Changes Sought to Hiring, Other Policies

Other government-wide provisions in the DoD proposal would: eliminate the “rule of three”–in which hiring managers must choose from the three candidates rated highest in numeric rankings–a policy has been largely replaced in any event by hiring from a broader category of those deemed best-qualified; allow agencies to pay a newly hired employee up to 80 hours of paid time off as an incentive to accept a job offer in a hard to fill position; allow agencies to hire college graduates noncompetitively into certain positions that either require completion of specific educational requirements or for which completion of an academic degree can be used to meet qualification requirements; simplify the written notice requirements in disciplinary actions to reduce “the time burden in drafting notices and reduce technical reversals of actions taken for employee misconduct”; extend through fiscal 2018 special pay and other benefits for employees working in Pakistan or a combat zone; and similarly extend authority to waive the annual limit on premium pay for employees working in certain areas overseas.