Office of Personnel Management targets youth recruitment and return-to-office mandates

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is implementing new strategies to recruit younger employees into the federal workforce, including using social media trends and memes to increase engagement. OPM Director Scott Kupor stated that the agency is attempting to use kitschy content to reach early-career talent. However, experts from the Partnership for Public Service have cautioned that these recruitment efforts may be undermined by the Trump administration's broader goals to downsize the civil service.

Simultaneously, the administration is aggressively pushing a return-to-office mandate for federal employees. In a recorded agency meeting, Director Kupor admitted to filming a social media update in front of a blank wall to avoid scrutiny regarding working from home. While OPM representatives stated Kupor was taking a day off during the recording, the incident highlights the tension surrounding the administration's executive order to terminate remote work arrangements and require full-time in-person attendance.