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Post by nappyloxs on Jan 25, 2022 21:19:24 GMT -5
I hope so, but I’ve also heard that TPTB are bringing back retired ALJs in senior judge statuses. Personally, I’d much prefer a new class instead of bringing back folks that have already had the best job in government and retired. Senior ALJs may be a contingency plan. Last year, one of the Fed employee news websites had an article about ALJs and the budget bill. I believe the House version required reinstating the OPM process while the Senate version was silent. Since we are in a CR with acting Commish, TPTB may be stuck and senior ALJs could be a backup plan if Congress continues to pass CR, not appoint a Commish, and all the other bureaucracy stuff. SSA knows OHO will be back to over 600,000 cases by 2024 and they needed ALJs sooner rather than later. CR expires next month (2/18), so we hopefully we find out more soon. I wouldn’t be surprised if they use the old OPM list for various reasons. |
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Post by Prrple on Jan 31, 2022 11:50:20 GMT -5
I hope so, but I’ve also heard that TPTB are bringing back retired ALJs in senior judge statuses. Personally, I’d much prefer a new class instead of bringing back folks that have already had the best job in government and retired. Senior ALJs may be a contingency plan. Last year, one of the Fed employee news websites had an article about ALJs and the budget bill. I believe the House version required reinstating the OPM process while the Senate version was silent. Since we are in a CR with acting Commish, TPTB may be stuck and senior ALJs could be a backup plan if Congress continues to pass CR, not appoint a Commish, and all the other bureaucracy stuff. SSA knows OHO will be back to over 600,000 cases by 2024 and they needed ALJs sooner rather than later. CR expires next month (2/18), so we hopefully we find out more soon. I wouldn’t be surprised if they use the old OPM list for various reasons. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Reinstating the old process, and adding a requirement of approval and appointment at the right level would fulfill the Lucia concerns.
By way of example, when I was promoted while serving in the USAF, my promotion and appointment to my new officer rank was approved by the President, along with all the other people that my promotion board recommended. I did not get to talk to the President, and I do not believe that the President was at all focused on me individually.
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Post by roymcavoy on Jan 31, 2022 13:58:04 GMT -5
I was in the group who was invited to FC in May/Jun 2019 for interviews. As you may recall, those of us selected to interview and pay for a night or two in FC (and from whom Saul pulled away the football like Lucy did Charlie Brown) were chosen after all of those who were on the former register were allowed to send in resumes, etc. That process came into being because the 2019 budget included a requirement from the senate that any newly appointed SSA ALJs have passed an OPM screening. Now there is this: trackbill.com/bill/us-congress-house-bill-4448-administrative-law-judges-competitive-service-restoration-act/2137964/Here sits a bipartisan bill to reinstate an OPM testing process as the catalyst for appointing ALJs. Nothing has happened on it since July 2021. So maybe “Here lies” is a better descriptor, as in “lies in state in the Capitol rotunda,” as this thing is dead. As we have seen since then, from DOI to DOL to any other agency, the death of this bill should not be a surprise as all of these other agencies seem happy to post their openings on USA Jobs and require experience practicing before their agency as a requirement. Per Pixie and the gang, SSA has been chomping at the bit to hire ALJs in this same manner. So the death of that above bill should surprise no one. I have applied for other ALJ jobs under this “non-OPM procedure” and have not gotten a whisper other than “thanks for trying.” Although I had a decent score on the register, my bet is that they don’t want me because my non-litigation experience does not include voluminous work in those agencies. My guess is that SSA would mimic these hiring means, which will result in the pendulum swinging back to hiring mostly SSA insiders, the result being that the outsiders without SSA experience will probably be the ones who are generally shut out. |
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Post by foghorn on Jan 31, 2022 14:23:25 GMT -5
So much joy!
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Post by roymcavoy on Jan 31, 2022 14:48:52 GMT -5
beatings will continue until morale improves |
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Post by hopefalj on Jan 31, 2022 17:47:47 GMT -5
As we have seen since then, from DOI to DOL to any other agency, the death of this bill should not be a surprise as all of these other agencies seem happy to post their openings on USA Jobs and require experience practicing before their agency as a requirement. Per Pixie and the gang, SSA has been chomping at the bit to hire ALJs in this same manner. So the death of that above bill should surprise no one. I have applied for other ALJ jobs under this “non-OPM procedure” and have not gotten a whisper other than “thanks for trying.” Although I had a decent score on the register, my bet is that they don’t want me because my non-litigation experience does not include voluminous work in those agencies. This has largely always been the case. Not that the DOL, NLRB, ITC, etc. have been able to directly hire attorneys with experience(preferably from within the agency), but they’ve almost always hired former insiders. Prior to the elimination of the register, they just poached former attorneys from the ALJ ranks as SSA has ample numbers of former attorneys from all government agencies. It was probably even easier back then because there was a much more limited applicant pool (1200-1700 ALJs) and they could hire solely on experience without worrying about cert hurdles. |
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Post by roymcavoy on Jan 31, 2022 22:53:29 GMT -5
As we have seen since then, from DOI to DOL to any other agency, the death of this bill should not be a surprise as all of these other agencies seem happy to post their openings on USA Jobs and require experience practicing before their agency as a requirement. Per Pixie and the gang, SSA has been chomping at the bit to hire ALJs in this same manner. So the death of that above bill should surprise no one. I have applied for other ALJ jobs under this “non-OPM procedure” and have not gotten a whisper other than “thanks for trying.” Although I had a decent score on the register, my bet is that they don’t want me because my non-litigation experience does not include voluminous work in those agencies. This has largely always been the case. Not that the DOL, NLRB, ITC, etc. have been able to directly hire attorneys with experience(preferably from within the agency), but they’ve almost always hired former insiders. Prior to the elimination of the register, they just poached former attorneys from the ALJ ranks as SSA has ample numbers of former attorneys from all government agencies. It was probably even easier back then because there was a much more limited applicant pool (1200-1700 ALJs) and they could hire solely on experience without worrying about cert hurdles. right. OMHA has largely enjoyed this process of which you speak, en mass. I’m not arguing this is good, bad, or whatever. I personally have health issues that would likely preclude me from even applying—I have moved on from this dream/nightmare. I just think any hiring done in 2022 will most likely be along the lines of the spring 2019 posting WITHOUT the requirement that the poster have an existing score on the former register: resume, essays on experience, etc, etc. |
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Post by greatgooglymoogly on Feb 10, 2022 11:23:26 GMT -5
Hey! after the whole alj hiring process was scrapped a few years ago, i stopped following things. i received a score and was waiting to be placed on a list when it all went kablooey.
Like the 17 year cicada, i'm emerging from my hole and wondering how to begin anew. Can someone point me in the right direction? (usa jobs?)
thanks.
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Post by rightspeech on Feb 11, 2022 9:35:30 GMT -5
basically nothing has changed while you were gone. there's no new formal process, OPM ALJ office doesn't exist. each agency is posting ALJ positions with the minimum qualifications they deem necessary. just monitor USAJOBS for ALJ postings. Set up an email alert for series 0935 jobs.
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Post by dwesq on Feb 22, 2022 7:47:58 GMT -5
I'm not seeing a 935 series in USAjobs, only 930?
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Post by rightspeech on Feb 22, 2022 10:24:07 GMT -5
It's there fore me. 0930 is called Hearings and Appeals, hearings officers and asylum officers mostly. 0935 is ALJ, there is currently 1 posting for a management judge at HHS for current ALJs only.
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Post by prescient on Mar 1, 2022 8:51:16 GMT -5
Not sure what the significance may be, but they just posted a 1 year detail looking for 2 people to assist with ALJ hiring
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Post by nylawyer on Mar 1, 2022 9:14:56 GMT -5
Not sure what the significance may be, but they just posted a 1 year detail looking for 2 people to assist with ALJ hiring I'd definitely call it significant. The question being, are those two people being hired to review applicants and perform similar duties. Because then it would appear hiring is very imminent. Or- are they being hired to help develop the process by which hiring will happen, in which case hiring is likely still down the road a bit. But even if it's the latter, it's progress. |
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Post by prescient on Mar 1, 2022 9:30:24 GMT -5
Not sure what the significance may be, but they just posted a 1 year detail looking for 2 people to assist with ALJ hiring I'd definitely call it significant. The question being, are those two people being hired to review applicants and perform similar duties. Because then it would appear hiring is very imminent. Or- are they being hired to help develop the process by which hiring will happen, in which case hiring is likely still down the road a bit. But even if it's the latter, it's progress. Duties may include creating and updating electronic candidate folders, scheduling interviews and reference checks, compiling candidates contact info, creating tracking spreadsheets, reviewing application material for completeness and other duties |
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Post by rightspeech on Mar 1, 2022 11:01:44 GMT -5
wonder why they sent solicitation to all hands when only non-bargaining are eligible. seems like they would have a management e-mail list to send it to. 90%+ of the people who received the solicitation aren't eligible to apply.
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Post by Gaidin on Mar 1, 2022 11:55:07 GMT -5
wonder why they sent solicitation to all hands when only non-bargaining are eligible. seems like they would have a management e-mail list to send it to. 90%+ of the people who received the solicitation aren't eligible to apply. To get people who are interested in applying to start thinking. |
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Post by rp on Mar 1, 2022 12:02:36 GMT -5
When combined with the info from the other post about reassignment inquiries- this definitely looks like hiring activity.
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Post by jagvet on Mar 1, 2022 13:24:50 GMT -5
The reassignment offer letter issued yesterday said that reassignments were a prelude to new hiring.
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Post by nylawyer on Mar 1, 2022 13:51:25 GMT -5
Sounds like the question is no longer if. Time to move on to when, where, and how many.
Anyone with any connection to the training Cadre heard anything about new hire training, and whether it will be live? I'd presume not.
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Post by fowlfinder on Mar 1, 2022 20:16:05 GMT -5
Not sure what the significance may be, but they just posted a 1 year detail looking for 2 people to assist with ALJ hiring As I assume this was an internal post and not on USAJobs (because I can't find it there), does the posting say how long the application period is open? Just trying to read the tea leaves. |
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