Just about any California employee working in the San Diego area has basic civil rights. Among these basic rights includes the right to medical leave, an environment free of unlawful discrimination and the prompt and accurate payment of wages, including overtime when an employee qualifies.
However, many of the residents of San Diego are also employees of the federal government, especially given the large military presence in this town. Although they might not realize it or appreciate it fully, federal employees actually have some special, additional employee rights and safeguards that offer protection to them, even beyond that which other employees enjoy.
By way of example, federal employees have broader protections against discrimination than do other employees. In the workplace at large, for instance, employers have some leeway to choose not to hire someone or to fire someone because of their political views and activities. Such is not the case for a federal employee. Their private political activities cannot factor in to their employment in any way.
Moreover, in the workplace at large, an employer is free to hire someone based on a person recommendation and has some leeway to create a position tailored for a particular candidate. Such is not the case in the federal government. The law sets up barriers that confine an employer to making a hiring decision based strictly on merit as determined by objective criteria.
While there is naturally some discretion exercised by person making the hiring decision, that discretion is tightly controlled in federal hires. Therefore, someone who feels they have not been treated fairly in the process has certain recourse other employees may not have.