Government Personal Services Contracting and Antidiscrimination Laws: Tenure for Contractors?

Abstract

Civil service employees are thought to enjoy “tenure,” or job protection, which does not necessarily extend to personal services contract employees. Antidiscrimination laws, however, can be used to extend job protection to personal services contract employees. While contracting for personal services is generally prohibited, exceptions to the prohibition exist. As the federal government considers liberalizing the rules governing personal services contracts, policy makers must be aware of potential tangential effects, such as increased liability, that may nullify the benefits of these types of contracts. This paper discusses the prohibitions on personal services contracts and the applicability of antidiscrimination laws to the federal government when using personal services contract employees.

Keywords: personal services contracts, tenure, antidiscrimination, EEOC

JEL Classification: K31, K12, J71, H57