On September 14th, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) proposed a new rule regarding temporary federal positions in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. By extending the maximum length of these jobs from the current four years to ten years, OPM is not only aiming toreally stretch the definition of “temporary” but also create a labor force thatis much more interchangeable and disposable. No matter the service and work put in at a temporary position, the employee would be terminated automatically after 10 years. These temporary positions come with none of the federal retirement or health benefits that career feds enjoy, and offer very little, if any, promise of advancement within the employing federal agencies.
Proponents of the rule note that the STEM jobs targeted by this move are generally forspecific projects that last on average of 5 to 10 years. It gives agencies more flexibility and discernment when trying to fill vacant STEM roles, but unions argue that it would ask those employees fulfilling these occupations to sacrifice the job security and federal benefits that often entice people to join Federal civilian service in the first place. The government is accepting comments on the proposed rule until November 10th.
Until Next Time,
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