Washington DC - President Joe Biden and his administration are making moves to protect federal workers amid fears that Donald Trump plans to tell them all "You're fired!"

On Thursday, the US Office of Personnel Management issued a new rule that ensures civil service job protections cannot be taken away if a federal worker is involuntarily reclassified.

It also establishes requirements for the reclassification process, and allows workers to appeal a move if it threatens their protection in any way.

In a press release, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja said the rule ensures workers are "hired and fired based on merit" and can work "based on their expertise and not political loyalty."

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The rule comes as Biden prepares to battle Trump for re-election in November.

The Republican has regularly touted plans to revamp the federal government, arguing a need to "drain the swamp" of what he calls the "deep state".

According to Axios, in 2020, only weeks before his loss to Biden, Trump issued an executive order called "Schedule F," which sought to reclassify many federal workers into a new, lower tiered category, allowing him to replace them with MAGA allies of his.

Biden reversed the order when he took office, but Trump has expressed interest in bringing it back if he manages to take back the White House in 2025.

The new rule is expected to take effect in May.