Employees who work in national intelligence agencies lack the whistleblower protections [1]of other government workers. Provisions granting those protections, which had been attached to the stimulus bill, were dropped before the bill was signed into law by President Obama, reports The Washington Post.

The protections were opposed by Defense Secretary Robert Gates, the Post reports.

What protections do these workers lack? 

"Unlike their counterparts elsewhere, they cannot now appeal adverse administrative decisions outside their agencies, either to a special civil service board or to a federal court. Along with others, they also cannot win compensatory damages for improper job decisions or sue to regain their clearances," the Post explains.

Gates and others have expressed concern that giving intelligence-community employees the right to share classified information with a range of congressional committees would jeopardize national security. Supporters say it would act as a necessary check on abuses by the intelligence community.