Here are the relevant provisions of the current collective bargaining agreement concerning transfers. Please note that the two year waiting period specified in section 2C, below, was reduced in 2009 to 90 days, by agreement between union and management; and that the upcoming collective bargaining agreement will likely eliminate the preference in section 2G given to management judges (including NHC judges, who are considered to be managers) in the transfer process:
ARTICLE 20
REASSIGNMENTS AND HARDSHIPS
I. Reassignments
To establish a uniform policy for the non-reimbursable reassignment of Judges the following provisions shall apply.
Section 1
A. The OHA will determine when there is an open position that will be filled by permanent assignment for a Judge in a hearing office.
B. Because Judge reassignments made under this provision are at the request of the Judge and are primarily for the benefit of the Judge, all expenses related to any requested relocation will be paid by the Judge.
C. Prior to considering the assignment of newly hired Judges to a hearing office, the OHA will give first consideration for one reassignment to that hearing office to the incumbent Judge who is first on the reassignment register for that hearing office pursuant to these provisions. In the event OHA determines that an incumbent Judge’s reassignment pursuant to the provisions set forth herein results in a permanent opening in his or her former hearing office, OHA will give first consideration to the incumbent Judge who is first on the reassignment register for that hearing office and the provisions of this article shall cease to apply to any additional permanent openings created by the reassignment of those two Judges.
D. It is understood that reassignments are subject to the prior approval of OPM under 5 C.F.R. §930.205.
Section 2
A. The OHA shall create and maintain a reassignment register organized by hearing office that contains the name of each volunteer Judge, the postmarked date of the request for reassignment and the date the Judge was appointed. Upon request, the Agency will provide to the President of the AALJ a copy of the current reassignment register on no more than a quarterly basis, which includes a list of all Judges who have requested reassignment to each hearing office.
B. A Judge who has received a letter of reprimand that has been placed in an SF 7B employee record extension file or who has been disciplined pursuant to 5 C.F.R. §930.214 shall have his or her name removed from the request register after final adjudication of the issue and shall not be eligible to have his or her name returned to the register for requested reassignment until twelve (12) months have passed from the date of final adjudication.
C. A Judge with less than twenty-four (24) months of continuous service with the Agency is not eligible for a voluntary reassignment unless a qualifying hardship exists and may not be placed on the request register until eligible.
D. A Judge who places his or her name on the register for more than three (3) hearing offices shall not be eligible for selection for any requested reassignment.
E. The names of the Judges on the register shall be ranked for requested reassignment selection according to the date the Judge’s name was entered on the register for that hearing office. The date of entry on the reassignment register shall be deemed the postmarked date mailed to the OHA. All requests for reassignment shall be mailed to the Office of the Chief Administrative Law Judge and must bear a legible postmark from the U.S. Postal Service with a copy sent to the proposed gaining and losing Regional Chief ALJ(s).
F. Should the number of qualified volunteers exceed the number of positions the OHA decides to fill by reassignment in a particular hearing office, the OHA shall consider selecting the Judge whose name appears at the top of the register of volunteers for that hearing office if the Judge is eligible for reassignment. If an eligible Judge refuses the reassignment then the OHA shall consider selecting the next eligible Judge in descending order on the register of volunteers for that hearing office. In the event two or more Judges have the same request date on the register for a particular hearing office, the Judge with the earliest appointment date as a Judge shall be considered for selection. In the event that two or more Judges have the same appointment date, then the one with the earliest federal service computation date shall be considered for selection. In the event there are two or more qualified Judges with the same federal service computation date, then the selection shall normally be determined by a random selection made by the Chief Administrative Law Judge or his or her Deputy. When a random selection is required the AALJ President will be notified. Should the AALJ President or his or her designee elect to be present for the random selection all costs incurred shall be at AALJ expense.
G. If, upon consideration, the OHA does not offer a reassignment to the Judge who is first on the reassignment register for a hearing office with a permanent opening, the OHA will provide its reason(s) in writing for the non-selection to the Judge not selected. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. §7106, management has concluded that it retains the right to reassign management Judges without giving preference to the reassignment register. The parties agree that in other than unusual and unpredictable circumstances the following reasons may justify the non-selection of an otherwise eligible Judge: the hardship of another Judge; or factors set forth in cases dealing with the employment relationship. Although not inclusive, examples of cases containing agreed upon factors are set forth in Appendix A.
H. Upon notification that he or she has been selected for a requested reassignment, a Judge will accept or decline within three (3) working days of the notification. If an eligible Judge declines reassignment to a hearing office that he or she has requested, then he or she shall have their name placed at the bottom of the reassignment register for that office.
I. If a Judge accepts a reassignment pursuant to these provisions, his or her name shall be removed from the register for other offices and he or she must report to the new office within forty-five (45) days of acceptance or as otherwise mutually agreed by the parties. That Judge shall not be eligible for another voluntary reassignment for two (2) years. A Judge who accepts a reassignment shall continue to hear and decide cases that have been scheduled for him or her in the hearing office he or she is leaving and will coordinate his or her travel plans with the gaining hearing office to facilitate the scheduling of hearings to be held upon reporting for duty at the new location.
J. A Judge may have his or her name removed from any voluntary reassignment register by sending a written request to the Office of the Chief Administrative Law Judge by U.S. mail with copies to the proposed gaining and losing Regional Chief ALJ(s).
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Section 4
When there are no qualified Judges on the register for a new or existing hearing office and the Agency has decided to reassign Judges to that office, a posting period of fifteen (15) working days will be established. Any Judge who wishes to be reassigned to that office must submit his or her written request to volunteer to the Office of the Chief Administrative Law Judge with a copy to the AALJ President or designee and the request must bear a U.S. Postal Service postmark within the specified period. All requests from Judges for reassignment received during this posting period shall be deemed to have been received on the same date. Therefore, ranking on the listing for the posted local hearing office will be determined by the procedure set forth above in Section 2(F). The qualified Judge with the earliest determined date using the tie breaking procedures shall normally be reassigned and if not, the provisions of Section 2(G) shall apply.
II. Hardship Reassignment
A. A Judge may request a hardship reassignment to another hearing office by sending his or her written request to the Office of the Chief Administrative Law Judge.
B. A hardship is defined as (1) an unpredictable personal or family crisis resulting from a documented event seriously affecting the health or safety of the Judge or his/her immediate family, and (2) which occurs after the Judge agrees to join OHA as an ALJ. For the purpose of this article, “immediate family” refers to spouse, children, stepchildren, and parents of the Judge or spouse.
C. The Agency will give good faith consideration to any request for a hardship reassignment based upon factors including, but not limited to the following:
1. Need for additional ALJ(s) in a particular hearing office.
2. Maintaining balance between workload and resources in the gaining and losing hearing offices.
3. The effect on space and staffing in the gaining and losing hearing offices.
4. The reasons given for the hardship reassignment.
5. The recommendations of the affected Regional Chief ALJ(s) and Hearing Office Chief ALJ(s).
III. Hardship Detail
If the Agency determines that a hardship reassignment is not appropriate, the Agency will give good faith consideration to offering a hardship detail to address the needs of the Judge using the factors set forth above.
IV. Payment of Expenses
Nothing in this Article shall preclude the Agency from paying expenses related to a reassignment when it is made in the best interest of the government consistent with law.
