Re: Fired workers have no legal basis for complaints
PHILIP FRANCIS
Watchdog agency tells fired
workers they have no legal basis
for complaints
The Office of Special Counsel has concluded it cannot pursue allegations by
more than 2,000 federal employees who have filed formal objections to their
removals.
April 21, 2025 at 5:49 p.m. EDT
Updated
today at 5:49 p.m. EDT
By Meryl Kornfield
The Office of Special Counsel has told thousands of probationary federal workers that it will not pursue their
complaints about their firings, according to a copy of an OSC email obtained by The Washington Post.
The decision was a reversal of the position of the previous head of the independent office, who was fired by
President Donald Trump.
The watchdog agency said it does not have the purview to pursue the complaints made by more than 2,000
federal employees, the email said. It acknowledged that many of the workers disputed the poor performance
that was cited in their removals. But the OSC said it was impossible for them to challenge the firings as
unlawful.
“This is because your termination, in the context of the government-wide effort to reduce the federal service
through probationary terminations, was more likely effected in accordance with the new administration’s
priorities than a decision personal to you,” the email said.
The email notes the acting special counsel’s decision against pursuing claims that the terminations fall under
“prohibited personnel practices,” which are forms of discrimination, retaliation or improper practices that
are banned because they violate the government’s merit system.
The office — which is responsible for evaluating federal workers’ complaints and protecting whistleblowers
against retaliation by supervisors — declined to comment on the email notifications, citing a policy that it
does not comment on open cases. The cases will remain open for 13 days.
The agency is headed by U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who took over as acting special counsel
from Veterans Affairs Secretary Douglas A. Collins. Democratic lawmakers have questioned Trump’s
appointment of Cabinet-level officials to run what is supposed to be an independent office. An OSC
spokesperson said Monday that Charles Baldis, a former Senate staffer, is now managing the office on Greer’s
behalf.
Hampton Dellinger, who led the watchdog office until he was fired by Trump, had argued that the firings of a
handful of probationary federal workers — and perhaps many more — were probably illegal, and requested a
pause on the terminations.
“Firing probationary employees without individualized cause appears contrary to a reasonable reading of the
law, particularly the provisions establishing rules for reductions in force,” Dellinger said at the time.
Dellinger was fired in February, and he challenged the dismissal in court. A U.S. district judge initially ruled
that Trump could not summarily dismiss him, but the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of
Columbia paused the district judge’s ruling. Dellinger then dropped his case.
Dellinger had asked the Merit Systems Protection Board, another independent agency whose head Trump
attempted to oust, to halt firings at the U.S. Department of Agriculture for 45 days. The board granted the
request. The stay expired Saturday.
After hearing news of the OSC notices, Dellinger said Monday that the special counsel is responsible for
ensuring federal laws are followed when government workers are fired and that the authority should not be
given up.
“If my successor is now abdicating that responsibility by signing off on mass layoffs that violate reduction-in-
force rules, it is sad, frustrating and something that would not have happened on my watch,” he said.
Michelle Bercovici, an attorney for fired federal workers, said she intends to file a response sharing “grave
concerns” about the OSC’s decision. She said her clients received the same notice from various investigators,
indicating that the OSC head had made this decision without regard to the merits of the individual cases.
“This effectively forecloses OSC as a forum for them,” Bercovici said.
Democracy Forward, another legal group representing federal workers, called the notices “a deeply troubling
moment” and expressed concerns about the office following its legal purpose.
“President Trump has gutted the integrity of the OSC and undermined a core pillar of our democracy,” Skye
Perryman, the group’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “We will continue to use every legal tool
available to protect the non-partisan civil service from attempts to politicize and target them.”
Bill Wade
Executive Director, Association of National Park Rangers
Manager, Ranger Rendezvous
12675 N Sunrise Shadow Drive
Marana, AZ 85658
Cell: 520-444-3973
Email: bw...@anpr.org