The ABCs of SCHEDULE A Tips for Human Resource Professionals on Using the Schedule A Appointing Authority

INTRODUCTION

The federal government is committed to being a model employer for people with disabilities. Agencies are required to improve their efforts to recruit, hire, retain and promote individuals with disabilities and targeted disabilities. One way an agency can demonstrate its commitment is to use the streamlined hiring process available through the Schedule A hiring authority for persons with disabilities (5 C.F.R. 213.3102(u)).

What is Schedule A hiring authority for persons with disabilities?

Schedule A is an excepted service hiring authority used to non-competitively hire an individual with:

• intellectual disabilities
• severe physical disabilities; or
• psychiatric disabilities.

Schedule A hiring, when used correctly, can help your agency hire skilled and diverse employees through an expedited process which requires no public notice. That is the beauty of utilizing this hiring authority to fill your positions!

Ready to learn the ABCs for Schedule A Success?

This guide answers many questions Human Resource (HR) Professionals, like you, may have about using Schedule A to hire individuals with disabilities.

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A. Build the business case for Schedule A

Including the diverse perspective of people with disabilities will help the federal government better serve the American people. One way to expedite the hiring process for qualified and diverse candidates is to use the Schedule A hiring authority for persons with disabilities. Unfortunately Schedule A is underutilized due, in large part, to a lack of awareness about this hiring process. You can promote the benefits of using this hiring authority across the agency, by partnering with agency personnel responsible for hiring people with disabilities (such as the Disability Program Manager (DPM)/Special Placement Program Coordinator (SPPC)/ Special Emphasis Manager) throughout the recruitment lifecycle.

• To learn more about the benefits of hiring people with disabilities in the federal government, read the Employer Assistance and Resource Network's publication Disability is Diversity: Effective Hiring Practices for Federal Employers.

1. Stress Schedule A usage in the Agency Recruitment Plan

An effective way to ensure agency personnel hire more people with disabilities is to highlight Schedule A in the agency's overall Recruitment Plan as well as the Operational Plan for Increasing Employment of People with Disabilities. It is important to make sure Schedule A hiring is emphasized in these plans because agency HR offices use these plans to identify gaps in the agency's workforce.

2. Individualized Recruitment Planning:

Tailored disability recruitment planning can encourage hiring managers to use Schedule A. HR professionals, in collaboration with the DPM or SPPC, should work with individual managers to develop a tailored disability recruitment strategy. A tailored recruitment strategy will not only encourage hiring managers to use Schedule A, but it will also help the DPM or SPPC build a pipeline of qualified candidates who can be hired without posting or publicizing the job.

Quick Tips and Helpful Hints:

• Discuss the advantages of using Schedule A when reviewing hiring flexibilities for a job announcement. Make sure to share the ABC's of Schedule A for Hiring Managers with the managers you support.
• When developing a tailored disability recruitment strategy, you should address the following issues with the hiring manager:
  • Core skills
  • Sourcing Options
  • Pre-screening procedures
  • Interview procedures
  • Hiring procedures
• For more information read:
  • The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) factsheets on Promoting Employment of Individuals with Disabilities in the Federal Workforce and Applying MD-715 to Improve Participation of Employees with Targeted Disabilities.
  • The Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment (ODEP) Toolkit for Federal Agencies on Implementing Executive Order 13548

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B. Recruit and Assess Schedule A Applicants

1. Use Vacancy Announcements to Recruit Schedule A Applicants

The second part of a successful Schedule A hiring strategy is to make sure applicants know how to navigate the federal hiring process, including Schedule A. The best way to inform qualified candidates with disabilities about Schedule A is to include information about the hiring authority in your agency's vacancy announcements. For example:

• Schedule A Statement: Include standardized language about the Schedule A hiring authority for persons with disabilities in all vacancy announcements. For example:

  Schedule A Statement: [Insert Agency Name] welcomes and encourages applications from individuals with disabilities. The federal government has a streamlined hiring process for individuals with disabilities, known as Schedule A. To learn more about Schedule A and eligibility requirements please visit:

• Reasonable Accommodation Statement: Ensure all vacancy announcements include a reasonable accommodation statement.
• Point of Contact: Consider including the DPM or SPPC's contact information on the vacancy announcement.
• Explain the Application Process: Make sure the vacancy announcement clearly states the process by which Schedule A applicants should apply for the position and what documents they need to submit to receive consideration.

2. Assess Applicant's Qualifications

HR professionals should assess the pre-screened applications to determine whether the applicant meets the job qualification requirements as well as the rating criteria. Qualified Schedule A eligible candidates should then be referred to the hiring manager in accordance with applicable regulations.

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C. Successfully On-board Schedule A Employees

Once a prospective candidate has been identified, you should work with the hiring manager, DPM or SPPC to on-board the candidate. Below are some best practices for successfully on-boarding Schedule A hires.

1. Confirm Schedule A Eligibility

Prior to extending an offer, you should contact the DPM/SPPC and verify whether the candidate has submitted their proof of disability documentation or Schedule A letter. Often, the DPM/SPPC will have collected this documentation at the application stage to speed the process along. If the DPM/SPPC does not have this information, notify the applicant that the offer is contingent upon receipt of the applicant's proof of disability documentation.

Remember, the hiring manager should not be involved in the disability documentation process. Proof of disability documentation, like other medical information, must be kept strictly confidential.

Address Reasonable Accommodation Requests Prior to the Candidate's Start Date: In general, the DPM should be working with the candidate to process reasonable accommodation requests. Nevertheless, once an offer has been extended, and prior to the entry-on-duty date being finalized, you should contact the candidate to verify whether his or her accommodation needs have been addressed. Where the need has not been addressed, you should follow the agency's policy for handling reasonable accommodation requests. Furthermore, you should work with the DPM/SPPC and the new employee's manager, where necessary, to ensure that the accommodation is in place when the new employee comes on board.

Ensure Personnel Documents are correctly Coded: When processing the Standard Form 52, Request for Personnel Action, and/or the Standard Form 50, Notification of Personnel Action, make sure that the Schedule A employee's paperwork is coded correctly. Review Chapter 11 of The Guide to Processing Personnel Actions for additional information.

Make Sure the Candidate Completes Standard Form 256: Schedule A is an affirmative action program for persons with disabilities. Thus, employees hired under Schedule A are required to identify their disability status on SF-256. Agencies should assure the appointee that every precaution is taken to ensure the information provided is confidential and explain the importance of keeping accurate data to determine an agency's progress in meeting the requirements set forth in the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Employees should not be reprimanded or removed from service for declining to identify their disability status.

Track the Schedule A Employee's Time in Service: Finally, you should track the Schedule A employee's Time in Service to identify the opportunity for conversion to the competitive service is identified in a timely manner. Although conversion to the competitive service is not required, HR professionals have a responsibility to make managers and employees aware of this opportunity as soon as it is available and support managers in understanding the intent of the hiring authority. An agency may noncompetitively convert to a career or career conditional appointment in the competitive service an employee who:

• Completes 2 or more years of satisfactory service, without a break of more than 30 days, under non-temporary Schedule A appointments;
• Is recommended for conversion by their supervisors;
• Meets all requirements and conditions governing career and career-conditional appointment except those requirements concerning competitive selection from a register and medical qualifications; and
• Is converted without a break in service of one workday (5 CFR §315.709).

Quick Tips and Helpful Hints

To ensure managers and employees are made aware of the opportunity to convert to the competitive service, HR Professionals should:

• Establish a process for identifying eligible employees. Depending on your HR system, this may include inserting a manual tickler in the agency's HR system.
• Alert hiring managers when their Schedule A employee is eligible for conversion.
• Support managers in understanding the intent of the hiring authority.
• Work with the hiring manager to help them make the appropriate determination as to conversion to competitive status.