Stand Up for Federal Employee Freedom of Speech

Freedom of speech is a fundamental right we all still retain as federal employees. This freedom under the 1st amendment protects our ability to speak freely to the public while in our capacities as private citizens on matters that are of public concern (including sharing non-controlled information on matters of public concern which we have access to due to our unique roles as federal employees) when it does not interfere with, and is not a part of our ordinary job duties (see: 1 & 2). Whistleblower protection laws also further protect federal employees from retaliation for public disclosures of certain types of whistleblower information. Recently a federal union president, Ellen Mei, of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) representing employees at the Department of Agriculture (USDA) was given notice she would be fired in retaliation for a press interview she did warning the public about the government shutdown’s impacts to SNAP benefits. GESTA leadership has signed on to the petition protesting her firing for this protected speech, and you can also add your name to this petition, which has been organized by the Federal Union Network, at this link.