The Office of Personnel Management has finalized a 3.8% pay increase for federal law enforcement personnel beginning with the first full pay period of 2026, setting these roles apart from the 1% across-the-board raise applied to most of the federal workforce. The increase includes a 2.8% supplemental boost implemented through a newly established special pay rate, which OPM says is intended to address persistent recruitment and retention challenges in mission-critical law enforcement positions. The raise was initially authorized by President Trump in an alternative pay plan and formally structured through a December memo from OPM Director Scott Kupor.
The special pay rate applies across a wide range of federal law enforcement roles spanning the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Agriculture, Interior, State, and others, including FBI special agents, Border Patrol agents, Secret Service personnel, federal correctional officers, and criminal investigators. While the higher pay is subject to the federal pay cap of $197,200 for 2026, OPM emphasized that agencies can request to add additional positions to the special rate as workforce needs evolve. The move signals a continued focus on strengthening federal law enforcement staffing amid competitive labor markets and expanding operational demands across national security and public safety missions.
Layoffs: BAE Systems
Defense contractor BAE Systems has filed a WARN notice with Maryland officials announcing a planned reduction in force that will affect 55 employees at its Anne Arundel County, Maryland facility, located near Fort Meade. The job cuts are scheduled to take effect in early March 2026 and stem from an internal workforce reduction, though the company has not publicly detailed which departments or job functions will be hit.
While specific reasons for the reduction weren’t outlined in the filing, this announcement comes against a backdrop of broader activity for the firm. Just months earlier, BAE had secured substantial defense work and has been navigating ongoing organizational adjustments across its U.S. operations. Local workforce agencies in Anne Arundel County are preparing support services — like job search help and retraining resources — for employees impacted by the layoffs as they start planning next steps.
Hiring: U.S. Secret Service
The U.S. Secret Service has launched one of its largest recruiting efforts in years, announcing plans to bring on roughly 4,000 new employees by 2028 as part of a broader federal law enforcement hiring push. That expansion would grow the agency’s workforce by nearly 20%, pushing total staffing — including special agents, uniformed officers, and support staff — to about 10,000 personnel. It’s an ambitious goal that comes as the agency faces ongoing challenges with morale, attrition, and competition for talent across the federal government.
To achieve this growth, the Secret Service has revamped its recruiting process, rolling out “accelerated hiring events” designed to trim the time between application and job offer by months. Current averages can stretch past 250-300 days for entry-on-duty — a significant barrier in a tight labor market — and agency officials say they’re tightening and streamlining steps without sacrificing standards. The recruitment strategy targets former military, seasoned law enforcement professionals, and high-achieving college graduates, and the agency is also offering retention incentives to keep retirement-eligible agents and officers from leaving.
Cleared Employer at Work: Leidos
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Opportunity to Watch
The Office of Personnel Management has rolled out a redesigned Federal Workforce Data website, replacing the long-standing FedScope platform with a more modern and accessible tool for tracking federal employment trends. The new site offers interactive charts that can be filtered by agency and time period, includes workforce data current through November for most categories, and introduces new datasets on payroll and recruitment. OPM says the overhaul is intended to improve transparency and support more data-driven decision-making, addressing long-standing frustrations with FedScope’s dated interface and slow, quarterly update cycle. FedScope is scheduled to be fully retired later this month.
Early feedback from data users and workforce experts has been largely positive, with many highlighting the site’s improved usability, faster monthly updates, and easier access to downloadable raw data. The platform also incorporates hiring information from USAJobs and, for the first time, makes certain payroll data more visible, including details related to administrative leave. Some data elements previously available on FedScope, such as demographic information, are not included in the new release due to current administration directives, but OPM has indicated the site will continue to evolve. Agency officials say they plan to make ongoing improvements and potentially expand available datasets as they gather feedback from users.
