OPM proposes two-year trial jobs for mentally disabled

The Office of Personnel Management has proposed the creation of a special hiring authority for people with psychiatric disabilities.

Under OPM's proposed regulation, people with psychiatric disabilities could be hired without going through the normal competitive hiring process. People would spend two years under the special appointment, after which they could be placed in a permanent job in the civil service.

"I strongly believe that everyone should be given an equal shot at success, no matter what their situation," said OPM Director Janice R. Lachance.

While the traditional method to enter federal service is by appointment through a competitive process, OPM can create special hiring authorities that waive competitive requirements.

Two rules currently exist that allow people with psychiatric disabilities to bypass the competitive examining process. The first allows partially recovered former patients of federal mental institutions to get jobs at federal mental institutions. The second appointment authority is used to update job skills and establish a successful performance record for people with disabilities to help them find new jobs.

OPM wants to abolish these two appointing authorities in favor of a broader rule that requires only two years of good service for obtaining a permanent position.

The proposal was prompted by a 1998 presidential executive order (13078) calling on agencies to give people with psychiatric disorders the same opportunities afforded those with severe physical disabilities or mental retardation.

According to OPM's People With Disabilities in the Federal Government: An Employment Guide, "psychiatric disabilities are diverse and include anxiety disorders, depression, mania, schizophrenia and other conditions."

A House Civil Service Subcommittee spokesman said the rule is not a hiring preference, but would be similar to the Veterans Readjustment Appointment, which allows veterans with good performance to be converted to the competitive service after two years.