Civil Service Positions

There are more than two million people employed as federal civil servants.  The federal civil service system includes all appointed positions in the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government, except for military positions in the uniformed services.  The civil service consists of i) competitive service positions; ii) excepted service positions; and iii) Senior Executive Service (SES) Positions.  The primary differences among these three services are in appointment procedures and in job protections. 

The Competitive Service – The majority of Federal Government employees are hired through what is known as the “competitive service,” for which the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) posts open positions on USAJobs.gov and applicants compete in a merit system organized by OPM for those jobs.

The Excepted Service – All attorney positions in the Federal Government are in the excepted service, typically under an appointment called "Schedule A” (positions excepted from the Competitive Service by OPM or by law are placed into three categories, Schedule A, B, or C, and each has its own hiring regulations.  See http://www.transitionjobs.us/federal-civil-service-outlining-three-categories for further information). Therefore, agencies may hire for attorney positions directly without conducting examinations or working through OPM.  Because excepted service positions do not have to be advertised on USA Jobs, it is important to look at individual agency websites for job announcements; nevertheless, applicants will often be sent from those agency websites to USA Jobs.  See Making the Difference for more information about excepted service.

The Senior Executive Service (SES) – Senior Executive Service employees are primarily managers and supervisors, just below the top Presidential appointees.  OPM manages SES hiring with a unique set of regulations. See USA Jobs for more information.

Political vs. Career Hires

In addition to civil servants, federal agencies have political appointees.  Under the Pendleton Civil Service Act, government officials are prohibited from considering candidates’ political affiliations when hiring for civil service positions.  In contrast, political appointees are selected by the President or Congress to serve in specified leadership positions.  The vast majority of jobs with the federal government are competitive service positions.  For example, the Office of the General Counsel for the Department of Health and Human Services employs about 400 attorneys, only 4-5 of whom are political appointees.  The rest are hired, and will continue to serve, even as administrations change and the political appointees come and go.

 

 

 

NAV 2.11.11