Whether the Federal Agency or the U.S. Postal Service has offered a legally-viable accommodation is determined by the criteria of an offer made which is either at the same pay or grade as the position one currently occupies; but, moreover, as the Bracey case and subsequent cases which elaborate upon the issue have made clear, it cannot be a position which is merely “made up” or temporary by nature, or one in which the current Supervisor merely whispers in one’s ear and says, “Just don’t do X, Y and Z essential elements of the job.”
The reasoning behind the view that such a temporary, modified “position” does not constitute an “accommodation” under the law — and therefore would not prevent eligibility for Federal Disability Retirement benefits — is easily justified by the age-old adage that, where one lives by the sword, one dies by the sword; meaning, thereby, that if Supervisor X can simply suspend certain essential elements of a job, a future Supervisor Y can just as easily reinstate the requirements of performing those previously-unattended elements, and require that they be performed.
That being said, there is nevertheless nothing wrong with an Agency allowing for a Federal or Postal worker to work at a position and lessen the requirements of the job. For some, it may be that such a modified position is acceptable, especially in light of receiving a regular paycheck.
The issue of “accommodations” should not be confused with the eligibility requirements of being able to file for, and be approved with, Federal Disability Retirement benefits from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. There is the issue of legally-sufficient accommodation for purposes of preparing, formulating and filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefitsfrom the U.S. Office of Personnel Management; then, there is the commonplace parlance of being informally “accommodated” if one wants to continue to work; the two are not contradictory.
Sincerely,
Robert R. McGill, Esquire
Filed under: Accommodation and Light Duty, Federal Disability Judge-Made Decisions Quoted | Tagged: a common fallacy: I won't qualify for disability retirement if the federal agency accomodates me, accommodation of federal employees, civil service disability, disability retirement at the USPS, disability retirement opm legal accommodation, essential elements of jobs, Federal Disability, federal disability retirement, federal employee disability, federal employees and disability according to the law, FERS disability retirement, if reassignment is not possible for the light duty federal worker, ineffective accommodation in the federal workplace, injuries in the federal workplace and unreasonable accommodations, injury compensation and light limited duty, legal accommodation for Postal workers, legal accommodation under fers disability rules, legal representation for injured federal workers, light duty and accommodation before opm disability retirement, light duty and accommodation of federal agencies, light duty and reasonable accommodation, light duty in the Postal Service, limited duty and accommodation of disabled federal employees, medical retirement from the federal government even with accommodation?, minor job adjustments are not accommodations under fers disability law, no real accommodation efforts for most disabled employees, opm critical essential element, OPM disability application tips and strategies, OPM disability retirement, Post Office disability, post office light duty, Postal disability, questions about accommodation and federal employee disability, real accommodation and rehabilitation efforts in the federal sector, reasonable accommodation of federal workers, the employing agency's understanding of legal accommodation and light duty, the medical condition and the essential elements of job connection, the tricky issue of accommodation in the federal workplace, us attorney defending the rights of light duty postal workers, usps accommodation, USPS disability retirement benefits, usps light duty is usually not real accommodation under opm disability rules, why in opm disability law most accommodations are not accommodations, why most us postal accommodations are only half-hearted accommodations | Leave a comment »
OPM Disability Retirement: Differing Perspectives
The old adage, “Walk in your fellow man’s shoes for a mile” is a saying which is meant essentially to teach a child (and many adults) to have a different perspective than one’s own, self-centered universe. In practicing law, it is a good idea to attempt to obtain a perspective from the multitude of differing “shoes” — and this is especially important in putting together a Federal Disability Retirement application under FERS or CSRS.
The gathering of such differing and different perspectives — that of the treating doctor; that of the applicant; that of the Agency (the Supervisor and the Agency in its determination that accommodation or reassignment is not available or appropriate for a given employee, given the particular medical conditions and the type of positional duties of the specific job which the Applicant must perform, as well as taking into account what constitutes “efficiency” in the Federal Service, etc.); and further, that of the Office of Personnel Management.
It is the job of the Attorney representing a Federal or Postal employee in preparing a Federal Disability Retirement packet under FERS or CSRS, to pull together the various perspectives; write up and prepare, and gather the information from the multiple and differing perspectives; to neutralize those perspectives which may impact negatively upon the Federal disability retirement application; then to present the fullness of the different perspectives such that it meets the legal criteria and “perspective” of the Representative from the Office of Personnel Management: that “ultimate” perspective which determines a “yes” or “no” in determining the viability of a Federal Disability Retirement Application.
Sincerely,
Robert R. McGill, Esquire
Filed under: OPM Disability Application - SF 3112 Disability Retirement Application Package, The Job of a Federal Disability Attorney | Tagged: a compelling medical case for federal employee disability retirement, a rational perspective from your disability claim evaluation, accommodation of federal employees, applicant's statement of disability, attorney that helps injured and ill federal workers, creating a strong case to qualify for fers disability benefits, CSRS disability retirement federal attorney, each opm disability stage requires a different approach, early out for disabled postal workers with application, federal disability law and legal argumentation, federal disability lawyer to handle opm disability denial, federal employee disability retirement, federal employee medical retirement, FERS disability retirement, gathering medical documentation for an incapacitated federal employee, getting together different perspectives and making a compelling case, going out on medical disability opm, help for injured or ill federal employees seeking medical retirement, help in collecting medical evidence and putting package together, how to neutralize negative information in your postal disability application, if reassignment is not possible for the light duty federal worker, job reassignment, letter carrier occupational illness, Maintaining an Objective Perspective in a Disability Case, making a compelling federal opm disability case, medical as well as legal factors may determine eligibility in opm retirement, medical condition(s), medical disability lawyers opm, medical incapacitation at the federal agency, neutralizing negative comments and/or information for the disability applicant, occupational illnesses in federal jobs, old adage, OPM disability retirement, opm disability retirement new jersey employees, Post Office disability retirement, postal buyout always available for injured postal workers, Postal Service disability, proof of disability for federal workers, pulling together several perspectives for the fers disability application, putting a federal disability case together, rational perspective into the fed workers' medical condition, top federal disability retirement attorney, USPS disability retirement, when accommodation is not available to the injured federal worker, writing up a legal summary and putting together an opm disability application, your treating doctors | Leave a comment »