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Post by iplawyer on Mar 26, 2011 14:41:15 GMT -5
Excellent post, marathoner, and very good advice. A few thoughts for those waiting for Bob's call: First, good luck to all applicants. However, keep in mind that there are a limited number of openings, and you might not receive a call. Also, be sure to check all phone numbers listed in your paperwork, & don't assume thT your numbers & emails were properly transcribed. I had requested that I be contacted on cell phone; this number was not recorded & my email was indifferent recorded. Thank goodness I checked the home voicemail (which we rarely use), as Bob had left an offer 3 days earlier. Second, I was hired for the May 2010 class. Of my 57 classmates, only 1 person was assigned to a city/ofc where she lived/worked. It really doesn't seem to matter whether or not one is an agency insider or outsider. Third, the vacancies are what they are & the transfer offers are what they are (or not). It is my understanding that mgmt has first bite at the transfer apple, & that group may not be identified on the union transfer list ---- in addition to all of the HOCAJs out there, there is also the rubric of NHC ALJs to throw into the mix. My sense is that very few people actually know what offers are made & to whom or when. So, if you really want this job right now, you need to be extremely flexible & very realistic about what it means to leave your home or relocate the entire family. Don't count on being made an offer in your current hometown & be very realistic about what it means to relocate now. If you are not currently in govt service, you also need to be very realistic about carrying a mortgage note on an unoccupied home & possibly going to closing with money to close your mortgage if you have to sell at a loss --- few of us have the financial wherewithall to take such a hit. Having noted all of that, I left a fabulous job in the govt & really love the work I do now, and the jump has really been worth any inconveniences my family & I have endured. So again, I wish each of you the best & also caution you to not stress over that over which you have no control, don't count on an offer in your current locale, be flexible, & be sure this is the right move for you professionally & personally, if you do receive the call from Bob. Great information. However, I admit to being a bit concerned at the notion -- if it's true -- that "Bob" (or whoever else makes the calls) only attempts to contact people once, through one method. Given the extensive hoops that all applicants have jumped through, I hope that SSA recognizes the level of interest and tries to reach an offeree through a second phone number (and/or sends an email to the previously used email address). After all, it would be odd for any professional to simply ignore a job offer; I imagine that 99% of ALJ applicants who decide to decline an offer take the time to call rather than simply ignore it. |
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marathoner
New Member
"The race belongs to the person who takes the first step."
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Post by marathoner on Mar 26, 2011 19:19:49 GMT -5
Iplawyer, no doubt, this process is absolutely maddening. However, like the GAL & the transfer lists, "it is what it is.". Some kind souls took pity on poor plebes like us & created this board for the exchange of info. When it lights up in the next week or so with offers reported, don't drive yourself crazy trying to figure out who got what & what it all means. It doesn't matter; you'll get an offer or not, & you will have a very short time to make some significantly serious decisions. Stay focused on the Big Picture & don't get mired down in the weeds. It would not have mattered if SSA had tried to contact me by email b/c the address in the system was completely wrong. No, don't expect SSA to chase you down through 2-3 contacts; they've got too many people to contact, a short time for turn-around, and at least 1,000 people ready to take the job offer if you aren't available, and trainig & moves to coordinate, along with completion of background checks, reference checks, and the like. You're a big girl & a seasoned professional; don't expect coddling, b/c you will be sorely disappointed. Sometimes I wonder if the craziness of this process is there to test your mettle & see how you handle stress, whether you can make quick, decisive decisions & stick with them?? Again, it is what it is, it will not change right now, so you need to be on the platform with yours bags ready when the train pulls into the station; otherwise, you'll be left behind, and you already know a thousand people are ready to jump over you and make the position their own. Pardon the typos; my iPhone has it's own mysterious auto-correct going on, which has left some embarrassing mistakes.
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Post by iplawyer on Mar 26, 2011 21:02:19 GMT -5
Iplawyer, no doubt, this process is absolutely maddening. However, like the GAL & the transfer lists, "it is what it is.". Some kind souls took pity on poor plebes like us & created this board for the exchange of info. When it lights up in the next week or so with offers reported, don't drive yourself crazy trying to figure out who got what & what it all means. It doesn't matter; you'll get an offer or not, & you will have a very short time to make some significantly serious decisions. Stay focused on the Big Picture & don't get mired down in the weeds. It would not have mattered if SSA had tried to contact me by email b/c the address in the system was completely wrong. No, don't expect SSA to chase you down through 2-3 contacts; they've got too many people to contact, a short time for turn-around, and at least 1,000 people ready to take the job offer if you aren't available, and trainig & moves to coordinate, along with completion of background checks, reference checks, and the like. You're a big girl & a seasoned professional; don't expect coddling, b/c you will be sorely disappointed. Sometimes I wonder if the craziness of this process is there to test your mettle & see how you handle stress, whether you can make quick, decisive decisions & stick with them?? Again, it is what it is, it will not change right now, so you need to be on the platform with yours bags ready when the train pulls into the station; otherwise, you'll be left behind, and you already know a thousand people are ready to jump over you and make the position their own. Pardon the typos; my iPhone has it's own mysterious auto-correct going on, which has left some embarrassing mistakes. I'm not convinced that hoping that, in the very rare case of a non-response, SSA would make some further effort is either seeking "coddling" or expecting to be "chased down". I have made job offers to candidates, and in similar cases I have always contacted the person at least twice. I recognize that we candidates are mostly fungible to SSA. Nevertheless, my presumption is that Agency personnel would prefer to give each offeree a fair shot to make his/her own decision -- that whole "due process" concept, in spirit as well as in law. (And since we all received our forms via email just 2 months ago, email should be an accurate alternative means of communication.) However, if that's not the way it works, then that's just the way it is. |
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Post by Justice-Dude on Mar 29, 2011 14:04:43 GMT -5
Does anyone know if all the union and management transfers have been completed?
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Post by bartleby on Mar 29, 2011 15:36:11 GMT -5
No, at least not from what I have been able to glean.
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mph
Full Member
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Post by mph on Apr 14, 2011 11:28:42 GMT -5
Any other SSA folk with info regarding transfers? The transfer process is continuing --all openings were filled recently by transfers in at least one ODAR office on my GAL. Does anyone know enough about the process to explain how the transfer process can continue despite the budget confusion? Doesn't the agency pay for ALJs to relocate?
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Post by Orly on Apr 14, 2011 11:39:44 GMT -5
Doesn't the agency pay for ALJs to relocate? Nope. The agency ususally don't pay for line ALJ transfers, so it's revenue neutral. |
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Post by jlee1962 on Apr 14, 2011 14:12:10 GMT -5
Any other SSA folk with info regarding transfers? The transfer process is continuing --all openings were filled recently by transfers in at least one ODAR office on my GAL. Does anyone know enough about the process to explain how the transfer process can continue despite the budget confusion? Doesn't the agency pay for ALJs to relocate? I am sure these are voluntary transfers at the request of the employee so all expenses are born by the employee. The government only has to pay relocation when it is an involuntary transfer. |
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Post by Justice-Dude on Apr 14, 2011 16:25:40 GMT -5
All very interesting but I think the only cut I'm interested in is for SSA and ODAR. Was there a cut? Okay guys. I received a call from ODAR/HR, and was offered a program/policy position with the Appeals Council - not as an ALJ. I had another application for a job at the Appeals Council as an analyst. This means that ODAR is hiring. I will start in a few weeks, which makes me happy to have a job in the event I am not selected for an ALJ position whenever that happens. |
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Post by jibtrimmer on Apr 14, 2011 16:41:00 GMT -5
The transfer process is continuing --all openings were filled recently by transfers in at least one ODAR office on my GAL. Mind sharing what that city is? |
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Post by tricia on Apr 14, 2011 16:57:46 GMT -5
Justice Dude - Congratulations! And thanks so much for sharing this information that they are hiring. Perhaps all is not lost.
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kslaw
New Member
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Post by kslaw on Apr 14, 2011 18:12:13 GMT -5
Justice-Dude - congratulations! Great news! I'm curious as to whether there is any training for the position for which you were hired (since there was talk of there being no in-person training available)? If so, maybe there is still hope?  Thanks! |
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Post by Justice-Dude on Apr 14, 2011 19:17:31 GMT -5
The transfer process is continuing --all openings were filled recently by transfers in at least one ODAR office on my GAL. Mind sharing what that city is? Fall Church, home of the Appeals Council. |
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Post by Justice-Dude on Apr 14, 2011 19:21:55 GMT -5
Justice-Dude - congratulations! Great news! I'm curious as to whether there is any training for the position for which you were hired (since there was talk of there being no in-person training available)? If so, maybe there is still hope? Thanks! There is no training as far as I know. I am expected to know what to do on day one. Thank goodness for all that previous SSA disability experience. This means a lot to me because it might be a real long time before I receive an offer for an ALJ slot. |
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Post by topher on Apr 15, 2011 7:50:05 GMT -5
I know that ODAR has tentatively put in-person decision writer training back on the schedule for this summer, so there may be a small little twinkle of light....
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Post by mcb on Apr 15, 2011 8:11:42 GMT -5
All very interesting but I think the only cut I'm interested in is for SSA and ODAR. Was there a cut? Okay guys. I received a call from ODAR/HR, and was offered a program/policy position with the Appeals Council - not as an ALJ. I had another application for a job at the Appeals Council as an analyst. This means that ODAR is hiring. I will start in a few weeks, which makes me happy to have a job in the event I am not selected for an ALJ position whenever that happens. Congrats! |
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Post by mcb on Apr 15, 2011 8:13:10 GMT -5
The transfer process is continuing --all openings were filled recently by transfers in at least one ODAR office on my GAL. Mind sharing what that city is? One of our Toledo ALJs has accepted a transfer to Akron since the transfer list came out. |
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