Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, PUBLIC EMPLOYEES—New ‘merit hiring plan’ requires GS-5 and above applicants to explain how they would ‘help advance’ the President’s EOs and priorities, (May 30, 2025)

By Brandi O. Brown, J.D.

The plan also instructs agencies to “[c]ease disseminating information regarding the composition of the agency’s workforce based on race, sex, color, religion, or national origin.”

In a memorandum regarding a new “Merit Hiring Plan” issued by Vince Haley, the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, and Charles Ezell, Acting Director, U.S. Office of Personnel Management, to the various federal agency heads and acting heads, Haley and Ezell set forth their response to Executive Order 14170, entitled “Reforming the Federal Hiring Process and Restoring Merit to Government Service.”

The memo identifies the following “key elements” of the plan: (1) “[r]eforming the Federal recruitment process to ensure that only the most talented, capable and patriotic Americans are hired to the Federal service;” (2) “[i]mplementing skills-based hiring, eliminating unnecessary degree requirements, and requiring the use of rigorous, job-related assessments to ensure candidates are selected based on their merit and competence, not their skin color or academic pedigree;” (3) “[s]treamlining and improving the job application process;” and (4) “[r]educing time-to-hire to under 80 days by emphasizing the use of talent pools and shared certificates and streamlining the background check process.”

Non-dissemination of workforce composition information. The first aspect of the reformation element focuses on eliminating DEI. However, in addition to instructing agencies not to use statistics or the “broader concept of ‘underrepresentation’ of certain groups” in hiring, recruiting, retention, or promotion decisions or in the design of assessments, the plan goes a step further. It instructs the agencies to “[c]ease disseminating information regarding the composition of the agency’s workforce based on race, sex, color, religion, or national origin” as well.

It also indicates that agencies should end emphasis programs and initiatives that “discriminate” and “[t]ake prompt and appropriate disciplinary action against any hiring manager or other agency employee who engages in the unlawful race preferential discrimination described in this Merit Hiring Plan.”

4-H youth and homeschool recruitment. Another part of this reformation element is, according to the memo, “Recruiting Patriotic Americans” for federal jobs. One part of this is early career recruitment, setting “early career hiring targets,” and tracking “annual early career hires.” Specifically, it instructs OPM “Talent Teams” to target “recruitment at state and land-grant universities, religious colleges and universities, community colleges, high schools, trade and technical schools, homeschooling groups, faith-based groups, American Legion, 4-H youth programs, and the military, veterans, and law enforcement communities.” It also specifies STEM and veterans’ recruitment.

The plan also requires standardization of certain position descriptions.

As for reforming candidate ranking, assessment, and selection processes, in addition to implementing skills-based hiring and eliminating “unnecessary” degree requirements, the memo seeks to implement a proposed OPM Final Rule, Reinvigorating Merit-Based Hiring Through Candidate Ranking in the Competitive and Excepted Service (Rule of Many), which it describes as “a key foundational step in effectively implementing merit-based hiring using validated, skills-based assessments and rigorous candidate ranking.” This will allow agencies, the memo explains, to establish minimum passing scores (cut scores).

Assessment required. It also ends self-assessments and requires technical or alternative assessments. “To ensure that Federal jobs are filled based on merit and competence—not skin color or academic pedigree—every hiring process across the competitive service, or that is otherwise subject to competitive hiring processes must include at least one technical or alternative assessment before issuance of the certificate. Such assessments can be developed internally by the government or outsourced to private sector experts” (emphasis in original). An appendix to the memo provides an overview of the assessments that agencies can adopt. Agencies are also “strongly encouraged” to use at least two assessments during the hiring process.

“How would you help advance the President’s Executive Orders…?” As part of the third identified key element—“improving” the job application process—the memo requires that, to implement Executive Order 14170, all Federal job vacancy announcements grade at GS-05 or above should include four essay questions, as follows:

“1. How has your commitment to the Constitution and the founding principles of the United States inspired you to pursue this role within the Federal government? Provide a concrete example from professional, academic, or personal experience.

“2. In this role, how would you use your skills and experience to improve government efficiency and effectiveness? Provide specific examples where you improved processes, reduced costs, or improved outcomes.

“3. How would you help advance the President’s Executive Orders and policy priorities in this role? Identify one or two relevant Executive Orders or policy initiatives that are significant to you, and explain how you would help implement them if hired.

“4. How has a strong work ethic contributed to your professional, academic or personal achievements? Provide one or two specific examples, and explain how those qualities would enable you to serve effectively in this position.”

Willing to carry a firearm? Additionally, the memo explains that agencies are allowed to use “short eligibility questionnaire as part of the initial job application for screening purposes only. These may include initial, job-specific questions such as requiring candidates to certify, for example, that they are U.S. citizens, are willing to carry a firearm in performance of their job duties, or hold certifications that are required to perform the role.”

As another key element, the memo seeks to reduce time-to-hire to 80 days and provides instruction on how to do that, including “streamlining and improving the personnel vetting process.”

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