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News for the federal workforce, updated daily.
Pay raises, retirement planning, and benefits — expert guidance for every stage of your federal career, sourced and updated for 2026.
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446 articles · page 2 of 19CareerNew
Why VA Withholds Disability Pay From 122,000 Veterans
The VA is clawing back separation pay from 122,000 veterans' disability checks. How recoupment works and the two Senate bills that would change it.
Policy Updates
DoD's Civilian Hiring Boards: Why Your Application Stalls
DoD civilian hires now clear opaque vetting boards that add weeks and give no feedback. What EO 14356 requires, what applicants can do, and your actual rights.
Pay & Compensation
Red Card Wildfire Pay: What a Fire Assignment Is Worth
What federal employees earn on wildfire assignments: overtime, 25% hazard pay, 450% incident premium, and the new prescribed-burn differential starting Sept 14.
Pay & Compensation
No Tax on Overtime? Most GS Employees Don't Qualify
The OBBBA overtime deduction only covers FLSA overtime. Check SF-50 Block 35: an E means your GS overtime doesn't count. Who qualifies and who doesn't.
Retirement
The $6,000 Senior Deduction: Federal Retiree Math
How the OBBBA senior deduction stacks for FERS and CSRS retirees 65+: the $12,000 couple math, MAGI phase-outs, Roth conversion timing, and the IRMAA catch.
Policy Updates
State Dept Is Screening GS-13/14s for At-Will Status
State is running a 7-question Schedule P/C screen on GS-13/14 positions, with a hold on routine reclassifications. The questions, who's at risk, what to do.
Career
TAMP Rule Change: Reservists Owed 180 Days of TRICARE
DoD dropped the contingency-orders requirement for TAMP after a lawsuit. Who newly qualifies, the 2020 retroactive reimbursement window, and the FEHB catch.
Policy Updates
VA Workforce 2026: Rumors vs. What's Confirmed
Live tracker for VA employees: RIF rumors, the blocked union contract termination, RISE VISN consolidation, VERA status, and staffing data. Updated as facts change.
Career
The $1,776 Warrior Dividend: Who Got It, What's Next
The one-time $1,776 Warrior Dividend was paid in December 2025, tax-free. Who qualified, how to verify it on your LES, what to do if you never got it.
Retirement
One CPI Number, Five Different Raises: 2027 COLA by System
The same CPI-W drives the 2027 COLA for Social Security, CSRS, FERS, military retired pay, REDUX, and VA disability. Five formulas, three outcomes, one dollar matrix.
Retirement
The Federal Retirement Checkup at 40, 50, and 55
The FERS decisions that cost the most are made mid-career, not at retirement. On-track TSP benchmarks by age, the three irrevocable choices, and each decade's deadline.
Retirement
The $64,000 Freeze: FERS Pays No COLA Until You Turn 62
Most FERS retirees under 62 get zero COLA. A $45,000 annuity taken at 52 buys $33,460 worth by 62. The erosion tables, the exceptions, and how to bridge the gap.
Benefits
OPM Breach ID Protection Ends Sept. 30, 2026: Your Checklist
Free identity protection for 22.1 million OPM breach victims ends September 30, 2026. What you lose, what stays free, and the 10 steps to take before the deadline.
Pay & Compensation
What a 2027 Pay Freeze Won't Stop: Step Increases and More
A 2027 federal pay freeze would stop the annual raise, not your step increase. The grade-by-grade WGI dollar table, promotion math, and the August 31 deadline explained.
Career
REDUX Retirees Got 1.8%, Not 2.8%: The COLA Penalty Math
About 102,800 military retirees on CSB/REDUX lose 1 point of every COLA. Add the 9.7% Medicare Part B jump and a 2026 raise nearly vanished. The 20-year cost, computed.
Career
Reservist Differential Pay: SCOTUS Said Yes, OPM Hasn't Moved
Feliciano expanded differential pay for feds called to active duty, and a new lawsuit demands OPM catch up. Who qualifies, how to claim, and why many are owed $0.
Career
Remarry at 54 vs. 55: The $1.3 Million Survivor Benefit Line
Military surviving spouses who remarry before 55 lose both SBP and DIC, over $1.3 million lifetime for an E-7 family. The age-55 rules and the Love Lives On Act.
Career
Chapter 61 Retirement and Divorce: What Courts Can Divide
Medical retirement changes what a divorce court can touch. How USFSPA, Howell v. Howell, and a 2026 DoD rule change treat Chapter 61 retired pay.
Career
Federal Appeal Rights Change September 2: What You Lose
Four OPM final rules take effect September 2, 2026. RIF, probationary, and suitability appeals leave MSPB for OPM's own process. The notice date decides which rules you get.
Benefits
HSA for Federal Employees: The $1,000 FEHB Pass-Through
FEHB high-deductible plans deposit up to $2,000 a year into an HSA for you. The 2026 limits, the triple tax break, and the Medicare trap that catches feds at 65.
Pay & Compensation
Federal Pay Raise History: Every Raise Since 2008
Every GS pay raise from 2008 to 2026 in one table, plus the number nobody publishes: what federal pay is worth today after inflation. Updated for the 2027 decision.
Benefits
The FEHB 72% Rule: What the Government Actually Pays
The government doesn't pay 72% of YOUR plan's premium. How the FEHB contribution formula really works, with 2026 dollar figures and the cap that changes everything.
Career
New FMCS Rule: What Happens to Your Pending Grievance
FMCS can now screen union grievances for arbitrability before assigning arbitrators at agencies covered by the 2025 anti-union orders. Your options, and the MSPB trap.
Pay & Compensation
GS Pay Scale 2027: Projected Tables and Raise Tracker
What the 2027 GS pay scale will look like under a freeze, 1%, 2%, or the 3.1% FEPCA default. Projected tables by grade, updated as facts land.
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What we cover
The topics that matter most to federal employees.Policy Updates
Pay raises, OPM guidance, RIFs, and the legislation that reshapes federal employment.
Retirement Planning
FERS guides, High-3 strategy, the supplement, survivor benefits, and real retirement case studies.
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Data-backed allocation, contribution timing, and withdrawal news for every investing style.
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