Is Commissioner Astrue Scrambling To Rehire Former ALJ Judges While Freezing Pay Raises And Increasing Workloads? by, Jack Swint “Our inability to timely handle work makes the public more frustrated, and you endure that frustration. I also know that outcomes like pay freezes may cause you to question your career choice.”…Michael J. Astrue, Social Security Commissioner
Is It All Hands On Deck Or Abandon Ship?
This past Wednesday, February 8th, 2012 at 5:15pm, SSA Commissioner Michael J Astrue sent a broadcast message to all employees that fell just short of doom and gloom for some aspects of the agency in 2012. When looking for someone to take a portion of the blame for SSA’s shortcomings this year, he pointed to Congress…
“We were surprised that Congress did not stick to the substantially higher level of continuing disability reviews called for in the debt ceiling legislation passed last August. This lower level of funding, combined with substantially more people filing hearings requests, requires us to shift resources.”
The Commissioner also announced there is a cut back on SSA employees assisting state agencies … “I have asked some employees who have been helping the State agencies to redirect their support to hearing offices. That transition has started smoothly, and I want to thank everyone who is helping our fellow Americans who have been waiting too long for a hearing decision.”
It’s not known what the trickledown effect this will now cause state agencies that depended on those SSA workers for support.
Astrue goes on to say that SSA suffered a net loss of over “4,000 Federal and State (related) employees in FY 2011 and we expect a net loss of over 3,000 employees this fiscal year. As we continue to lose staff, it means that in 2013, we will likely have about the same number of employees we had when I arrived in 2007, even though the volume of our work continues to increase.”
He admits that job related stress, higher workloads and pay issues equal an unhappy workforce. “I know that fiscal shortfalls create stress in our offices, especially when there are fewer of you to handle more work. Our inability to timely handle work makes the public more frustrated, and you endure that frustration. I also know that outcomes like pay freezes may cause you to question your career choice.”
Admitting there is a problem is a good foot forward, but as you read below, it appears Astrue is really taking three steps backwards.
Besides stress, heavier workloads and those pay freezes that he claims is partly the cause employees leaving; there is another possible reason. And it is a problem that was self-inflicted by early retirement incentives offered by SSA officials. A decision that added to the already disastress backlog of stalled appeals.
Early Retirement Verses Increased Backlog Of Appeals
Back in May 2007, Astrue assured Congress that SSA would correct the problem of surging growth in the number of individuals awaiting a hearing for disability benefits. He described an ambitious plan the agency had recently launched “to eliminate the backlog of hearing requests by 2012” and also “to prevent its recurrence.” At that time, appeals of 715,568 individuals were pending before what is arguably the largest court system in the world.
Four years later, in March of 2011, the commissioner testified again, emphasizing his accomplishments since 2007 that included the appeals hearings backlog problem. He also testified that SSA significantly improved service and stewardship efforts. Not exactly true according to at least one respected watchdog group.
Information analyzed by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, (TRAC) indicated that the overall number of individual claimants awaiting a hearing has not gone down but climbed to 746,712. That’s 31,144 cases higher than it was when the SSA launched its expensive rehabilitation plan in 2007.
The same data shows that between February 2011 and June 2011 backlog totals showed the largest single increase from 728,013 to 746,712. (18,699)
Coincidentally, also in February 2011, SSA issued a notice for all eligible employees to take early retirement, which included anyone at ODAR. Employees had to separate by June 3, 2011. This time, they included Administrative Law Judges (ALJ). According to at least one of the older judges, this was the first time they can remember an early retirement being offered to ALJs.
Keep in mind this is the exact same time period (February 2011 to June 2011) that data reflects the largest single spike in backlogged cases since 2008. Is it possible, that as employees moved quickly to take the early retirement, the exit of ALJ’s and or their support staff, caused a further lapse in backlogged cases being heard?
Is SSA Now Scrambling To Rehire ALJ’s Who Accepted Early Retirement In 2011?
Now, just one year after SSA’s early retirement offer in 2011, upper management has flip-flopped and appears to be scrambling to rehire that same group of Administrative Law Judges and support staff. Get them back to work ASAP. Is it possible that they now realize it was a very costly decision to offer early retirement and are now trying to put a temporary fix to it?
Remarks by judges on an ALJ posting board says it appears SSA officials want a "lot of bodies to fill those empty judges' chairs" created in part from their 2011 early retirement offer. Reportedly, the agency is looking to rehire judges who have retired within the last three years but not after 12/2011. Hiring retired ALJs probably will help to keep the backlog under control and keep costs for doing so under control as well.
Another judge adds that SSA could also save money rehiring these recently retired ALJ’s…“There are no additional retirement benefits that will accrue, and that most retired ALJs already have federal health insurance or are receiving Medicare. Also, their pay may come from a different budget line, such as a budget line for temporary workers.”
SSA even posted a contact person on the OPM website for retired ALJ’s interested in rehire.
Dina Khoiri
703-605-7280.
Commissioner Andrus referred to this rehire project of judges in his February 2012 message by saying… “While we are doing some very limited hiring, we are relying on retired annuitants and overtime at least until next year’s budget situation clarifies. I appreciate the help our recent retirees are giving us, and I encourage newer employees to learn as much as possible from these experts.”
SSA will also halt any further opportunities for early retirement. “Given the budget uncertainty, we are delaying a decision about offering early out retirement. We will revisit this issue in the fall when we have a better sense about our FY 2013 resource level.”
The Future Of Social Security Disability Insurance
December 2011 Republican Ways and Means RSS Article…
“The Social Security Disability Insurance program pays benefits to individuals with a disability that meets certain medical criteria, as long as they worked long enough and paid Social Security taxes. The continuing growth of the program is striking. At a time when workers paying into the system has increased nearly 70 percent between 1970 and 2010, the number of people receiving disability benefits increased by almost 300 percent, from 2.6 million to nearly 10 million.
By 2020, the number of beneficiaries will continue to increase by 18 percent to 11.8 million. By then total benefits paid will reach $188 billion. That’s a 52 percent increase over the $124 billion paid in benefits last year.
Experts tell us the program’s growth is due to the changing workforce, including the aging of the baby boomers, changes in disability policy over the years, and the still struggling economy. That continued growth is putting a massive strain on the Social Security Disability Insurance program.
According to the 2011 Trustees’ Report, without Congressional action, the Disability Insurance Trust Fund will be unable to pay full benefits beginning in 2018, just a little over six years from now. The path we are on is unsustainable, and we are putting individuals with disabilities at risk if we do not act soon.” End…
US Congressman Johnson Claims SSA Program Being Abused By Con Artists
On January 17, 2012 U.S. Congressman Sam Johnson (R-TX), Chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means Subcommittee stated Social Security has become filled with waste, fraud, and abuse in the disability insurance program and that it cheats honest hardworking American taxpayers.
“We need to protect the American taxpayers from con artists, who are stealing from the system. How does he propose this? “By making sure benefits are paid only to those who deserve them.” (link below)
In Closing
SSA Commissioner Michael J. Astrue surmised his February 2012 message to all employees by admitting this is an uphill battle and … “There is no silver bullet, but we can’t ignore fiscal reality and assume that we can go on doing business as usual. As Deputy Commissioner Colvin has said, we will do less with less. We continue to look for ways to streamline and simplify work and identify what work we can stop doing.”
His message to all SSA employees, like the assurances to Congress back in 2007 regarding resolving the backlogged cases, offers no true light at the end of the tunnel for Americans waiting on their disability appeals or counting on SSA to be there when they retire. What will the Commissioner testify to Congress in another 4 years?
As reported above, according to the 2011 Trustees’ Report, without Congressional action, the Disability Insurance Trust Fund will be unable to pay full benefits beginning in 2018, just a little over six years from now. “The path we are on is unsustainable, and we are putting individuals with disabilities at risk if we do not act soon.”
It appears on the surface that SSA top officials are throwing everything at the wall hoping something will stick to it that offers a resolution to the ongoing problems ranging from employee morale, budget restraints, pay freezes, workloads, retirement, backlogs, simplifications, etc. This doesn’t include the report that by 2018, the Trust Fund wont be able to pay full benefits.
US Congressman Johnson accuses the SSA of becoming filled with “waste, fraud, and abuse in the disability insurance program and that it cheats honest hardworking American taxpayers.” That we need to protect Americans from “con-artists?”
When taking Astrue’s recent message, Congressman Johnsons statement, the Ways and Means Article and 2011 Trustee’s report and put them all together, you have one hell of a mess that a whole box of silver bullets cant stop.
End Of Story....
Jack Swint - Publisher
West Virginia News
E-Mail: WestVirginiaNews@gmail.com
Website: WVNewsOnline.com
Twitter: @WVNewsOnline
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