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Two senators voiced concern Thursday over loopholes in policies giving veterans preference for federal jobs.

By law, veterans are given a leg up when competing in federal agencies for open jobs and for keeping their jobs during reductions in force. But some agencies may be employing a type of "designer RIF," where managers target certain employees for layoffs outside the civil service's merit rules by forcing them to move locations, or to quit their jobs, the senators said.

"I have heard from employees ... that their agencies appear to use involuntary reassignments to circumvent veterans' preference in a RIF," said Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, at a hearing Thursday before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce and the District of Columbia. Akaka is the ranking member of that subcommittee.

Richard Weidman, director of government relations for Vietnam Veterans of America, told the panel that there are numerous incidents in which veterans inappropriately lose their jobs through involuntary repositioning, such as "taking somebody who has family ties for four generations in the state of Ohio and repositioning them" to another state, knowing they will not move.

Government officials, however, said they do not think the practice is a major problem. Dan Blair, deputy director of the Office of Personnel Management, told the subcommittee that he was not aware of any widespread use of involuntary repositioning, and that such a move would likely be a prohibited personnel practice.

Akaka requested that a meeting of the Chief Human Capital Officers Council be held to discuss the problem.

He and subcommittee chairman George Voinovich, R-Ohio, also asked how the Outstanding Scholar program, a hiring authority that allows agencies to give students with a 3.5 grade point average an advantage in applying for jobs, affects veterans' preference.

Weidman and representatives from the American Legion and Disabled American Veterans expressed their strong dislike of the program.

"I'm against the Outstanding Scholar program," said Joseph Sharpe, deputy director of the economics division at the American Legion. "I know too many military folks that can't get into the federal government."

The Merit Systems Protection Board, a quasi-judicial body that handles federal workplace disputes, ruled in the fall of 2005 that hiring an employee through the Outstanding Scholar program over a veteran violates veterans' preference rules. OPM, however, asked MSPB to reconsider its ruling, and the board's decision is pending.

Blair said he could not fully comment on the program because of the ongoing litigation, but asked the senators to consider the numbers: for every one person hired through the Outstanding Scholar program, 43 are hired as a result of veterans' preference.

"We see the two coexisting within the same framework, though there are some natural tensions between the two," Blair said.

Despite criticism over this and the involuntary repositioning, both senators commended the representation of veterans in the government.

"The numbers that you give me are very impressive," Voinovich said. Veterans make up about a quarter of the federal workforce.

The senator offered a suggestion for increasing compliance with veterans' preference rules: include observance of veterans' preference as a category for ratings under the Defense and Homeland Security departments' new pay-for-performance systems.

"They should be measured on it and if they don't meet the standard, they get docked for it," Voinovich said.

Voinovich and Akaka said they will write a letter to OPM Director Linda Springer to follow up on their concerns.

COMMENTS

• Dear Army Wife, You had the opportunity to sign up and serve just like your husband did, but you chose not to. That was your choice, now that you see the error of your ways you're complaining that the system isn't fair. BooHoo bob Posted October 10, 2008 9:30 PM
• I can see where those who were drafted and disabled should deserve some compensation, but this should be done through disability funds or some type of federal program. My husband's uncle has Agent Orange from Vietnam and has been in a wheel chair for years and the government still won't give him the prosthetic leg he deserves. But, he doesn't feel he should receive any type of preference over those who are also qualified. He is highly qualified because of his work experience in the military as a leader, not simply because he's a vet. I agree with the person that wrote that the Vet's preference has turned into a welfare system for many vets. The only thing that should matter is the question of whether or not that person is the best qualified person for the job. Nothing else should matter. Many vets are, but not all. Why should you get preference over a qualified candidate who went to college, obtained the necessary experience and who apply for a job that they are more then qualified for? I will keep working in my current position until I can "break the code" as they call it. This is not meant to be a complaint but a reasonable frustration for those of us who are more then qualified. I think most of us also despise the fact that most agencies already have someone in mind before they make their selections and often waste everyone's time. I just had a friend who was hired for a GS 9 (prom. to an 11) position and the description was literally written for her. She was not GS before and worked as a lodging finance officer. I just really think we need to review who is best qualified and stop all this preference treatment. The point of working is you do your job and if you're hired, you should be the most qualified. How many wars you've fought in or how much your career was diverted by the military is nonsense. You chose the military as a career so be proud of it and stop with all the post-military expectations on special treatment. Army Wife Posted June 26, 2008 11:19 AM
• After reading these posts, I'm going to speak the truth for a lot of frustrated workers who have been trying to get into the federal system for years. I've been an army wife for about 4 years now and the city in which I am employed has one of the poorest job markets I've ever seen. I've even gone back for my masters degree to obtain a decently paid job. I've been trying to get a GS job the entire time we've been stationed here but I do not qualify for Spousal Preference or any other type of preference as yet, although I was married before my husband got orders for this town. Let me say that I do not mean to discredit vets in any way but why does a vet deserve a job over any other qualified candidate? I have dealt with numerous Army soldiers and their wives who complain constantly about everyone and everything and I can't imagine one of these men getting out and getting preference over myself. Not to mention, many don't do their jobs or much of anything else while they are in the service. As an officer's wife, I have also been "expected" to become an FRG leader through deployments and during several commands on top of my own work schedule. These jobs are time consuming and exhausting. They are also unpaid positions. Army Wife Posted June 26, 2008 11:19 AM