Jory Heckman

A federal judge in D.C. is blocking the Labor Department from closing 99 Job Corps centers across the country storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…

USDA says relocations out of the DC area will help manage a workforce that grew under the Biden administration, "with no sustainable way to pay them." But federal workforce data shows USDA staffing in the DMV shrank between 2020-2024. federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025…

NEW: The IRS is considering ending non-English language services That’d drop phone and in-person interpreters + translations of common tax forms and notices. It’s to comply with Trump’s order designating English the US’s official language. Link in thread…

Scoop: Over 24,000 employees are at risk of downgrades, while the VA reviews whether dozens of position descriptions are graded appropriately. This work began last year as part of an OPM mandate, but now covers a lot more employees than it did before. federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025…

SCOOP: Elon Musk’s associates at DOGE have begun vacating their headquarters at the General Services Administration in Washington, DC, and they’re leaving behind an apocalyptic scene of toddler play sets, mattresses, and pillows. We got photos. 👇 wired.com/story/photos-b…

Michael Rigas, who took over as acting GSA administrator on Monday, is still the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources & attending meetings and briefings at the State Department, according to today's public schedule

State Department laid off the entire staff of an office that oversees passport services, as part of its widespread workforce cuts. Sources tell me they've now been reinstated. Staff were told multiple times they were exempt before getting RIF notices federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025…

It's not clear if Rigas will be dual-hatted at both State and GSA (Secretary of State Marco Rubio at one point held 4 different titles in this administration) State Department says: "As a general practice, we do not comment on internal personnel matters."

Deputy Secretary of State for Mgmt & Resources told @HouseForeignGOP @HouseForeign that its layoffs were the "most complicated [RIF] the federal government has ever seen," and that State had help from OPM. Some RIF notices were sent in error & rescinded federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025…

HHS employees who got termination letters last night say dept never corrected inaccurate performance ratings from original RIF notices. Federal employees under Privacy Act can challenge adverse personnel actions based on inaccurate or incomplete records federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025…

Per Politico, former DOGE lead Steve Davis "led a DOGE meeting on the sixth floor of the General Services Administration a week after the White House had said he departed." “He was at the GSA running the meeting like it was business as usual."

Last month, the Education Department was “actively assessing how to reintegrate” laid-off employees employees that have been on paid admin leave since March. But now the Supreme Court says RIFs and reorganization can proceed apnews.com/article/suprem…

NEW: The V.A. was under pressure to slash spending. Then it started to feed @DOGE misleading budget cuts, inflating its progress. nytimes.com/2025/07/14/us/…

Some RIF'd employees got a message today from Lew Olowski, a top HR official at the State Department, saying they "erroneously" received layoff notices as part of an "administrative error": "Your position is not being abolished as part of the Department reorganization."

Scene outside of State Department headquarters: Employees, some carrying boxes and office supplies, are leaving the building. Staff and those here for a rally with lawmakers are applauding RIF’d staff as they walk out

John Dinkelman, the incoming president of the American Foreign Service Association, was laid off from the State Department today, as were all others in the Diplomats in Residence program

Reaction from one source on this: “This had nothing to do with efficiency. It was a witch hunt disguised as downsizing.”