Executive Order 14284: Strengthening Probationary Periods in the Federal Service

What does Executive Order 14284 do?

Supervisors had to evaluate probationers and certify continued employment, with OPM issuing implementing guidance.

Reading the operative provisions of Executive Order 14284

EO 14284 directs agencies to strengthen how they evaluate federal employees during probationary periods. It calls for supervisors to assess new employees, document performance and affirmatively certify that an employee should continue after the probation period. The Federal Register text establishes management expectations; it does not remove all statutory protections or make every probationary employee automatically subject to dismissal.

Probation is an initial period in which agencies assess whether an employee is suitable for continued service. The required review is intended to make that assessment timely and explicit rather than allowing a deadline to pass without a manager’s decision. Agencies still need to apply relevant personnel statutes, regulations, veterans’ preference and any collective-bargaining provisions that govern a position. A certification process is a management tool, not a replacement for those rules.

Implementation depends on agency procedures, notices to managers and records showing when evaluations occurred. If an employee is separated, the legal basis and available review can depend on appointment type, length of service and the reason for the action. The order’s emphasis on performance documentation may improve accountability, but only if agencies use consistent standards and provide accurate records. To understand its effect, examine OPM guidance, agency notices and personnel decisions rather than assuming that probationary status alone determines every employee’s rights.

Probationary reviews should be documented at a useful point in the appointment, not completed as a formality after a decision is already made. Supervisors need clear criteria, accurate performance records and training on the distinction between conduct, performance and suitability. Agencies can then explain a continuation or separation decision and apply standards consistently across employees doing comparable work. The order’s certification requirement is most meaningful when it produces that accountable record.