OPM Disability Retirement under FERS: The Value of Effort

Employers will often declare that merely “showing up” is half the battle; if so, showing up on time will more often than not complete the victory of that metaphorical battle.  The value of work is likely a “learned” response; in human beings, it does not appear to be an innate, natural gene which dominates.

In the animal kingdom, one often sees the male lion lazing around while the female of the species goes out and hunts for food.  The female lion — or “lioness” — appears the more athletic and quicker; somehow, that large mane and overdone hairdo seems to slow down the guys in the bunch.

But as necessity is the mother of invention, those documentaries of the wild sometimes capture the males putting in the effort when hunger pains prompt the value of such expenditure of stamina, blundering about in a sudden spurt of energy previously reflected with flies buzzing around the eyes of a sleeping giant.

Yes, there is value in effort, and for Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition no longer allows you to continue in your career of choice in the Federal Government, it is often the case that the U.S. Office of Personnel Management will attempt to subvert that effort expended in trying to obtain a Federal Disability Retirement.

The question then becomes a contest between two entities expending effort: On the one side, the vast bureaucracy of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in trying to deny you your benefits, and on the other side — you.  The value of effort — then of greater effort — may be in retaining the services of an OPM Disability Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law, where the value of effort is seen in the knowledge, application and citation of the relevant legal precedents which need to be invoked in order to fulfill the value of effort.

Contact a FERS Disability Lawyer who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law, and see whether or not the value of effort can be concretized in the proper recitation of the law.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill
Lawyer exclusively representing Federal and Postal employees to secure their Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

 

Federal Government Employee Disability Retirement Help: Life’s Libations

Originally applied in identifying a drink poured out in honor of a deity, it became a somewhat humorous way of referring to an alcoholic beverage via an alternative way.  The concept of “life’s libations” expands that perspective, to include anything which inebriates, excites, comforts or otherwise enlivens.

Life’s libations can be many.  It can range from the adventurous to the mundane.  But as with anything which inebriates, the spectrum itself is what matters.  On the lower end of the spectrum, a bit of libations will do no harm.  On the other extreme, the abuse of alcohol can have tragic consequences.

The point of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics is to find that “middle point” between sobriety and drunkenness, so that the gods to whom libations were poured do not laugh uproariously in response to the foolishness of man’s behavior.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal worker from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, Life’s Libations reflects the condition of one of life’s dominating themes — of whether you can go on making a living in the career which now has been impacted by a medical condition.

Medical conditions tend to wake us up because of their impact upon our lives.  Contact a FERS Lawyer who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law, and consider that life’s libations are often the elixir which prompts a change.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Lawyer

 

Federal & Postal Disability Retirement: Apparent Neutrality

Can a person, country, nation, community, individual, politician, etc., ever be “neutral”?  Or, as recent events have postured, do we all have inherent preferences, biases, “systemic” characteristics of natural or artificial preferences which guide our thoughts, words and actions?  Is it more dangerous to pretend to be “neutral” on a matter, as opposed to openly expressing one’s biases and preferences?

To express “apparent” neutrality, of course, is either to hide one’s preference on an issue, or at the very least to act “as if” — as if one has no interest, either personally or professionally; to act as if there are no “leanings” one way or another.

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management in a Federal Disability Retirement case does this — expresses apparent neutrality, as if their decision on a Federal Disability Retirement application is purely based upon “the law” and therefore is tantamount to a computer software program or an automaton which expresses pure neutrality on the matter and is merely applying the objective criteria of legal standards.  Bosh!  For, wherever interpretive input is required, by necessity one’s biases will ultimately come to the fore.

Contact a Federal Disability Retirement Lawyer when considering applying for Federal Disability Retirement benefits, and make sure that any “apparent neutrality” on the issue is decided in your favor; for, in the end, neutrality is merely a pretext to hide behind, and in preparing, formulating and filing an effective disability retirement application under FERS, it is best to have a legal expert as an advocate on your side.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Federal Disability Retirement Process under FERS: Silent Despair

Despair is bad enough; silent despair, her cousin to avoid.

Sometimes, sharing the trouble, “talking it out” with someone else, complaining to a spouse or friend, or even just venting — helps to expiate the cumulative stresses which grow relentlessly within the body and mind of the individual.  Perhaps that is what social media is ultimately all about — an outlet for expression, however imperfect, which satisfies a very basic human need.  For, silent despair is that desolation of one’s spirit which has no avenue leading to human contact, and that is the worst type of despair.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, talk to a Federal Disability Retirement Lawyer about whether or not Federal Disability Retirement benefits is an avenue for your despair.

Silent despair never leads to a solution; speaking with an expert in the field of Federal Disability Retirement Law, at the very least, allows for you to consider options which you may not have previously considered.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

FERS Disability Retirement: When Snow Becomes a Nuisance

Remember when it was all just fun and laughter?  When waking up and looking out at the furious flakes wind-blown and swirling about, the blanket of pure whiteness just waiting to be gathered, felt, rolled into balls and danced upon with cackles of laughter and uproariously unfettered shivers of joy?

There was a time in all of our childhoods when snow was anticipated, enjoyed, savored and embraced — unless, of course, you grew up in Hawaii or some other tropical paradise where only the imagination, books or some other medium of distantly-experienced phenomena could be viewed.

Then, one day, it became a nuisance.  We know not when, and how, or even the precise moment when the childish delight became a chore; when the fun and chatter became merely a din of distraction; or why the joy of a snowy day became a dreaded day of darkness.  Innocence cannot last forever, and mortality and vulnerability must rear their ugly heads at some point in everyone’s lives.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition begins to prevent the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, the medical condition and its impact upon one’s life is akin to the day when snow became a nuisance: Health is often taken for granted, but when it is lost, then everything else becomes a dreaded chore and a daily struggle.

Consult with a FERS Disability Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law and consider preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Employee Disability Retirement application under FERS, to be submitted to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, so that the things which you have lost — like your health and sense of optimism for the future — can be regained, and perhaps even that the snow can be somewhat more than a mere nuisance.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

OPM Medical Retirement under FERS: Consider the Alternatives

In making any decision, it is always important that one consider the alternatives available.  It is the decision made in isolation — of contending with thoughts, fears and misinformation within a vacuum of not knowing — that often results in disastrous decisions made without consulting and considering the alternatives available.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition where that medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, the choices are often stark and clear: Stay at a job or career which is no longer sustainable, and where the Agency will increasingly harass and punitively initiate actions in an effort to remove you; resign and walk away with nothing; or, in the best alternative available, file for Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS.

Sometimes, of course, the “unexpected” alternative can occur: For example, a person who has filed for FERS Disability Retirement benefits is offered a reassignment that is both acceptable and accommodating to one’s medical condition, and continuation in the Federal Workforce is thus possible.  In most instances, however, filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits is “The” alternative, and the only viable one available, but even such an alternative must be considered carefully in light of the existing laws, the potentiality for problems to be encountered, and the resistance met by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management for the multiple and varied reasons that OPM bases its denials upon.

Considering the alternatives is not just a matter of whether and when to file, but to be cognizant of the difficulties ahead in preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Disability Retirement application with OPM; and in order to do that, you should consult with an attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law under FERS, through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Medical Retirement for Federal Employees: The Past Upon Present

The guru dressed in flowing white garb may claim that the past is a fiction; those various “self-help” books will often declare that time is merely a continuum where we can only control that which is in the immediacy of our presence; and various philosophers have stated that the relativity of time must always be seen from the perspective of the “now”.

There is no doubt, however, that in the practical work-world, the past remains within the purview of haunting consequences.  Whether of youthful indiscretions or a darker past of substantial historical relevance more than a mere raising of one’s eyebrow, past performance is often used as an indicator of present behavior and conduct.  If a person has been convicted of embezzlement, does one consider that past in hiring practices for positions of responsibility — especially where money is involved?

Those who wave off the relevance of such considerations simply do not live in the real world.  We cannot avoid our past anymore than others will ignore it.  And so it is in Federal Disability Retirement Law, where the U.S. Office of Personnel Management will often place undue weight upon Performance Appraisals, cash bonus issues and whether there have been any deficiencies in performance, conduct or attendance in assessing and evaluating a Federal Disability Retirement application under FERS.

Consult with a FERS Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law before initiating a process where your past may not be your best friend or, even if it is, whether you may yet be stabbed in the back — metaphorically speaking, of course.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire 
FERS Disability Retirement Lawyer

  

Federal & Postal Disability Retirement: A Wound Unhealed

They can remain hidden for a time.  If kept clean, it can even be contained.  If of a psychiatric nature, it will likely manifest itself under certain circumstances; and, of course, stress can play a major role in its exacerbation and magnification.  A wound unhealed can fester and worsen; and the deteriorating nature of its state of non-attendance can become chronic and debilitating.  A wound unhealed; it can be ignored for a time, concealed and even allowed to remain — at least for a limited period.  But then others begin to notice it; it becomes an interference; it continues to expand and intrude.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition — like a wound unhealed — such that the medical condition begins to interfere with one’s ability and capacity to perform all of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, it may be time to take the path of healing and consider filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits.  Consult with a FERS Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law and begin to attend to the growing, expanding condition that continues to gnaw and fester. The alternative is to continue to allow for it to remain unhealed, until that time when it becomes an emergency.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Postal & Federal Employee Disability Retirement: The Albatross

The reference is likely outdated.  One doesn’t hear of the phrase, anymore, that “X is like an albatross around my neck.”  If it is referenced at all, one is likely to witness everyone standing around within earshot to whip out their smartphones and Google it, to find: Literally a large sea bird.

The phrase alludes to Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem, “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” in which a sailor who shoots a friendly albatross is forced to wear its carcass around his neck as punishment.  But who reads Coleridge, anymore, leaving aside poetry as a genre outmoded in an age where entertainment and leisure must by necessity be at the click of a button or within the scrolling universe of a Smartphone?

The antiquated reference is an allusion (as opposed to an “illusion”) — you know, the poet’s attempt at painting a word picture of something else by referencing a certain concept; i.e., that literary device banned in SATs now because it became too difficult a subject to bear — is of something that brings about bad luck, or of negative consequences resulting from something we have done or an event which has caused things to turn against us.

Medical conditions can become an albatross around our necks; as our health progressively declines, it becomes a greater weight and burden because of the impact it has upon our ability to work.  For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from the albatross of a medical condition, it may be time to consult with an attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law.

When one’s medical condition becomes an albatross which begins to prevent the Federal or Postal worker from performing all of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, whether as an allusion or an illusion that the medical condition will resolve itself, filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management becomes a necessity beyond the poet’s representation; it becomes a reality which must be attended to.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Attorney

 

FERS Disability Retirement from OPM: The Task Ahead

We all talk in those terms, don’t we?  And when the future is no longer referred to, we begin to worry; for it is the notion of a future that keeps us alive in the present, while the past is merely a portrait of who we were and what made us today.  A person without a history is an enigma; of what we are doing presently informs others of where we are going; and of future plans — well, that reveals of character, ambitions and the motivations of “what” and “who”.

When two people meet for the first time, it is commonplace to inquire as to the other’s past.  Why is that important?  Do we glean from a person’s previous experiences the type of “character” one has?  Of the places a person has been to; of his or her upbringing; of the hardships and trials one has endured; of the relationships one has been entangled in; and of the schools attended, the education received, etc. — are these, in their aggregate, what reveals the “make-up” of a person?

Can one sweep one’s past aside and simply declare, “I have no past and nor do I want to discuss it.  However, let me tell you of my future plans — of the task ahead.”  Why wouldn’t that be acceptable?  Is it because anyone can say anything about the future yet to be done, and it is the past which remains the telltale sign of a person’s true intentions and motivations — that is, the sincerity of one’s declarations?

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, the task ahead becomes clearer each day as one’s medical condition worsens: Filing for Federal Disability Retirement looms as a greater and nearer necessity.

Does the past matter?  Yes — as to the deteriorating aspect and its impact upon one’s present circumstances.  Does the present have any relevance?  Yes, to the extent of one’s current medical issues and the nexus to one’s ability and capacity to perform the essential elements of one’s job.  And what of the task ahead?  That is the true test — and for that, you should consult with an attorney who specializes in FERS Disability Retirement Law in order to prepare the most effective application for the task ahead: to formulate a strategy in order to pass muster with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire