Employees covered. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, this part applies to each civilian employee in:

The executive branch of the Federal Government; and

Those parts of the Federal Government outside the executive branch which are subject by statute to competitive service requirements or are determined by the appropriate legislative or judicial administrative body to be covered hereunder. Coverage includes administrative law judges except as modified by part 930 of this chapter.

Employees excluded. This part does not apply to an employee:

In a position in the Senior Executive Service; or

Whose appointment is required by Congress to be confirmed by, or made with the advice and consent of, the United States Senate, except a postmaster.

Actions excluded. This part does not apply to:

The termination of a temporary or term promotion or the return of an employee to the position held before the temporary or term promotion or to one of equivalent grade and pay.

A change to lower grade based on the reclassification of an employee's position due to the application of new classification standards or the correction of a classification error.

A change to lower grade based on reclassification of an employee's position due to erosion of duties, except that this exclusion does not apply to such reclassification actions that will take effect after an agency has formally announced a reduction in force in the employee's competitive area and when the reduction in force will take effect within 180 days. This exception ends at the completion of the reduction in force.

The change of an employee from regular to substitute in the same pay level in the U.S. Postal Service field service.

The release from a competitive level of a National Guard technician under section 709 of title 32, United States Code.

Placement of an employee serving on an intermittent, part-time, on-call, or seasonal basis in a nonpay and nonduty status in accordance with conditions established at time of appointment.

A change in an employee's work schedule from other-than-full-time to full-time. (A change from full-time to other than full-time for a reason covered in § 351.201(A)(2) is covered by this part.)