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Federal worker action center

Federal work changed.Start here.

Get a focused plan for records, deadlines, benefits, and next steps.

Choose situationSave records first

Choose a path

What happened?

Choose the closest match. Your notice and agency determination still control.

Plan: Prepare while you have access

View plan

Your plan

Prepare while you have access

Start here

Prepare quietly and lawfully. Preserve only records you are permitted to keep, and use personal contact information for your own transition planning.

Assumes: This path assumes you still have agency access and have not received a formal personnel-action notice.

  1. 01Today

    Know what you may safely preserve

    Read your agency’s records, security, and acceptable-use rules before moving any information off agency systems.

    • Start the records checklist below and note which items you can access now.
    • Create a personal, off-network list of HR, benefits, payroll, union, and supervisor contacts.
    Official governmentOPM personnel documentation
  2. 02Next 3 business days

    Confirm the facts that change your options

    Locate an SF-50 that shows your appointment type, tenure, service, grade, and step. Note bargaining-unit status and any veterans’ preference.

    • Write down questions for HR instead of relying on hallway explanations.
    • If you hear “RIF,” “reorganization,” or “probationary,” ask what formal action—if any—is actually being proposed.
    FedUp guideUnderstand a federal RIF
  3. 03This week

    Build a financial baseline

    Record your current pay, leave, health-plan cost, retirement coverage, TSP contribution, and essential monthly expenses.

    • Do not treat salary alone as the value of your federal compensation.
    • Identify the first expenses you would pause if pay or employment changed.
    FedUp toolFederal total compensation calculator
  4. 04This month

    Keep both career paths open

    Refresh your USAJOBS documents and begin translating your work into plain-language outcomes for nonfederal employers.

    • Ask trusted contacts whether they may serve as references using personal contact details.
    • Choose one small weekly action for public-service roles and one for private-sector exploration.
    FedUp guideFederal career transition services

Useful tools

All calculators
Layoffs & RIFs hubFollow current FedUp guidance without assuming a rumor is a formal action.Open Total compensation calculatorEstablish a benefits-aware baseline before comparing outside offers.Open Federal job translationStart describing your work in language employers outside government use.Open

Records

Save these before access ends

Use this checklist now—or to recover missing records later.

Checks are not saved.

Keep only permitted records

Follow agency policy. Never retain classified information, controlled unclassified information, procurement-sensitive material, other people’s personally identifiable information, or agency work product. Ask records, security, or ethics staff if unsure.

Benefits

Questions to verify

Take these to the office that owns each record, payment, or decision.

  1. 01

    FEHB and health coverage

    When does regular coverage end, what election is required, and who sends the notice?

    Ask agency benefits staff to confirm your status and dates in writing. Review OPM’s TCC guidance if separation ends regular FEHB coverage.

    OPM TCC guidance
  2. 02

    FERS or CSRS retirement

    Which service dates and retirement path is the agency using?

    Request an official estimate and verify immediate, postponed, deferred, disability, or early-retirement questions with the responsible office.

    OPM Retirement Center
  3. 03

    TSP savings and loans

    Can you sign in personally, and what changes when agency contributions stop?

    Confirm account access and beneficiaries. Compare leaving funds, rollover, loan, annuity, and withdrawal consequences before acting.

    TSP leaving-government guidance
  4. 04

    Leave and final pay

    Which balances are certified, and which office owns each payment?

    Save the last LES, compare the final SF-50 and SF-1150, and ask payroll for a written status when a payment is delayed.

    OPM annual-leave lump sums
  5. 05

    Severance or VSIP

    Which program is being offered, and has the agency found you eligible?

    Use calculators only as estimates. Verify pay rate, creditable service, age adjustment, caps, repayment terms, and exclusions.

    OPM severance pay facts
  6. 06

    UCFE and reemployment priority

    Which state handles the claim, and which documents establish any hiring priority?

    File through the state system if appropriate and separately verify CTAP, ICTAP, RPL, or reinstatement eligibility.

    USAJOBS transition programs

Help

Who handles what?

Open an issue to see where to start and what to bring.

Deadlines may still run. Contacting one office may not preserve time in another forum. Read your notice and get advice promptly.

Missing SF-50, eOPF record, notice, or appointment details
Start with
Your servicing agency HR office
Have ready
Full name used in service, agency and component, duty station, dates of service, employee identifier if safe, and a precise list of missing records.
Final pay, leave payout, deductions, or benefits processing
Start with
Agency payroll or benefits office
Have ready
Recent LES, separation or furlough notice, benefit election records, dates, amounts expected, and prior case numbers.
Collective-bargaining or grievance rights
Start with
Your union representative, if you are in a bargaining unit
Have ready
The complete notice, receipt date, relevant emails, your bargaining-unit status, and the collective bargaining agreement if available.
FLRA resources
Discrimination or retaliation tied to protected EEO activity
Start with
Your agency EEO office
Have ready
A concise timeline, people involved, the action, supporting records, and the date you learned of it.
EEOC federal-sector process
Whistleblower retaliation or another possible prohibited personnel practice
Start with
U.S. Office of Special Counsel
Have ready
The personnel action, protected disclosure or activity, timeline, officials involved, and nonclassified supporting material.
OSC complaint information
A personnel action that may be appealable
Start with
MSPB information or qualified federal employment counsel
Have ready
The notice of proposed action, agency decision, SF-50 if available, receipt and effective dates, and any prior forum filing.
MSPB appeal information
Immediate emotional distress or thoughts of self-harm
Start with
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Have ready
Nothing. Call or text 988, or use the online chat, any time.
Call, text, or chat with 988

Next step

Keep both career paths open

Explore public-service and private-sector options until one is clearly better.

02

Explore private-sector work

Translate outcomes and compare the whole offer

Map your duties to role families, remove federal jargon, build relationships, and compare health, retirement, leave, stability, and flexibility with salary.

Use official sources

Your notice, agency determinations, and current official sources control. Rules and deadlines can change. This page is general information—not legal, financial, tax, or retirement advice.

Official governmentFedUp guide or toolExternal site ↗

Last reviewed July 22, 2026. Report an outdated link or issue.