an episode, de-escalate emotions, and show empathy, all while maintaining neutrality?
Deborah J. Hopkins, FELTG President
The To-Do List for the New MSPB Board Members
By William Wiley, July 21, 2021 By now you probably have heard that the White House finally has nominated two individuals to be Board members over at the US Merit Systems Protection Board. After more than four years of the civil service having no oversight agency to...
Should Your Agency use Progressive Discipline or Performance Demonstration Periods with Probationers?
By Deborah Hopkins, July 21, 2021 The question in this article’s title has come up a few times over the last several weeks, particularly during our flagship UnCivil Servant training classes. We’ll give you the short answer, and then the longer answer. Short answer:...
The Good News: You Can Be an Effective Leader! (Part 2)
By Scott Boehm (with Ann Boehm), July 21, 2021 I hope you have spent the past month reflecting on leadership. This month, we want you to focus on four leadership tenets (integrity, accountability, empathy, and humility). And we are going to have you test your own...
Don’t Just Flag Hostile Symbols; Do Something to Stop Them
By Dan Gephart, July 21, 2021 Residents from our cozy colonial-era town of Haddonfield, NJ, returned in droves to this year’s July 4 parade. (Last year’s parade was canceled due to COVID.) The streets were packed with enthusiastic and smiling (no masks!) residents,...
Mamma Mia, Here We Go Again: Commission Reminds Agencies About Joint Employment
By Meghan Droste, July 21, 2021 Repetition can be a good thing. That’s why practice makes perfect, and you measure twice before cutting once. We repeat things to make sure we get them right. But repetition isn’t always a good thing. Sometimes, it means that we’re...
Return to the Office and the Telework Tango
By Michael Rhoads, July 21, 2021 When I was a Rotary foreign exchange student in Argentina, the hardest thing this Yankee with two left feet did was learn the basic step of the tango – an intimate and graceful dance once mastered. The key to dancing the tango well is...
Tips From the Other Side: What is Retaliation?
By Meghan Droste, July 21, 2021 This month, we continue the discussion of retaliation. Last month, the tip was not to do it. While that might seem obvious, it happens regularly and the EEOC has cautioned that may be, in part, due to a lack of training for supervisors...
Position Descriptions and Performance Plans – Part 3
By Barbara Haga, July 21, 2021 Over the past two columns, we reviewed what position descriptions should cover to give you maximum ability to determine qualifications, establish accountability, and to hire well. We also looked at crafting performance standards that...