The Office of Personnel Management (OPM), the federal government's central human resources agency, is an independent agency within the Executive Branch. Its director and deputy director are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was established by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the civil rights statute prohibiting employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, gender, or national origin.
The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) is an independent, quasi-judicial agency in the Executive Branch whose primary mission is to ensure that federal employees are protected against abuses by agency management, that agencies make employment decisions in accordance with the merit system principles, and that federal merit systems are kept free of prohibited personnel practices.
The Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is an independent investigative and prosecutorial agency that litigates before the Merit Systems Protection Board and primarily helps to enforce three federal statutes: the Civil Service Reform Act, the Whistleblower Protection Act, and the Hatch Act.
The Office of Government Ethics (OGE) is an independent agency whose mission is to exercise leadership in the Executive Branch to prevent conflicts of interest on the part of government employees and to resolve conflicts that do occur.
Each of the federal appeals agencies employs various alternative dispute resolution techniques and settlement initiatives to adjudicate matters over which it has jurisdiction, and each is engaged in substantial outreach efforts to encourage potential litigants to use their respective ADR and settlement processes.
The USPS has varied policies for its employees that are unique among federal agencies.
If you have questions about an OPM program, please contact the agency’s Call Center at (202) 606-1800
Federal retirees may be re-employed in any position for which they are qualified, subject to the restrictions described below.
The traditional and still the most-used method to enter federal service is by appointment through the competitive examining process.