Walkinshaw Hosts First-Ever Federal Workforce Caucus Meeting as Fight to Rebuild Federal Government Begins

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman James R. Walkinshaw (VA-11), a Co-Chair of the Federal Workforce Caucus, released the following statement on the Caucus' inaugural meeting. "I was proud to host the first official meeting of the Federal Workforce Caucus today alongside a bipartisan coalition of Members of Congress and Union leaders, who have been on the front lines fighting to preserve the rights of federal employees. These rights are essential to ensure a government that can fairly and effectively serve the American people. 80% of federal civil servants live outside of the Washington, D.C. region and serve in communities across this country. They are doctors, veterans, researchers, and public servants who show up every day for the American people. They deserve a Congress that shows up for them too. That is exactly what this Caucus is going to do. For the past 15 months, federal workers have been subject to unprecedented challenges. They have been illegally terminated, subjected to mass reductions in force, lost vital employment protections and bargaining rights, and have been forced to endure toxic workplaces designed to push them out. These abuses have undermined civil servants’ ability to provide essential services to the American public. The Federal Workforce Caucus will address this challenge by working alongside union leaders and civil service organizations to rebuild the capacity of the federal workforce. The Caucus will prioritize shielding our nonpartisan civil servants from politicization – the mission of federal employees is to serve every American regardless of who is in the White House. Our goal is to not just to rebuild the federal workforce as it existed before, but to push forward, innovate,  and build an even more effective, modern federal workforce that delivers for every American family. I am grateful to the unions and to the bipartisan Members of Congress who joined us today from all across America. Together, we are mapping the future of America’s nonpartisan civil service. Today is just the beginning." ###