r/fednews

“But quarterly federal employee workplace scores generally showed improvements by the end of last year and the beginning of 2026.

Federal employee morale dropped last year, as President Donald Trump downsized and otherwise overhauled the civil service, according to a new data analysis from Gallup. 

“[A]fter the reforms took effect, federal workers experienced declines in employee engagement and job satisfaction, alongside increases in burnout and job-search activity,” the researchers wrote. “These shifts were larger than those observed among comparable state and local government workers — and private sector counterparts — during the same period.”

The analytics firm noted, however, that the data shows there was a “rebound” in some areas by the end of 2025.

For the analysis, researchers compared federal employee worker engagement metrics with those of state and local civil servants. Between 2022 and 2024, the two groups exhibited similar worker satisfaction score trends. 
“By comparing the change in federal employees to the change in state and local employees — rather than looking at federal trends alone — the analysis isolates the portion of the shift that occurred uniquely among federal workers after the reforms,” the researchers explained. 

In the second quarter of 2025, the percentage of “engaged” federal employees decreased by six points more than it did for state and local workers. That gap narrowed to a four-point difference by the first quarter of 2026. 

Likewise, feds were roughly 15 points less likely than their state and local counterparts to report having “high job satisfaction” in the second quarter of 2025. The difference between the two groups never went below 10 points for the remainder of the year. 

Between the second and fourth quarter of 2025, feds went from being about eight to nine points more likely to report “high burnout” compared with state and local workers to approximately four to six points. 

Feds were also around eight points more likely to be searching for a new job in the first quarter of 2025 than state and local civil servants, but “federal job-search behavior [by Q4 2025] was essentially indistinguishable from state and local peers and remained so in Q1 2026.” 

For this analysis, Gallup researchers looked at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the company’s ongoing workforce survey data of U.S. adults. The statistical models were controlled for characteristics like age, gender and race.

In March, Gallup reported that the percentage of feds who are classified as “thriving” decreased by 10 points between 2024 and 2025. 

The Office of Personnel Management in 2025 did not conduct the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, with officials saying that changes were necessary to the annual poll of the government workforce in order to comply with Trump’s anti-diversity executive orders. 

In response, the Partnership for Public Service, a nonpartisan good government group, developed its own survey of more than 10,000 current feds. It found that all 30 agencies represented in the poll experienced decreases from their 2024 FEVS scores; although, Partnership officials acknowledged that the results are not directly comparable because OPM’s survey includes significantly more respondents.”

It’s weirdly been out of the news, but my agency has decided to convert thousands of contractors to civil servants over the course of just a couple months. It’s still not clear how they have the money or legal authority to do so but it’s happening regardless.

If Congress doesn’t allocate the funding required for all the new civil servants, would it automatically trigger a RIF? I know in previous budgets there’s been specific line items for civil servants and I’m not even sure Congress is aware that my agency is doing this.

Exactly what the title says. Do you find yourself not caring about outcomes? That’s the strategy I’ve found that helps to cope most. Otherwise, it’s just BS.

My agency has been actively looking for employees opinions with workplace satisfaction and viewpoint surveys. These are emails that I know many of my colleagues just ignore at this point...because they clearly can care less about what we think or how we are.

May is Mental Health Awareness month and they have only done things to negatively impact mental health of federal employees...

So the appointees and administration heads want to know how we are doing???

Let's see... just this past year you:

1. Obliterated telework; a method of working that has proven to be mutually beneficial for both employee and employers. Data shows employees are both happier and more productive.  A win for employers.

2. Made it nearly impossible for anyone to get a good performance rating with a meaningful reward even though the people left have taken on 60% more workload in a very toxic work environment due to DOGE chainsawing.

3. Impulsively fired hundreds of people then turned around months later to ask them to come back. 

4. Began looking for people to fill positions that were occupied by qualified, experienced people with inexperienced people who will need to be trained due to the DOGE actions that saved no money.

5. Took away potential for internal employees to receive promotions by demoting backfill positions.

6. Ensured that little to no pay increases would occur for all employees.

7. Incurred more expenses for employees due to additional costs associated with RTO such as gas, parking, train, extending childcare hours, lunches, etc.

8. Following orders from people like appointee Vought who said about the federal workforce: "When they wake up in the morning, we want them to not want to go to work because they are increasingly viewed as the villains. We want to put them in trauma."

Here's my "anonymous" response for y'all:

FUCK OFF!!!

My agency is now on the verge of banning Mondays and Fridays for a RDO/AWS day off because they are saying they want 80% office coverage.

80% office coverage is the goal, they are also being told to heavily scrutinized people taking leave on Mondays and Fridays.

Are we tired of winning yet?

New research sheds light on how mediocre employees help would-be authoritarians maintain power.

Military is still on pace for a 5-7% pay increase in 2027, based on rank. Wondering if civil servants will see any pay raise, even a 1% pay raise as they received last year. Not sure the process, if leadership in House or Senate were to change does that affect possible outcome, or preemptive mid-term posturing, or forget about it with so much uncertainty in the Govt these days. Wondering what people are predicting for 2027.

Just received an outstanding annual review, option for 3% salary performance award offered (cash is king). Is salary defined as base pay or does it include the locality adjustment? Reviewing my 2025 performance award, it seems we had a higher percent in 2025? My current projected performance award will be less even though I have a higher rating and larger salary.

Hi all,

If you don’t return after 12 weeks of PPL you have to pay back FEHB that the agency paid for you. Do you know if they do a repayment plan with this or charge you all at once?

Thanks!

It’s no secret at this point that unions such as NTEU have been scheduling arbitrations regarding the return to office mandate that agencies have implemented. And we’ve seen how time and time again these arbitrations rule in favor of the union, just for the agency to appeal the process in its entirety and delay the entire ordeal. My question is, have there been any arbitrations where the agency actually has brought back telework after the union wins the hearing? Or is it essentially a 100% appeal rate after these hearings. I ask because my own agencies telework arbitration hearing is coming up, and I want to know if I should have a shred of hope if we win or not.