In the recently decided Bishop v. Department of Agriculture, The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) clarified the importance of establishing jurisdiction in whistleblower issues.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit found lawful an agency’s decision to propose a new termination action while still pursuing its appeal of its first termination action.

On FEDtalk, we welcome Cathy Harris, Raymond Limon, and Tristan Leavitt of the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) to discuss agency plans to protect whistleblowers and address the case backlog.

The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) has ruled that term appointees are not entitled to serve beyond the role expiration date, nor are they entitled to a permanent position as relief in a personnel action.

In Singh v. USPS, the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) overruled its own early 2010s precedents on the Douglas factor disparate penalty analysis.

The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) rules that an indefinite suspension following restoration of clearance is grounds for review under its jurisdiction.

In a recent decision, the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) added a new element of proof to sustain a performance-based adverse action with an appeal: prior accountability.

The Merit Systems Protection Board followed the precedent of several circuit courts in resolving that they are not the proper forum for allegations of retaliation for Title VII-related issues.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) instructed the Army to separate an employee from service after a probe found falsified documents during the hiring process.

The Merit Systems Protection Board holds the Army retaliated against a widow of a service member in it's first precedential decision on whistleblower protection since regaining a quorum.

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated the nationwide preliminary injunction on President Biden’s vaccine mandate for the federal workforce, determining the district court lacked jurisdiction.

The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit determined that the U.S. Postal Service acted outside of the authority of the Postal Service Reorganization Act.

With two of the three seats on the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) confirmed, federal employees who are looking for an appeal may not have long to wait for a resolution.

The Federal Circuit held for the first time that an OPM decision to deny retirement benefits is an adverse personnel decision that can be appealed to the Merit Systems Protection Board.

A passport specialist at the Department of State (DOS) has argued that his fully successful performance evaluation should be considered as evidence that he consistently followed instructions.

On October 8, 2021, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed that federal employees can be fired for one e-mail, if the e-mail is sufficiently disrespectful. The employee appealed his removal to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB).

Under a new agreement between the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), full-time and part-time TSA officers (TSOs) are now able to appeal adverse actions to the MSPB.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) have reached an agreement granting Title 5 equivalent appeal rights.

In two opinions issued on August 12, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit found that the Department of Veterans Affairs erroneously interpreted the provisions of the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 when disciplining its employees. The purpose of the 2017 law, codified at 38 U.S.C. § 714, was to provide for expedited discipline of VA employees, strip MSPB of its authority to mitigate the VA’s chosen penalty, and to impose a less rigorous burden of proof on the agency at the appellate level than a traditional MSPB appeal.

Before a federal employee can be terminated for unacceptable performance, the employing agency must provide the employee with an opportunity to demonstrate acceptable performance.