Welcome To The Social Justice Department
The government is going out of its way to hire people with disabilities in the Justice Department. Now, I have no problem if they do hire people with disabilities -- providing their disability doesn't make them incapable of performing their job, and providing they aren't hired over people, "able" or disabled, who are better qualified. But, that doesn't sound like what they're doing. Christian Adams writes at PJ Tatler:
This DOJ policy does not merely involve prohibitions against discrimination, but rather the documents reveal deliberate recruitment efforts to hire as attorneys and staff for the Department of Justice people suffering from psychiatric disorders and intellectual disabilities. Moreover, applicants can "self-identify" their disability by means of the "Standard Form 256, Self Identification Disability."Those with "targeted disabilities" may be hired through a "non-competitive" appointment. That means they don't have to endure the regular civil service competition among applicants, but can be plucked from the stack of resumes and hired immediately instead.
According to the documents, those with these "targeted disabilities" may be hired "before the position is advertised" and even "before the position's closing date." Moreover, lawyers with psychiatric disabilities and "severe intellectual" disabilities receive a waiver from the requirement that a new DOJ employee have practiced law for one year before being hired.
You do not fight discrimination with discrimination. A person shouldn't be nixed for a job because they have two legs if they're the best candidate for the job.
via Manny Klausner
My job is based on going to customer sites and performing the task specified in the contract. Close to half of my work is performed at private corporations, a small amount at non profits, the remaining at government sites. I have been to many federal, state and county government sites across most of the 50 states. Likely to no one's surprise, government is ABSURDLY inefficient. Many employees barely perform any real function (unless well planned lunches count). Incompetence and/or apathy is widespread. "Good enough for government work" is frequently the standard.
So when you hear about a new government hiring policy that appears improper, don't get worked up about it. It's already so bad on such a huge scale that another poorly though out hiring/work rule is but a drop in 100 buckets.
((To be fair, this does not apply 100%. I've had occasion to work with some good people))
TW at August 25, 2012 12:26 AM
But it's not just the govt doing it.
Years and years and years ago, I applied for a job with a utility company, and took a written test with several other people. One was a woman of color, the rest were not. Guess who got the job?
Companies run credit reports before hiring. What does bad credit signify? Maybe you got sick, or had an irresponsible spouse/child. I know dozens of people I would want working for me with 'bad credit.'
DrCos at August 25, 2012 4:08 AM
Yay! A reason to put recovering alcoholic on job applications!
lawyers with psychiatric disabilities and "severe intellectual" disabilities
There's any other kind?
I see your point DrCos - I have spectacularly bad credit (no irresponsible spouse, just me) but I'm a very good engineer. I know a lot of other people with that sort of personal/business life dichotomy. Even as a generalisation, it doesn't seem a very good predictor of work performance.
Ltw at August 25, 2012 6:12 AM
Amy Alkon
http://www.advicegoddess.com/archives/2012/08/25/welcome_the_soc.html#comment-3314464">comment from DrCosOne was a woman of color, the rest were not. Guess who got the job?
It's possible she was the most qualified. These laws make it humiliating, I would think, to be a black applicant who has earned their way up, and then is assumed to have gotten in on skin color.
Accordingly, my black friends are just darker than my white ones (except in a couple cases where they are, as my friend Charlie describes himself, "beige" or "incognegro"). They are smart, interesting, etc., just like my white friends, because those are the kind of friends I have.
Amy Alkon at August 25, 2012 6:33 AM
Yes, it would be nice if she was the most qualified. But I and several others were informed before we even took the test.
I only bring it up because 'affirmative action' and quota hiring policies are just another form of discrimination, just one that is apparently more acceptable.
If you want to end the bad kind of discrimination, the hiring processes should be open and audited on a regular basis, so that the best candidates are getting the jobs, regardless of gender, race, or credit history. But that will never happen.
DrCos at August 25, 2012 6:47 AM
Just what we need! More mental defectives in the Department of Justice. More stupid and crazy people with the power to fuck with the public. Yeah, that's pretty consistent with our government's current policies.
Assholio at August 25, 2012 11:31 AM
The motto at SOTT.net (my favorite alt-news site) is "Psychopaths rule the world". They're in charge of hiring also.
jefe at August 25, 2012 4:10 PM
Well that explains why I have no power, all this time I've just been a sociopath.
lujlp at August 25, 2012 4:31 PM
So *that's* how Holder got his job! :-D
John David Galt at August 26, 2012 8:19 PM
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