[Jobs] Fw: [acb-hsp] FW: FEDweek Weekly Issue: Wed, Aug. 23, 2006

[PETER ALTSCHUL]

> FYI!
> 
> 11. Federal Legal Corner: Noncompetitive Hiring of People With
> Disabilities The Office of Personnel Management recently issued its
> final rule concerning excepted service appointments of persons with
> mental retardation, severe physical disabilities, and/or psychiatric
> disabilities. The final rule, published in the Federal Register (71
> Fed.Reg. 42241), was designed to remove barriers and increase the
> employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities.
> 
> Due to the variety of challenges faced by individuals with severe
> disabilities, hiring these individuals can be difficult under
> traditional competitive hiring procedures.
> In 1979, President Jimmy Carter issued Executive Order
> 12125 establishing the authorities for hiring individuals with mental
> retardation or severe physical disabilities into the federal government.
> Later, President Bill Clinton issued Executive Order 13124 and provided
> persons with psychiatric disabilities the same hiring opportunities as
> those persons with mental retardation or severe physical disabilities.
> 
> The hiring authorities enabled agencies to more easily hire individuals
> with these disabilities. These authorities streamlined the hiring
> process by allowing agencies to hire when it was not feasible or
> practical to do so using traditional competitive hiring procedures. To
> be appointed under these hiring authorities, individuals needed to
> submit proof of their disability status; this proof had to be obtained
> from either the Department of Veterans Affairs, or from a state
> vocational rehabilitation agency. After completing two years of
> satisfactory service, individuals hired under Schedule A authorities are
> eligible for conversion to federal career service (competitive status).
> 
> The new OPM regulation, effective August 25, 2006, consolidates these
> three authorities into a single "Schedule A" authority.
> One significant difference in the new regulation is the expansion of the
> types of entities from which agencies can accept proof of disability
> status. Under the new authority, agencies are able to accept
> documentation from a licensed medical professional, a licensed
> vocational rehabilitation specialist, or any federal, state, or District
> of Columbia agency that issues or provides disability benefits.
> 
> In addition to documentation of disability status, Schedule A
> appointments now also require a certification of job readiness.
> A certification of job readiness is a determination that a disabled
> individual is likely to succeed in the performance of the duties of the
> position s/he is seeking. Agencies can accept certificates of job
> readiness from the same entities that are authorized to provide
> disability status documentation. Agencies also have the discretion to
> accept the individual's prior employment under a temporary appointment
> in either the competitive or excepted services as proof of job
> readiness.
> 
> Recognizing that it may be necessary to observe the individual on the
> job to determine whether the individual is able or ready to perform the
> duties of the position, Schedule A also allows agencies to place
> disabled individuals into temporary appointments, in lieu of job
> readiness certifications. This temporary employment option is not
> intended for individuals who are already in the federal workforce who
> have already demonstrated the ability to perform a certain job. If an
> agency utilizes the temporary employment option, the agency may then
> convert these appointments to time-limited or permanent appointments at
> any time during the temporary appointment.
> 
> Individuals with disabilities, especially the specific types of
> disabilities for which Schedule A appointments were designed, often face
> seemingly insurmountable barriers to securing employment.
> As explained in Executive Order 13124, it is the policy of the United
> States to assure equality of opportunity, full participation,
> independent living, and economic self-sufficiency of persons with
> disabilities. The federal government should serve as a model employer of
> individuals with disabilities. In revising the Schedule A regulations to
> allow disability certifications from a variety of sources, and by
> offering more than one option for determining job readiness, OPM has
> removed potential barriers the employment individuals with disabilities.
> In doing so, OPM is expanding employment opportunities for many talented
> individuals and is encouraging individuals with disabilities to realize
> their full potential in the workforce.  
> 
> 
> 
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