Department of War Policy on Prohibited Personnel Practices for Schedule Policy/Career

Department of Defense (DOD) Secretary Hegseth issued a memorandum establishing DOD's policy with respect to Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPP) against employees. Prohibited practices include such things as discrimination based on political affiliation and retaliation for protected whistleblowing activity. Federal law grants most federal employees protection against PPPs and gave them the right to file complaints of violations with the Office of Special Counsel or in some cases the Merit Systems Protection Board. President Trump's creation of Schedule Policy/Career via Executive Order 14,171 required agencies to establish their own internal systems for reviewing PPP complaints for Schedule Policy/Career employees, with no required process for those employees to obtain independent review outside their agency. This memo assigned responsibility for creating an internal complaint process regarding PPPs to the department's General Counsel. That office is also broadly responsible for defending agency management against employee complaints. (WMS/JT)