Perceptions of Political Discrimination and Political Activity Coercion in the Federal Service

Abstract

This study examines perceptions of prohibited personnel practices (PPPs) involving partisan politics in the federal workforce. Among the 18 prohibited practices tracked by the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board, two—political affiliation discrimination and political activity coercion—doubled in a decade from 2010 to 2021. First, the perceived prevalence of PPPs involving partisan politics is examined by agency and organizational ethical climate. Then, multivariate models are used to investigate whether perceptions of political affiliation discrimination and political activity coercion influence federal employees’ turnover intentions and attitudes toward their agencies as workplaces. The analysis showed that such perceptions negatively affected public servants, making them less likely to recommend their agency as a workplace and more likely to consider leaving their agency. The discussion articulates why partisan politics in civil service is a critical topic for democratic governance and organizational theory in general, and human resource management in particular.