Federal and Postal Disability Retirement: Tides and Turbos

Tides represent the natural ebb and flow of a rhythm in nature which occurs beyond the capacity or power of Man to control; turbos are mechanical inventions which exponentially increase the power of a machine to attain heights of artificial prowess previously unmet.

Both inspire a certain sense of awe.

The pull of the waters, though gentle in the lapping of waves and the gradual increase and decrease of the land becoming overtaken by the waters, then receding, is nevertheless an unstoppable phenomena; and anyone who has sat behind the wheel directing an engine with turbo power understands the sudden boost of energy and speed which can be wrought.

Both represent a force; the former, one which cannot be controlled; the latter, one which can only be directed.

How we approach life, our philosophy and manner, often parallels tides and turbos.  Some merely accept and go with the flowing rhythm of tides; others try vainly to control that which cannot be subjugated.

For the Federal and Postal employee who faces a medical condition such that the medical condition begins to impact one’s life and vocation, it is often a lesson to heed; for if one’s personality has been throughout akin to the tides of nature, it is often easier to accept that a change is necessary; on the other hand, if life has always been characterized by one’s attempt to control and contain, it may be that resistance to the inevitable is something which one must contend with.

Knowing one’s self in the turmoil of change is often the first step in a successful process.

As filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management is a major event in one’s life, knowing first what must be embraced is often the initial, and most difficult, step in the process.  Whether the enjoyment of watching the tides, or the thrill of feeling the turbos, characterizes the life of an individual, will aid in preparing to formulate the next step in a Federal Disability Retirement case.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Federal and Postal Disability Retirement: The Control Factor

Procrastination is Man’s feeble attempt to control the inevitable march of time.  In the midst of a technologically complex world, where we no longer control the advance of events or circumstances which impinge and invade upon our lives, the subjective cocoon we weave to withstand the onslaught of uncontrollable external subjugations will take many and varied forms.

Time, events and actions occurring daily around us continue in their linear course of unfolding revelations without input or necessity from the individual; technology advances without any particular reason or rationale; or so we believe.  But by delaying, we delude ourselves into thinking that we are Masters of our own destiny.

Such an attempt at controlling the inevitable onslaught of that which we have no influence over, is tantamount to an impotent protestation, nothing more than a juvenile “sit-in” like children refusing to eat their carrots or broccoli, although at least in those examples the elements resisted were purportedly healthy for us. What we often fail to understand, however, is that the very attempt to control is often that which is harmful to us.

For the Federal and Postal employee who suffers from a medical condition, such that the medical condition prevents one from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s job, there is often a long and deliberate delay between the onset of a crisis resulting from a progressively deteriorating medical condition, and the preparation, formulation and filing of a Federal Disability Retirement application.

This is the natural course of things.  For, the very factors over which the Federal or Postal Worker has no control over — time, the medical condition, one’s deteriorating health — all serve to impart a sense of loss of destiny.  But to delay and procrastinate will only exacerbate the inevitable; Federal Disability Retirement through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether one is under FERS or CSRS, is the best step to reach that oasis of rehabilitation and quietude.

But like the child who knows not what is good for one’s self, it is often the rebellious and feeble attempt of Man to control that which is beyond one’s control, which potentially results in the downfall and destruction of one’s future.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Postal and Federal Disability Retirement: Regardless

It matters not for a bureaucracy, as to which Party occupies the executive or legislative branches of government (regardless — and we shall refrain from irritating those linguistic perfectionists who would vociferously object to inserting the term, “irregardless”, which is a meaningless but playfully interesting word, employing a double-negative and thus leaving one with the originating root word of “regard” — the bureaucracy of any administration will proceed uninterrupted).

A recent statement foretold of a truism before and after this election:  whoever wins, one thing will be certain:  government will continue to expand, and the bureaucracy will persistently chug along.

Often, people start, stop, or continue projects, initiate necessary actions, etc., based upon what someone else decides to do or not do, by depending upon an act or event outside of one’s control.  What one must understand, however, is that the bureaucracy of any government will continue to operate, regardless of any changes at the top.

As such, for Federal or Postal workers who are contemplating filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether under FERS or CSRS, it is best to ignore outside, third-party actions, in preparing, formulating and filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits.  To depend upon the actions of others outside of one’s control will only lead to frustration and loss of time.  Affirmatively prove your case, and file when it is time to file.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

FERS & CSRS Disability Retirement for Federal and USPS Workers: Beginning Points

In preparing, formulating and filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the familiar refrain from Federal and Postal Employees, whether under FERS or CSRS, in attempting to tackle the multifaceted complexities of a Federal Disability Retirement application, is the crucial starting point of the process:  Where do I begin?

The beginning point of any process is important precisely because it determines the tone, tenor, and ultimate outcome of the Federal Disability Retirement application.  A review of a Federal Disability Retirement application, when it has been denied by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, can often be backtracked to a beginning point in discovering an originating source of error.  On the other hand, sometimes (and more often than one would think) the so-called “error” is simply in having the bad luck of having one’s case assigned to certain OPM case workers who are less than thorough in his or her review and analysis.

In any case, it is important in putting together a Federal Disability Retirement application that one recognizes, at the very outset, those issues which are within the purview and control of one’s universe, and those portions of the Federal Disability Retirement application which are not.  Focus first and foremost upon those areas where one has either total control, or some guiding influence, and work for excellence within those parameters.

The rest is left up to fate — or, at the very least, to a good lawyer and sound legal argumentation.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Disability Retirement for Federal Workers: The Anxiety of Procrastination

In preparing, formulating and filing a Federal Disability Retirement application under FERS or CSRS, there are numerous issues, points, time-frames,etc., during the administrative process, when a Federal or Postal employee’s anxieties may become exacerbated — both because of the inherent complications resulting from the process itself, as well as because of what others do.  Many of the complexities which arise are beyond the control of one’s capabilities.  Thus, if one is accustomed to having some “control” over events and circumstances, it can quickly become a process full of anxieties, exasperation and frustration.  

Time is often beyond one’s control — the time the Agency takes to fill out their portion; the time a doctor responds to a request for a medical narrative; and, finally, the time that the Office of Personnel Management takes in reviewing and rendering a decision on a Federal Disability Retirement application.  

One point of frustration which often builds without ceasing, however, is within the control and capacity of all Federal Disability Retirement applicants — procrastination.  Procrastination merely delays the inevitable, and compounds the complexities because it merely allows for outside difficulties and problems to continue to build, without resolution.  If the need arises to begin filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS or CSRS, procrastination should not be part of the game plan.  This is especially true because the Office of Personnel Management is a bureaucracy which takes a long time itself, and procrastinating at the front-end of the process will only delay things further at the back-end.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire