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Post by Gaidin on Sept 18, 2014 15:48:53 GMT -5
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Post by westernalj on Sept 19, 2014 4:13:14 GMT -5
How many ALJs are there and where might they go?
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Post by Ace Midnight on Sept 19, 2014 9:38:54 GMT -5
I think they have, give or take, 12 or 13.
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Post by bikingnut on Sept 19, 2014 9:50:15 GMT -5
How many ALJs are there and where might they go? It appears there is a NHC and a RO there: www.ssa.gov/appeals/ODAR_Hearing_Sites_Map.htmlAre these two distinct places or entities? Are they just closing the NHC but keeping the RO open? It seems insane to me that they would have no facility at all in Chicago. It's a huge city. Maybe the RO will expand and any ALJs who can't transfer to other cities will be absorbed into the RO. Understand I am completely outside the system and this is the wildest of WAGs. |
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Post by JudgeRatty on Sept 19, 2014 10:01:31 GMT -5
How many ALJs are there and where might they go? It appears there is a NHC and a RO there: www.ssa.gov/appeals/ODAR_Hearing_Sites_Map.htmlAre these two distinct places or entities? Are they just closing the NHC but keeping the RO open? It seems insane to me that they would have no facility at all in Chicago. It's a huge city. Maybe the RO will expand and any ALJs who can't transfer to other cities will be absorbed into the RO. Understand I am completely outside the system and this is the wildest of WAGs. These are two distinct entities and the RO will remain. I am not sure what the plan is for staff and ALJs at the NHC, or even how many are there now. There is still an office in Evanston and Orland Park as well. |
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Post by gary on Sept 19, 2014 10:02:25 GMT -5
There is an NHC and an ODAR hearing office in Chicago on different floors of the same building. I interpret the current intel/speculation as pertaining only to the NHC.
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Post by gary on Sept 19, 2014 10:05:24 GMT -5
It appears there is a NHC and a RO there: www.ssa.gov/appeals/ODAR_Hearing_Sites_Map.htmlAre these two distinct places or entities? Are they just closing the NHC but keeping the RO open? It seems insane to me that they would have no facility at all in Chicago. It's a huge city. Maybe the RO will expand and any ALJs who can't transfer to other cities will be absorbed into the RO. Understand I am completely outside the system and this is the wildest of WAGs. These are two distinct entities and the RO will remain. I am not sure what the plan is for staff and ALJs at the NHC, or even how many are there now. There is still an office in Evanston and Orland Park as well. And one in Oak Brook. |
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Post by JudgeRatty on Sept 19, 2014 10:09:56 GMT -5
I looked at the global address list and it appears there are 11 ALJs with the title NHC ALJ in Chicago.
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Post by bikingnut on Sept 19, 2014 10:38:33 GMT -5
I looked at the global address list and it appears there are 11 ALJs with the title NHC ALJ in Chicago. So with all the offices in basically the same area, maybe the ODAR powers that be just felt like it was too many separate silos and are planning to divide the 11 ALJs among the remaining--what is it--4 offices in the vicinity. |
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Post by JudgeRatty on Sept 19, 2014 10:43:35 GMT -5
That would make sense and be in line with the overall plan to reduce the footprint of SSA, given the cost of leasing space etc. Plus, with more staff working at home now, the office space is not as utilized as it once was. I do not have any personal knowledge of the exact reasons behind this change, but it sure does fit with the general plan.
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Post by gary on Sept 19, 2014 11:37:57 GMT -5
Ooops! I gave out-of-date information before. The Chicago RO and NHC are on different floors of the same building. I think the ODAR HO used to be in that building too, but it is now in a building about a block away. This information is from SSA's website so I expect it is correct. Sorry about the earlier incorrect posting.
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Post by march2013 on Sept 19, 2014 12:36:20 GMT -5
The Chicago NHC is not closing.
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Post by gary on Sept 19, 2014 13:12:29 GMT -5
The Chicago NHC is not closing. Great news! What's the source of your intel, if you don't mind sharing it? |
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Post by march2013 on Sept 19, 2014 13:30:21 GMT -5
Word from within that office is that they had heard the same rumour but it was untrue and they are actually hiring a few additional ALJs.
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Post by gary on Sept 19, 2014 13:34:05 GMT -5
Word from within that office is that they had heard the same rumour but it was untrue and they are actually hiring a few additional ALJs. Sounds like a good source. Thanks! |
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Post by Gaidin on Sept 19, 2014 13:36:57 GMT -5
Thank you March!!!!
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Post by cubbietax on Sept 19, 2014 13:40:24 GMT -5
Whew!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Post by luckylady2 on Sept 19, 2014 13:42:52 GMT -5
Thanks March - Maybe it was just a test of the ALJ Discussion Board Early Warning System - to see how many pages of WAG it could generate and how fast it would be reported.
Looks like the Board is doing just fine!
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Post by JudgeRatty on Sept 19, 2014 13:51:30 GMT -5
Thanks March - Maybe it was just a test of the ALJ Discussion Board Early Warning System - to see how many pages of WAG it could generate and how fast it would be reported. Looks like the Board is doing just fine! Indeed! LOL! |
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Post by mamaru on Sept 19, 2014 22:42:49 GMT -5
I did not post this as a test of the board and have no reason to believe there was an information leak designed to test the board.
Before our office got new judges, we routinely sent cases to the Chicago NHC. Our HOD (who is barely aware of the existence ov the board) informed of us of the closing at a regular staff meeting - she may have been misinformed, but it was part of a presentation directly related to our shifting workload, not just a general discussion about what's going on in the agency - we are not geographically close to Chicago and are not even in the same region so there would be no reason to for her to share information unless it affected our operations. She did not say this is something she had heard, she said it would be happening. There's a big difference in my book. Given the context within which the information was given, I considered it reliable. I have to say that as a staff we are not given a lot of information about what's up, but the information we get is usually accurate.
It could be a rumor, and as someone who eventually would like to get back to Chicago, I hope it is.
I don't think it is helpful to post rumors (at least without identifying them as such) but it seems to me that, in the past, we have found information that comes through HODs to be reliable.
If I have upset anyone unnecessarily, mea culpa.
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