The science of job (in)security: Industrial-organizational psychology insights on reshaping the federal workforce using Schedule F (Policy/Career)

Andrea Bazzoli and Tahira M. Probst

Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2025, vol. 18, issue 3, 338-346

Abstract: This policy brief analyzes the effects of reclassifying large swaths of the federal civilian workforce currently appointed to the competitive service into Schedule F (Policy/Career Schedule) appointments. We review the policy when it was first introduced in 2020 and reinstated with amendments in 2025. In doing so, we draw from decades of extant literature within the organizational sciences to analyze the validity of one of its main assertions, that is, moving federal workers toward at-will employment is beneficial. Our analysis shows that, as it currently stands, the proposed reclassification into Schedule F would generate widespread, chronic job insecurity and fail to improve federal workers’ performance or accountability, in addition to other physical and psychological adverse consequences. It would also result in significant, negative outcomes for federal agencies in terms of their reduced ability to attract and retain competent civil servants, lower economic efficiency, and ultimately negatively impact the customers of federal agencies by increasing costs for lower quality governmental services.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/ ... type/journal_article link to article abstract page (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cup:inorps:v:18:y:2025:i:3:p:338-346_8

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press, UPH, Shaftesbury Road, Cambridge CB2 8BS UK.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Kirk Stebbing ().