Trump revives Schedule F to make senior federal jobs at-will

Overview

Updated Aug 8

About 8,000 senior federal workers lost civil service protections on June 3, when President Trump moved them into a new job category called Schedule Policy/Career. Two unions and a nonprofit coalition have since filed amended lawsuits, but no judge has blocked the change.

The Office of Personnel Management is using AI to screen job descriptions for more positions to add to the list. Director Scott Kupor says the count will grow beyond the initial 8,000. More than 50 Democratic lawmakers wrote to Trump on July 15 demanding details on the expansion; the July 31 deadline they set passed without a public answer.

Why it matters

If the rule holds, senior staff who write regulations and run programs can be fired at will, changing who keeps a federal job.

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Key Indicators

~8,000

Positions reclassified

Senior career roles moved into Schedule Policy/Career by the June 3 executive order.

97%

At GS-15 or above

Share of affected jobs at the top General Schedule grade or senior leadership.

~50,000

Potential future scope

Positions OPM has said could eventually be reclassified. The agency is now using AI to screen job descriptions for more candidates.

143 years

Since the Pendleton Act

The 1883 law built the merit-based civil service this rule revisits.

7 days

To update records

Time agencies had to change affected employees' personnel files after the June 3 order.

50+

Lawmakers demanding answers

Democratic senators and representatives who wrote to Trump on July 15 asking how the list was built and whether it will grow.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Ever wondered what historical figures would say about today's headlines?

People Involved

Donald Trump

President of the United States

Signed the June 3 executive order

Scott Kupor

Director, Office of Personnel Management

Confirms the reclassification list will grow beyond 8,000

Everett Kelley

President, American Federation of Government Employees

Leading legal opposition

Organizations Involved

Office of Personnel Management

Federal Agency

Directing agencies to screen for additional positions using AI-assisted job description review

The federal government's human resources agency, which sets rules for hiring, firing, and job classification.

American Federation of Government Employees

Labor Union

Lead plaintiff against the rule

The largest union of federal and D.C. government workers, representing about 800,000 employees.

National Treasury Employees Union

Labor Union

Filed amended complaint June 17, 2026 challenging the June 3 executive order; case pending in D.C. federal court

A union representing about 150,000 federal workers across 34 agencies, running a separate legal challenge to Schedule Policy/Career in D.C. federal court.

National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association

Advocacy Organization

Plaintiff with the Government Accountability Project; filed amended complaint June 25, 2026

A membership group representing active and retired federal employees on retirement and benefits issues.

Government Accountability Project

Advocacy Organization

Plaintiff with NARFE; filed amended complaint June 25, 2026

A whistleblower advocacy group that co-filed suit with NARFE against Schedule Policy/Career.

Timeline

October 2020 July 2026

12 events Latest: July 16th, 2026 · 2 months ago Showing 8 of 12

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July 2026
OPM confirms the list will grow
Latest Rule Change

Federal News Network reports that OPM and agencies are using AI to screen job descriptions for more policy-influencing roles. Director Scott Kupor says the list will expand beyond the initial 8,000, though he gives no timeline.
July 16th, 2026
More than 50 lawmakers demand answers
Congressional Action

Sen. Tim Kaine and Rep. James Walkinshaw lead more than 50 Democrats in a letter asking Trump how many positions have been reclassified and whether OPM plans to expand the list. They set a July 31 deadline for a response.
July 15th, 2026
Reclassified staff describe fear of retaliation
Reporting

Federal News Network reports that reclassified employees, speaking anonymously, describe shock and fear about their job security under at-will status.
July 6th, 2026
June 2026
NARFE and watchdog group amend their suit too
Legal

NARFE and the Government Accountability Project, represented by Protect Democracy, file an amended complaint in their separate D.C. lawsuit. It argues Schedule Policy/Career violates the Civil Service Reform Act and intrudes on Congress's power over the civil service.
June 25th, 2026
NTEU amends its lawsuit over the June 3 order
Legal

The National Treasury Employees Union files an amended complaint in its D.C. federal court case, directly challenging the reclassification of the 8,000 positions.
June 17th, 2026
Trump moves 8,000 into the new category
Executive Action

An executive order converts about 8,000 senior positions, 97% at GS-15 or above, into at-will jobs. Agencies get seven days to update records.
June 3rd, 2026
NTEU's amended-complaint clock starts
Legal

The June 3 executive order triggers a court-approved 14-day window for the National Treasury Employees Union to file an amended complaint in its separate Schedule Policy/Career case in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The deadline falls June 17.
June 3rd, 2026
March 2026
Rule takes effect
Legal

The Schedule Policy/Career rule becomes effective. Unions and advocacy groups press a lawsuit to block it.
March 8th, 2026
February 2026
Final rule revives the category
Rule Change

OPM finalizes Schedule Policy/Career, undoing the 2024 protections and clearing the way to reclassify policy-influencing jobs.
February 5th, 2026
April 2024
OPM builds a firewall
Rule Change

The Office of Personnel Management issues a regulation designed to make any future Schedule F revival harder.
April 9th, 2024
January 2021
Biden rescinds the order
Rule Change

The incoming administration cancels Schedule F before any positions are converted.
January 22nd, 2021
October 2020
Trump first creates Schedule F
Rule Change

An executive order creates a new category stripping protections from policy-related career jobs. It never takes effect before the election.
October 21st, 2020

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Scenarios

Court blocks the rule before mass firings

Possible Resolves by End of 2026

Discussed by: American Federation of Government Employees; coalition of 30-plus unions and advocacy groups

A federal judge sides with the unions, finding the administration exceeded its authority or violated due process and the Administrative Procedure Act. An injunction freezes the reclassification while the case proceeds. The 8,000 workers keep appeal rights for now, and the broader 50,000-position expansion stalls.

Reclassification stands and expands

Possible Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor; Federal News Network

Courts decline to block the rule, and the 8,000 reclassifications take hold. The administration then moves additional positions toward the roughly 50,000 OPM has said could qualify. Senior career staff become at-will employees across more agencies, with no path to appeal firings to the Merit Systems Protection Board.

Congress writes civil-service protections into law

Unlikely Resolves by Jan 20, 2027

Discussed by: Congressional Research Service; federal employee unions

Lawmakers respond by passing a statute that limits or bars at-will reclassification of career employees, the way the 1883 Pendleton Act once locked in merit hiring. This would put the protections beyond the reach of an executive order. It faces long odds without bipartisan support and a presidential signature.

OPM grows the list past 8,000 before any ruling

Possible Resolves by End of 2026

Discussed by: OPM Director Scott Kupor; Federal News Network reporting on AI-assisted position review

OPM's AI review of job descriptions turns up more policy-influencing roles, and agencies convert them while the two pending lawsuits sit in D.C. federal court. The list grows beyond 8,000 without a new executive order, an injunction, or the detail Congress asked for in its July 15 letter.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

January 1883

The Pendleton Act (1883)

A disappointed office-seeker shot President James Garfield in 1881, and he died months later. Congress responded with the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act, which based federal hiring on merit exams instead of political loyalty. It ended the era when each new president handed government jobs to supporters.

Then

A new Civil Service Commission began testing and protecting a slice of federal jobs from political firing.

Now

Merit protection spread to most of the workforce and became the foundation of the modern career civil service.

Why this matters now

Schedule Policy/Career revisits the line the Pendleton Act drew between career staff and political appointees. The fight is over which side of that line senior policy jobs fall on.

October 2020 to January 2021

The original Schedule F order (2020)

Trump signed an order in October 2020 creating Schedule F to strip protections from policy roles. Agencies began identifying positions, but he lost the election before any worker was moved. Biden rescinded the order days after taking office.

Then

No positions were converted, and the category sat dormant for four years.

Now

It became a blueprint. OPM wrote a 2024 rule to block its revival, which the 2026 rule then undid.

Why this matters now

The 2026 order finishes what 2020 started. The difference is timing: this time it lands early in a term, with years to carry it out and defend it in court.