Civil Service Basics
Required by Article VI of the U.S. Constitution and codified in 5 U.S.C. § 3331, this sworn declaration must be taken by all federal civil servants before beginning their duties.
What is the oath of office?
This federal office manages the U.S. civil service workforce.
What is the Office of Personnel Management?
This word, referring to a government official, comes from a French term meaning "desk" combined with a Greek suffix meaning "rule" or "power."
What is "bureaucrat"?
This campaign from the U.S. Forest Service has been running since 1944 and reminds you of your pivotal role in wildfire prevention.
What is "Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires"?
This popular TV show features a fictional office where employees serve as civil servants, often dealing with the bureaucracy of local government in the small town of Pawnee, Indiana.
What is Parks and Recreation?
First enacted in 1939, this federal law restricts political activities of civil servants to ensure a nonpartisan public workforce.
What is the Hatch Act?
This independent federal agency administers and enforces the nation's laws regarding communications by radio, television, satellite, and cable.
What is the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)?
Before becoming president, this former civil servant worked as a U.S. general, overseeing military operations, and later became the only president to have previously served as a five-star general.
Who is Dwight D. Eisenhower?
This famous anti-drug PSA from the 1980s featured a frying egg and the phrase about the consequences of drug use.
What is "This Is Your Brain on Drugs"?
As this iconic character, David Duchovny works for the FBI investigating paranormal cases as part of the civil service in a department known for its secrecy.
Who is Fox Mulder?
In the federal civil service system, this process involves evaluating job candidates' qualifications and selecting them based on their skills, education, and experience, rather than political considerations.
What is merit-based hiring?
This federal agency, founded in 1865, is responsible for investigating and prosecuting financial crimes, such as counterfeiting and fraud.
What is the United States Secret Service?
This many U.S. presidents were previously federal career civil servants.
What is zero?
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched this slogan in 2003 to promote seatbelt usage and reduce road fatalities.
What is "Click It or Ticket"?
In this 2006 film, the main character, played by Matt Damon, works for the U.S. State Department as a civil servant dealing with complex international diplomacy.
What is The Good Shepherd?
This U.S. law, passed in 1883, established the foundation of the modern federal civil service system by requiring federal jobs to be filled based on merit rather than political affiliation.
What is the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act?
This agency, created in 1933 during the New Deal, was responsible for overseeing the economic recovery of the U.S. during the Great Depression, including regulating banking and securities markets.
What is the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)?
The name of the hiring system that was common before civil service reform.
What is the patronage or spoils system?
This 1980s PSA urged people to help prevent drunk driving with a message that encourages intervention from peers.
What is "Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk"?
This actress, known for her role in Contagion as a CDC doctor, helps lead the fight against a deadly global virus, showcasing the CDC's crucial role in managing public health crises.
Who is Kate Winslet?
The decade the U.S. federal civil service was officially established.
What is the 1870s?
This department, established in 1789, was the first executive branch agency of the U.S. government.
What is the Department of State?
Established in 1953 as the first U.S. Cabinet department dedicated to health, education, and social welfare, this predecessor to HHS was later split into two separate departments in 1979.
What is the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW)?
This slogan, introduced by NBC Universal and funded by the U.S. government in 1989, aimed to raise awareness on issues like education, health, and diversity.
What is "The More You Know"?
This TV show centers around two KGB spies posing as a married American couple living in Washington, D.C., during the Cold War, while one of their neighbors works as an US civil servant investigating Soviet espionage.
What is "The Americans"?