January 22, 2021

Van Hollen Statement on Biden’s Executive Order to Strengthen Civil Service, Reverse Trump Attempts to Undermine Federal Workforce

Today, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) released the following statement regarding President Biden’s executive order to reverse President Trump’s attempts to undermine our civil service, including his executive order on Schedule F: 

“Our federal employees work day-in and day-out to provide vital services to the American people. Despite their dedicated efforts, the previous Administration preferred to use our civil service as a political punching bag. Today’s executive order from President Biden is a welcome change. It restores critical protections that ensure our civil service system is based on merit, not politics. To that end, President Biden’s executive order rightly encourages union organizing and collective bargaining, which serves the public interest in the federal workforce and must be supported for all of our workers. This order further recognizes the urgency of raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, leading by example with the federal workforce. I’m glad that President Biden has made public servants a priority in his first week, and I look forward to working with the new Administration to support our federal workers and uphold our civil service system.”