New OPM Final Rule Supplies a Flexible Hiring Process for Military Spouses
On September 21, 2021, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced the Noncompetitive Appointment of Certain Military Spouses, a final rule that allows federal agencies to waive established hiring practices for select military spouses.
Federal agencies can appoint military spouses to various civil service positions, including temporary, term, or permanent. Geographic restrictions were temporarily suspended, expiring August 13, 2023, authorizing military spouses to apply for jobs regardless of location or relocation requirements. This opportunity is consistent with the federal telework push, providing advantages to a population with limited career development due to their spouses’ line of work.
“Employers across sectors and around the world rely heavily on telework and remote work as a result of the pandemic, and the federal government is no exception,” wrote Rob Shriver, OPM Associate Director of Employee Services in a press release announcing the action.
The rule sets a temporary standard of flexibility, applying to spouses of active-duty service members, service members with a 100% disability rating from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and select widowers of service members killed in action. The spouses must be married to the service member at the time of their appointment.
This is an expansion of previous endeavors to address limitations in government hiring and reach a prime population to fill federal vacancies, including Exec. Order No. 13832 Enhancing Noncompetitive Civil Service Appointments of Military Spouses in 2018 and Exec. Order No. 13473 Military Spouse Non-competitive Appointing Authority in 2008. Occasionally, Congress also attempts to rectify this lapse as well. Of late, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 included verbiage to expand authority to bolster “military family readiness.”
In April of 2021, Rep. Antonio Delgado (D-NY) estimated an unemployment rate of about 30 percent for military spouses, up from an estimated 24 percent by the Department of Defense in 2019. By in large, both numbers are well above the national average employment rate.
Earlier this year, Rep. Antonio Delgado (D-NY), along with Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Don Beyer (D-VA), Mike Kelly (R-PA), and Don Bacon (R-NE) reintroduced the Military Spouse Hiring Act (H.R.2974), which would extend tax incentives to employers that hire military spouses.
“Military families face a unique set of challenges, one of which is spousal employment,” said Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), “This bipartisan legislation will help bridge the employment gap by expanding the Work Opportunity Tax Credit to include military spouses.”
The Noncompetitive Appointment of Certain Military Spouses rule is effective October 30, 2021.
