OPM Finalizes Regulation Creating 'Schedule P' to Ease Firing of Federal Employees

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) finalized a sweeping regulation on Thursday that creates a new employment category for federal workers, effectively stripping tens of thousands of civil servants of their traditional job protections. The new classification, dubbed "Schedule P" (Policy/Career), applies to career employees in roles deemed to be "policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating."[1][5]

Under the finalized rule, employees moved into Schedule P will be reclassified as at-will workers. This removes the complex, months-long appeals process previously required to terminate career civil servants, allowing agency heads to fire them with little notice or recourse. The OPM stated that the regulation is designed to enhance accountability and ensure that the federal bureaucracy is responsive to the elected leadership of the executive branch.[4][5][7]

While the exact number of affected employees remains fluid, initial estimates suggest that upwards of 50,000 federal workers could be reclassified. The directive requires all federal agencies to conduct a comprehensive review of their rosters and submit a list of eligible positions to the OPM within 30 days. Roles heavily involved in drafting regulations, advising agency leadership, and managing large-scale federal programs are the primary targets.[2][8]

The administration and its conservative allies have championed the move as a necessary corrective to a bloated and entrenched bureaucracy. Proponents argue that it is nearly impossible to fire underperforming federal workers or those who actively subvert the policy goals of the sitting president. By streamlining the dismissal process, they contend, the government can operate more efficiently and democratically.[3][5]

Conversely, federal employee unions and good-government watchdogs warn that Schedule P represents a return to the 19th-century "spoils system," where government jobs were awarded based on political loyalty rather than merit. Critics argue the rule will have a severe chilling effect on career experts, who may now fear termination for providing objective advice or data that contradicts the administration's political narrative.[4][6]

The legal backlash was immediate. Within hours of the rule's publication in the Federal Register, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) filed joint lawsuits in federal court seeking an emergency injunction. The unions argue that the OPM has overstepped its statutory authority and violated the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883, which established the modern merit-based system.[2][6]

The concept of reclassifying policy-adjacent workers is not entirely new. It builds upon the framework of "Schedule F," an executive order issued late in the first Trump administration in 2020, which was subsequently revoked by President Biden in 2021 before it could be fully implemented. By pursuing the change through the formal federal rulemaking process this time, the administration aims to make the policy significantly harder for future presidents to undo.[1][7]

The impact of Schedule P is expected to be uneven across the federal government. Agencies with broad regulatory mandates—such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Justice (DOJ), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)—are likely to see the highest concentration of reclassifications. Career attorneys, scientists, and economists within these departments are bracing for widespread organizational shifts.[4][8]

As the 30-day implementation window opens, federal managers are now tasked with the politically fraught process of identifying which of their subordinates fit the broad definition of "policy-advocating." Meanwhile, the looming court battles will determine whether the administration can fundamentally rewrite the rules of federal employment before the end of the year.[1][2][7]