How Federal Employees and Postal Workers Become Eligible For Disability Retirement Through OPM

The postal workers federal employees have the option to request the removal of disqualification from the office of personnel management (OPM). The purpose of this article is to summarize the key elements of a use for federal disability retirement.


Eligibility. First, you must be eligible to apply. A federal employee earns solving basic eligibility requirements for some time in the service. For FERS employees, you must have completed at least 18 months of continuous creditable service in a position under FERS. For CSRS employees, you must have completed five years of continuous creditable service.

Inability
Once he or she has tested basic eligibility, the federal employee or the employee of the USPS must demonstrate that he or she has a disability condition. OPM considered an illness - or illness - disabling for use of disability retirement if you: 1) has an ailment or disease, 2) the condition or disease leads to poor performance, conduct or attention . Another way to demonstrate that his illness is disabling - especially if there ninguÌ?? N working, poor behavior or attention - is to prove that their illness or disease is incompatible with efficient and useful service or retention in his current position .

This is the most difficult element to prove t. You should consider submitting the following evidence to prove the element of disability:

1) Results of objective clinical doctors treating her and specialists, including written proof of diagnosis and medical opinions;
2) His own evidence of pain and disability. This is called subjective evidence, and may include a sworn affidavit from you that describes how the pain of disability also affects you. You can include statements from colleagues, family, friends - anyone in a capacity to observe their physical pain of illness. The more obvious physical pain and the more obvious the ailment, the more likely the opinions of the lay of pain and disability are likely to be given weight. Such "subjective evidence" will be given only the evidentiary weight the MSPB and OPM when supported by competent and objective medical evidence.
3) Any other evidence demonstrating that his or illness affects your ability to perform in his current job in the public, at the level expected of their grade or class.
Moreover,

Continuity
Once the federal employee or the employee of OPM USPS has shown that he or she has basic eligibility, and OPM established that he or she has a condition of incapacity, the employee federal / postal employee must demonstrate to OPM that the condition is continuous. That is if your condition is expected to disability continue for at least 1 year from the date that features the use of disability retirement, then you can solve the element of continuity. This prevents employees with temporary conditions receive disability retirement benefits. This is the easiest element to prove, but sometimes seems to be overlooked as easily as possible in use.

Convenience / reassignment after demonstrating basic eligibility, disability, and continuity, the federal employee or employee of the USPS requesting the withdrawal of federal disability must demonstrate to OPM that the employment agency can not accommodate the disability (under the Americans with amendments to the Disabilities Act and / or the Rehabilitation Act, etc). This is typically done by submitting your completed application to the office when his employment agency, working with the supervisor to develop its "statement of the supervisor. This is a printed agency added to your use of the disability retirement and submit to OPM. A word of caution - if the agency has made a reasonable offer of reassignment to a vacant position which you rejected, then you may not receive a disability retirement. If you get a job offer from your agency or office of workers' compensation (OWCP), you should consider contacting a lawyer who represents federal employees before making your decision. The wrong decision could have significant financial ramifications.

Use for Social Security Disability. The last major element to a careful use of disability retirement to OPM is that the federal employee or postal worker should also seek Social Security Disability to seek OPM disability retirement. You do not have to actually receive Social Security Disability, but if you do, then there could be results of a pair. First, your annuity will be reduced OPM so that you do not "double-dip" the federal government for the same disability. Second, if your Social Security Disability is adopted prior to their inability to OPM, you could use that as evidence supporting their use of OPM's disability retirement. Third, if your Social Security Disability is approved after his federal disability retirement is approved, then you could end up duty OPM's money, and you might be required to follow federal regulations known as the provisions " set-aside ".

If your initial order the federal disability retirement is denied, you will have an opportunity to request that OPM reconsider the decision - you will have to file the reconsideration request within thirty (30) days of the denial of federal disability retirement or you do not pleas get more later. If we deny your request for reconsideration, apparently you have a right of appeal to the board of the merit system protection (MSPB).