Sep 26, 2006

No Hiring Freeze At SSA -- At Least Not Yet

Jo Anne Barnhart, Social Security's Commissioner until January 2007, has made it clear that she expects major budget problems in the next fiscal year, which begins on October 1. She has predicted a hiring freeze plus the possibility of staff furloughs. Consistent with this has been a dramatic downturn in the number of open jobs advertised at SSA. The number of jobs advertised by SSA has been steadily decreasing in September and none had a closing date after the end of September -- until today. I had expected that SSA would soon be advertising no openings. However, Social Security has now advertised two jobs with a closing date in October. This may indicate a slight improvement in the budget picture or perhaps all it indicates is that even under a hiring freeze there will be a few critical positions filled. The two jobs advertised are for an air conditioner mechanic in California and an administrative specialist in Illinois.

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