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OPM Declares Loyalty Essays Optional, Unions File Lawsuit

4/29/2026

Summary

Story summary

OPM says loyalty essay questions on federal job applications are optional.
An OPM official explained the USA Staffing system defaults to optional, requiring agencies to manually make essays required, which appear in about 33,000 postings, covering roughly 75% of Justice and Energy Department listings and nearly all Labor Department postings.
Federal employee unions have sued OPM over the essays, while a district judge has not yet ruled on an injunction.

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Story summary

OPM says loyalty essay questions on federal job applications are optional.
An OPM official explained the USA Staffing system defaults to optional, requiring agencies to manually make essays required, which appear in about 33,000 postings, covering roughly 75% of Justice and Energy Department listings and nearly all Labor Department postings.
Federal employee unions have sued OPM over the essays, while a district judge has not yet ruled on an injunction.