News Release

Washington, D.C.-- U.S. Office of Personnel Management Director Kay Coles James has given federal agencies much-needed flexibility to hire individuals whose fluency in Arabic will assist America in the rebuilding of Iraq.

James said, "These flexibilities will help agencies move more quickly in their efforts to assist in the reconstruction of Iraq. The President is committed to restoring both the freedom and the infrastructure necessary to support the Iraqi people, and our federal team is fully committed to accomplishing that goal."

With the direct-hire announcement on July 1, all federal agencies engaged in support of the Administration's Iraqi reconstruction efforts can appoint individuals whose "fluency in Arabic or other related Middle Eastern languages" will support those efforts. Only United States citizens can receive appointments under this specific authority. OPM will closely monitor the use of these authorities as they are exercised by governmental agencies.

James' granting of direct-hire authority utilizes regulations published by OPM in the Federal Register on June 13, 2003. Under the regulations, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management can make direct-hire authority available to agencies to respond to a severe shortage of candidates, or when a critical hiring need exists for particular occupations at specific pay grades or geographic locations.

James also announced that she will allow the Department of Defense to use Schedule A hiring authority to hire non-U.S. citizens for positions involved in the reconstruction of Iraq. This authority expires July 1, 2004, and its use is subject to restrictions in the DOD FY 2002 Appropriations Act. This OPM action came less than 24 hours after it was requested by the Department of Defense.

The Schedule A authority issued by James is available when there exists a severe shortage of qualified candidates with U.S. citizenship. The appointments are time-limited and only for positions outside the competitive service.

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OPM oversees the federal work force and provides the American public with up-to-date employment information. OPM also supports U.S. agencies with personnel services and policy leadership including staffing tools, guidance on labor-management relations and programs to improve work force performance.

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