Starting June 27, government and private sector employees will be able to request reasonable accommodations for pregnancy, childbirth and related conditions. That's thanks to a new law, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. All employers have new requirements, but federal employees may face a unique approach to how agencies implement the law. Our Drew Friedman got details from Sharyn Tejani, associate legal counsel in the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Office of Legal Counsel. And Denesha James, attorney advisor in EEOC’s Office of Federal Operations.

Plus, by law, the government must invest its pension funds in Treasury bonds. Safe but low-return. It's not really a problem for federal employees. Your annuity is guaranteed. But it does create a long-term unfunded liability for the government. For how this affects just the Postal Service, which is part of the system, I spoke with a research specialist in the USPS office of inspector general, Joy Sanzone.

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Today we focus on two possibilities, both unlikely, but that would have big effect on federal employees. One, of course, is the prospect of a debt default. We'll talk about that with financial planner Art Stein.

But first, a bill from Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida would make federal executive branch employees, at-will. You could be fired for any reason short of a prohibited personnel practice. I got one interpretation of what this bill could mean, from the National Active and Retired Federal Employees association's John Hatton.

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Federal News Network reporter Drew Friedman fills in again for Tom this week. Most federal employees see retirement as a three-legged stool, you have the FERS annuity, the Thrift Savings Plan and Social Security. But could a fourth leg make for an even sturdier retirement? Savings Bonds are yet another tool federal employees can use, to boost their personal savings. I spoke with retired federal manager and financial counselor Abe Grungold, who started with a little history.

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Preventing harassment in the federal workplace starts at the very top, with agency leadership. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says that idea, along with a host of other promising practices, can help agencies strengthen their anti-harassment policies. The new recommendations from EEOC are an update to a 2016 study, and they now include changes from the pandemic. I got more from EEOC's attorney advisor, Marqui Willoughby.

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In this week's episode, Federal News Network reporter Drew Friedman fills in for Tom Temin. If you've been teleworking for the past few years, you may be asking yourself, is that about to change? And if you are wondering that, you're not alone. A recent memo from the White House is creating more questions than answers for federal employees. Federal News Network surveyed close to 5,000 feds on what they think, and one takeaway is clear: federal employees want telework to continue, where it makes sense. Tom and Drew dug into the survey's results, and what OMB's latest guidance actually says.

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the Supreme Court right now is considering a case that could boost federal whistleblowers bringing forth wrongdoing by contractors under the False Claims Act. The case underscores the importance of intent, and its relevance in these types of cases. For details and why it's a landmark case, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke to noted D.C. whistleblower attorney Stephen Kohn.

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It's an old story, but an enduring one. Thousands of retired federal employees from the Civil Service Retirement System days feel they are being unfairly denied benefits. That's because of the Social Security provisions known as the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). A recent survey conducted by Virginia Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger's office showed just how frustrated people are. She plans to use the survey results to push legislation that would get rid of the WEP and GPO. For details, Federal News Network's Eric White spoke to Spanberger.

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The number of so-called TSP millionaires, mostly long-serving feds who have a million dollars or more in their Thrift Savings Account, waxes and wanes. But retired federal manager and financial counselor Abe Grungold thinks a lot more people ought to reach that million dollar level.

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We start with a review of the Thrift Savings Plan's first quarter results. Investments can change seemingly as fast as the weather. Something plan holders have learned, or re-learned, pretty dramatically over the last couple of years. But things are looking up generally, as I discussed earlier with certified financial planner Art Stein.

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Congress in 2020 repealed something known as the Survivor Benefit Plan - Dependency and Indemnity Compensation offset. Better known as the widows tax, it disappeared after a three-year phase-out ending earlier his year. That move opened a once-in-a-generation opportunity for veterans. I discussed this with Mike Meese, president of the American Armed Forces Mutual Aid Association.

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Welcome to the show. The past few days have seen positive developments on several matters affecting federal employees, including health benefits for Postal Service people and gathering support for restoration of Social Security benefits to older federal retirees. I got the rundown from the vice president for policy and programs at the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, John Hatton.

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Welcome back to Fed Life here on Federal News Network. The latest rankings of best places to work in the Federal Government. They're compiled each year by the Partnership for Public Service. One problem is that employee satisfaction and engagement scores continue to drop. For commentary on this year's rankings, Federal News Network's Drew Friedman spoke with the Partnership's president, Max Stier.

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The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission regularly issues results of studies on workplace trends related to discrimination claims and other matters. One recent report concerned the federal workforce. Specifically, use of alternate dispute resolution. Federal News Network's Drew Friedman and I discussed the highlights and what it could mean if you ever face what you suspect is unlawful discrimination.

Bank stocks might look like dicey propositions these days. There's nothing to focus investors' minds like the possibility of a run on the banks. It's not 2008 though, and we probably won't see the failure of hundreds of banks like we did back then. I discussed this with certified financial planner Art Stein.

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This week we look at what had been promising about the economy as it relates to your retirement. And then the financial whirlwind still swirling around that's sort of flattened near-term expectations. We start with one organization that has a good pulse on the federal workforce and what its concerns are, The National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, known as NARFE. We covered a lot of territory when I spoke with NARFE's vice president for policy, John Hatten.

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After a scary year of across-the-board losses, the Thrift Savings Plan funds … like 401k plans generally, were showing strong gains in the first quarter of 2023. Then came a string of bank collapses and some near misses. I reviewed your TSP year to date with certified financial planner Art Stein.

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The IRS has had a Senate-confirmed commissioner for a few weeks now. Danny Werfel has a lot to do. He'll need every employee in the agency to get anything significant done. One crucial group sometimes doesn't get the respect it should, namely the ranks of IRS middle managers. For what that very group hopes for from the new commissioner, I spoke with the president of the IRS-based Federal Managers Association, Chad Hooper.

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It doesn't happen all that often and may seem highly unlikely now. But federal agency reductions in force are not unheard of. In such a situation, you've got rights, as we hear from Tully Rinckey managing partner, attorney Michael Fallings.

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