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Post by sthompson on Jan 22, 2010 14:38:42 GMT -5
How are people being notified? E-mail or snail mail. Thanks.
Seth
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Post by maxlaw on Jan 22, 2010 15:01:07 GMT -5
How are people being notified? E-mail or snail mail. Thanks.Seth No one has been notified yet. PatriotsFan is an ALJ who is participating as an interviewer. I believe previous notifications were by email.
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Post by privateatty on Jan 22, 2010 15:12:37 GMT -5
How are people being notified? E-mail or snail mail. Thanks. Seth OPM LOVES email. And brevity.
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Post by tigerfan on Jan 22, 2010 19:43:24 GMT -5
PF is correct that the SI is currently scheduled for March - April. However there has been some discussion about "expanding the time frame". That decision probably won't come until OPM has drawn up their schedule for the SIs and know that they have enough interviewers to fill all the slots.
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Post by privateatty on Jan 22, 2010 22:24:02 GMT -5
In the past two years we had a number of different threads and concomitant posts to help each other pass this interminable time. There were favorite drinks, movies, tales of children and hobbies. Even my favorite, going to the mountains. Veteran's Day was a biggie.
Hopefully, more of you will come out to play. I have never understood the shyness, but I confess its neigh impossible to walk in others' shoes.
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Post by cinderella on Jan 23, 2010 9:48:01 GMT -5
Thanks for the preliminary info about the SI- has there been any word about when the WD might be scheduled?
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Post by tricia on Jan 26, 2010 10:36:16 GMT -5
I have to say that when I checked my emails this morning, I was disappointed not to see something from OPM. I know that someone on this board said that he thought, for some reason, that we would get the emails on or about January 26. Right?
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Post by chieftain on Jan 26, 2010 10:45:08 GMT -5
I have to say that when I checked my emails this morning, I was disappointed not to see something from OPM. I know that someone on this board said that he thought, for some reason, that we would get the emails on or about January 26. Right? The January 26th date was with respect to a cert for the rumored hire off the current register. I don't think anyone on the board has inside scoop on the timetable under which OPM is working. The January 26th date for the small hire may be OBE as there are still some transfer offers/issues floating around.
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Post by deminimis on Jan 26, 2010 11:15:32 GMT -5
Does anybody have a guess as to how Obama's proposed budget freeze will affect the current hiring process? Charles Hall believes the freeze will include Social Security's operating budget.
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Post by milagros on Jan 26, 2010 12:14:00 GMT -5
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Post by Gram Pop on Jan 26, 2010 15:57:55 GMT -5
I have been lurking on this Board for some time now. I have been doing my best to follow the sage advice of those who came before. However, I find it harder and harder to avoid checking my personal email every 20 minutes in the vain hope that the long-awaited notification is waiting for me in my in box.
As I watch my calendar fill with depositions, court conferences, hearing dates, etc. I can't help but wonder how much notice we will be given of the dates for the WD and SI. Yes, I know I am putting the cart before the horse but a little optimism can go a long way.
I am lucky in that Washington is just a day trip for me. But I still have a practice that needs my attention and clients who expect me to put their interests ahead of mine. I signed up for this knowing that it would be painful, so I guess I should just do my best to live with the waiting. After all, I have worked for the government before, as well as for a very large corporation. I should know by now that the bureaucrats run the show and the rest of us are just along for the ride.
Well, it felt good to get that off my chest. My spouse is tired of hearing my complaints and I appreciate the opportunity to share them with all of you.
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Post by privateatty on Jan 26, 2010 20:41:49 GMT -5
I have been lurking on this Board for some time now. I have been doing my best to follow the sage advice of those who came before. However, I find it harder and harder to avoid checking my personal email every 20 minutes in the vain hope that the long-awaited notification is waiting for me in my in box. As I watch my calendar fill with depositions, court conferences, hearing dates, etc. I can't help but wonder how much notice we will be given of the dates for the WD and SI. Yes, I know I am putting the cart before the horse but a little optimism can go a long way. I am lucky in that Washington is just a day trip for me. But I still have a practice that needs my attention and clients who expect me to put their interests ahead of mine. I signed up for this knowing that it would be painful, so I guess I should just do my best to live with the waiting. After all, I have worked for the government before, as well as for a very large corporation. I should know by now that the bureaucrats run the show and the rest of us are just along for the ride. Well, it felt good to get that off my chest. My spouse is tired of hearing my complaints and I appreciate the opportunity to share them with all of you. outsider, welcome! Please, accept the (almost-fact) that you are hardly alone. Why, I'd bet you that there are a whole slew of lurkers out there who feel the way you do even if they are government lawyers. And please, no slight to government attorneys, but they do have way different ethical considerations than private attorneys do. And those do weigh (have weighed) on some of us...
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Post by decadealj on Jan 27, 2010 0:45:27 GMT -5
There is a wealth of information on this blog that should answer almost any questiion you could conceive- bottom line, expect the worst and hope for the best. Best of luck to you- there will be several openings soon. Many of us are going to retire soon- the Commish continues to alienate the cadre of ALJs who truly care and could make a diifference. But he wants to make us clerks who feed some facts into a "boilerplate template" to satisfy his idea of what his minions consider a satisfactory "due process" decision, then do all the data enrty stuff he thinks his management officials (high school graduates) need to supervise our work. Many of us take great pride in defeating him at his own game, i.e. entering whatever codes or deleting whatever we need to do to get the case out the door, i.e. signed and closed. IMHO, we used to do great work and serve the public, but the Commish had to fix what wasn't broken with HPI, and because of AFGE and NTEU, we are stuck with H.S. grads GSs supervising a legal process that borders on criminal negilgence.
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Post by ssaer on Jan 27, 2010 6:51:32 GMT -5
I have been lurking on this Board for some time now. I have been doing my best to follow the sage advice of those who came before. However, I find it harder and harder to avoid checking my personal email every 20 minutes in the vain hope that the long-awaited notification is waiting for me in my in box. As I watch my calendar fill with depositions, court conferences, hearing dates, etc. I can't help but wonder how much notice we will be given of the dates for the WD and SI. Yes, I know I am putting the cart before the horse but a little optimism can go a long way. I am lucky in that Washington is just a day trip for me. But I still have a practice that needs my attention and clients who expect me to put their interests ahead of mine. I signed up for this knowing that it would be painful, so I guess I should just do my best to live with the waiting. After all, I have worked for the government before, as well as for a very large corporation. I should know by now that the bureaucrats run the show and the rest of us are just along for the ride. Well, it felt good to get that off my chest. My spouse is tired of hearing my complaints and I appreciate the opportunity to share them with all of you. Please try not to be discouraged by the naysayers on this board, those stung by their non-selection as well as those embittered ALJs who have overstayed their usefulness and for whom the past alone provides the standard of excellence. The job of an SSA ALJ is truly a great one, one in which you will have the opportunity to utilize both your intellect and your compassion, providing meaningful assistance to many in the process. The agency is in no way your enemy, and is composed largely of hard working, well-meaning, highly dedicated and talented individuals and public servants. And the tools the agency provides are hardly designed to thwart our efforts; to the contrary, they are largely state of the art attempts to employ technology in support of decisional accuracy and efficiency, with the goal of better serving a burgeoning claimant population interested in and entitled to a timely and equitable resolution of their claims. Sure, the selection process can be protracted and frustrating. In its current form, however, it does a rather good job of selecting ALJs who are highly capable, caring and motivated. The potential reward is well worth pursuing. I urge you to keep your eyes on the prize, and wish you the best of luck.
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Post by valkyrie on Jan 27, 2010 7:52:44 GMT -5
I have been lurking on this Board for some time now. I have been doing my best to follow the sage advice of those who came before. However, I find it harder and harder to avoid checking my personal email every 20 minutes in the vain hope that the long-awaited notification is waiting for me in my in box. As I watch my calendar fill with depositions, court conferences, hearing dates, etc. I can't help but wonder how much notice we will be given of the dates for the WD and SI. Yes, I know I am putting the cart before the horse but a little optimism can go a long way. I am lucky in that Washington is just a day trip for me. But I still have a practice that needs my attention and clients who expect me to put their interests ahead of mine. I signed up for this knowing that it would be painful, so I guess I should just do my best to live with the waiting. After all, I have worked for the government before, as well as for a very large corporation. I should know by now that the bureaucrats run the show and the rest of us are just along for the ride. Well, it felt good to get that off my chest. My spouse is tired of hearing my complaints and I appreciate the opportunity to share them with all of you. Please try not to be discouraged by the naysayers on this board, those stung by their non-selection as well as those embittered ALJs who have overstayed their usefulness and for whom the past alone provides the standard of excellence. The job of an SSA ALJ is truly a great one, one in which you will have the opportunity to utilize both your intellect and your compassion, providing meaningful assistance to many in the process. The agency is in no way your enemy, and is composed largely of hard working, well-meaning, highly dedicated and talented individuals and public servants. And the tools the agency provides are hardly designed to thwart our efforts; to the contrary, they are largely state of the art attempts to employ technology in support of decisional accuracy and efficiency, with the goal of better serving a burgeoning claimant population interested in and entitled to a timely and equitable resolution of their claims. Sure, the selection process can be protracted and frustrating. In its current form, however, it does a rather good job of selecting ALJs who are highly capable, caring and motivated. The potential reward is well worth pursuing. I urge you to keep your eyes on the prize, and wish you the best of luck. Uh oh. Looks like your in bed with me and the rest of the management tools.
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Post by happyhawaiian on Jan 27, 2010 16:41:39 GMT -5
I just got an email from OPM asking what my preference was for taking the WD. Looks like the OPM wheels are finally turning
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Post by tricia on Jan 27, 2010 16:54:48 GMT -5
Is Happy Hawaiian the only one who has received an email regarding the WD and SI?
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Post by privateatty on Jan 27, 2010 18:53:23 GMT -5
I have been lurking on this Board for some time now. I have been doing my best to follow the sage advice of those who came before. However, I find it harder and harder to avoid checking my personal email every 20 minutes in the vain hope that the long-awaited notification is waiting for me in my in box. As I watch my calendar fill with depositions, court conferences, hearing dates, etc. I can't help but wonder how much notice we will be given of the dates for the WD and SI. Yes, I know I am putting the cart before the horse but a little optimism can go a long way. I am lucky in that Washington is just a day trip for me. But I still have a practice that needs my attention and clients who expect me to put their interests ahead of mine. I signed up for this knowing that it would be painful, so I guess I should just do my best to live with the waiting. After all, I have worked for the government before, as well as for a very large corporation. I should know by now that the bureaucrats run the show and the rest of us are just along for the ride. Well, it felt good to get that off my chest. My spouse is tired of hearing my complaints and I appreciate the opportunity to share them with all of you. Please try not to be discouraged by the naysayers on this board, those stung by their non-selection as well as those embittered ALJs who have overstayed their usefulness and for whom the past alone provides the standard of excellence. The job of an SSA ALJ is truly a great one, one in which you will have the opportunity to utilize both your intellect and your compassion, providing meaningful assistance to many in the process. The agency is in no way your enemy, and is composed largely of hard working, well-meaning, highly dedicated and talented individuals and public servants. And the tools the agency provides are hardly designed to thwart our efforts; to the contrary, they are largely state of the art attempts to employ technology in support of decisional accuracy and efficiency, with the goal of better serving a burgeoning claimant population interested in and entitled to a timely and equitable resolution of their claims. Sure, the selection process can be protracted and frustrating. In its current form, however, it does a rather good job of selecting ALJs who are highly capable, caring and motivated. The potential reward is well worth pursuing. I urge you to keep your eyes on the prize, and wish you the best of luck. Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary: naysayer: "one who denies, refuses, opposes, or is skeptical or cynical about something" I wasn't quite sure and I decided to look it up. The broadness of the definition surprised me a bit. I guess a "yaysayer" would be a team player or one who goes along with any group you are associated with and never opposes nor is skeptical. Most everybody that has posted, even val, is sometimes skeptical and then some... Indeed, to be skeptical is a must for an ALJ, particularly when one is adjudicating Agency claims and defenses. Our job is to be independent, to question the Agency and parties and arrive at a just Decision. The APA and the creation of the ALJ Corps (inclusive of SSA) was to ensure that the litigants before Agencies would have a Judge completely independent of the Agency. Y'all know this. As carjack posted to val's concerns about posters "scaring" people, folks gotta have a tough skin to get through this process. And as for "disallusioned" or "bitter" folks, well, I have faith (once gain) in the reader and their ability to read everyone's posts and decide for themselves.
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Post by deminimis on Jan 27, 2010 18:59:56 GMT -5
I just got an email from OPM asking what my preference was for taking the WD. Looks like the OPM wheels are finally turning Aloha, Happyhawaiian. Could you give us some details, i.e., can you tell us what exactly the e-mail said? Were you (presumably) a November applicant? How did you respond regarding your WD preference? Mahalo.
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Post by happyhawaiian on Jan 28, 2010 8:08:11 GMT -5
Just asked what was my preferred testing location.
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