Prohibited Personnel Practices: When Is It Worth Taking on the Federal Government?

The Civil Service Reform Act protects federal employees against prohibited personnel practices (PPPs) in all aspects of their employment. When federal agencies engage in PPPs, federal employees can (and should) seek appropriate remedies—and this typically starts with submitting a complaint to the Office of Special Counsel (OSC). While federal employees can file a complaint with the OSC on their own, they can also hire an experienced Maryland federal employment attorney to represent them.

When should you hire a Maryland federal employment attorney to help you seek remedies for a PPP? Here are some key considerations:

Understanding What Constitutes a Prohibited Personnel Practice (PPP)

While there are several types of PPPs—and why many of the PPPs are broadly defined—not all adverse employment-related actions constitute prohibited personnel practices. As a result, if you are thinking about filing a complaint, the first step is to determine whether you have grounds to seek to hold your federal agency accountable.

So, what constitutes a prohibited personnel practice?

As summarized by the OSC, “[p]rohibited personnel practices (PPPs) are employment-related activities that are banned . . . because they violate the merit system through some form of employment discrimination, retaliation, improper hiring practices, or failure to adhere to laws, rules, or regulations that directly concern the merit system principles.” More specifically, as defined in 5 U.S.C. Section 2302(b), the federal PPPs include:

Coercing Political Activity

Federal agencies are prohibited from coercing, or attempting to coerce, an employee to engage in any form of political activity. As the OSC makes clear, this PPP is intended “to help keep partisan politics out of the federal workplace.” Section 2302(b) also prohibits federal agencies from retaliating against employees who refuse to engage in political activity, as the threat of retaliation (whether explicit or perceived) is also considered a form of coercion.

Considering Inappropriate Recommendations

In addition to prohibiting the coercion of political activity, Section 2302(b) also prohibits federal agencies from “request[ing] or consider[ing] a recommendation based on political connections or influence.” As the OSC clarifies, this means that federal personnel in hiring positions may only consider recommendations that are based on “actual knowledge of the person’s abilities as they would apply to the position in question.” If a federal employee or job applicant loses out on a job opportunity due to consideration of an inappropriate recommendation, this can provide clear grounds to file a complaint with the OSC.

Discrimination

Discrimination in federal employment based on age, color, disability, marital status, national origin, political affiliation, race, religion or sex is a PPP under Section 2303(b). This prohibited personnel practice “wraps together a number of different laws that prohibit discrimination.”

While the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) handles most types of discrimination claims, the OSC handles complaints involving discrimination based on marital status and political affiliation, as well as other conduct that has “no adverse impact on [an employee’s] job performance or on the ability of others to perform their jobs.” This includes discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation—though the EEOC accepts complaints in these cases as well.

Granting Unauthorized Advantage (Including Nepotism)

Section 2302(b) prohibits federal agencies from granting an “unauthorized advantage” to any individual if doing so, “improve[s] or injure[s] the employment prospects of any person.” Along with prohibited practices such as re-writing job descriptions and taking other steps to manipulate the hiring process for the benefit of a particular candidate, this includes engaging in nepotism.

While the OSC notes that it is not necessarily unlawful for two relatives to work for the same federal agency and within the same chain of command, it makes clear that “federal government employees cannot hire or promote their relatives, or even push for their relatives to get jobs or promotions,” or other employment-related advantages or benefits. Federal employees and job applicants who lose out on opportunities due to nepotism and other forms of unauthorized advantage can seek damages and other appropriate remedies.

Obstructing or Influencing Withdrawal from Competition

Along with prohibiting federal personnel from granting unauthorized advantages, Section 2302(b) also prohibits federal personnel from “intentionally deceiv[ing] or obstruct[ing] anyone from competing for employment.” This includes, but is not limited to, writing a false negative performance review in order to prevent an employee from being eligible for a promotion.

Retaliation

Retaliating against federal employees who blow the whistle, refuse to violate the law, cooperate with OSC investigations and engage in various other protected activities also constitutes a PPP. Under the Civil Service Reform Act, retaliation includes taking, threatening to take or refusing to take employment-related action based on an employee’s engagement in a protected activity.

Other Violations of Federal Employees’ Rights

Along with the practices discussed above, Section 2302(b) also prohibits federal employers from taking other employment-related actions that violate federal employees’ rights. These PPPs include, but are not limited to:

• Accessing medical records in furtherance of a PPP
• Imposing nondisclosure requirements that prohibit whistleblowing
• Merit System Principle (MSP) rule violations
• Veterans’ Preference violations

Filing a PPP Complaint with the Office of Special Counsel (OSC)

As discussed above, seeking accountability for a PPP violation involves filing a complaint with the OSC in most cases. This is a complicated and time-sensitive process, and it is important to know what you can expect if you move forward. Additionally, while seeking accountability for a PPP violation usually involves contacting the OSC, exceptions apply to certain types of PPPs and certain types of federal workers. For more information, you can read: How Do You Report a Prohibited Personnel Practice (PPP)?

Do You Have a PPP Complaint? Talk to an Experienced Maryland Federal Employment Attorney in Confidence

If you would like more information about how to protect your legal rights after experiencing a prohibited personnel practice (PPP) as a federal employee, we encourage you to contact us promptly. To speak with an experienced Maryland federal employment attorney at The Law Firm of J.W. Stafford in confidence as soon as possible, please call 410-514-6099 or tell us how we can reach you online today.