VetGuide
Appendix D: A Brief History of
VeteransPreference
Preference Before
the Civil War
Civil
War to the end of World War I
Preference
Between the World Wars
Veterans
Preference Act of 1944
Veterans
Preference Since 1944
Time
line of VeteransPreference in the Federal Civil Service
Preference Before the Civil War
The use of preference in Federal appointments extends back to the days of the
Revolutionary War. Though no legal basis existed to govern the treatment of
war veterans, certain soldiers were rewarded for their service by the Federal
government. Early forms of preference were often based on European models and
featured the use of pensions, bonuses for service, disability allowance, and
hospitalization for injuries incurred while in uniform, as rewards for service
to one's country. It wasn't until the heyday of the spoils system, however,
that appointments to Federal positions as a reward for military service become
a popular practice. These appointments, however, were usually reserved for ex-officers,
and not for the rank and file soldier.
Civil War to the end of World War I
Towards the end of the Civil War, congress passed the first significant Veterans
preference legislation. This act provided that,
"Persons honorably discharged from the military or naval service by reason of
disability resulting from wounds or sickness incurred in the line of duty shall
be preferred for appointments to civil offices, provided they are found to possess
the business capacity necessary for the proper discharge of the duties of such
offices."
Under this legislation, preference in appointments was limited to disabled veterans
who were otherwise qualified for the work to be performed. This 1865 law stood
as the basic preference legislation until the end of World War I.
Along the way, however, several modifications were made to the 1865 legislation.
An amendment in 1871 contained the first instance of "suitability" requirements
for job seeking veterans. The language read as follows,
"The President is authorized to prescribe such regulations for the admission
of persons into the civil service of the United States as may best promote the
efficiency thereof, and ascertain the fitness of each candidate in respect to
age, health, character, knowledge, and ability for the branch of service into
which he seeks to enter, and for this purpose he may employ suitable persons
to conduct such inquiries, and may prescribe their duties, and establish regulations
for the conduct of persons who may receive appointment in the civil service."
In 1876, another Congressional amendment gave preference for RIF retention to
veterans, their widows, and their orphans. This amendment marked the introduction
of the use of preference as RIF protection. It provided:
"That in making any reduction in force in any of the executive departments the
head of such department shall retain those persons who may be equally qualified
who have been honorably discharged from the military or naval service of the
United States and the widows and orphans of deceased soldiers and sailors."
Determination of the "equal qualifications" of a person entitled to preference
under this law was left to the appointing officer.
In 1888, a Civil Service Commission regulation gave absolute preference to
all disabled veterans over all other eligibles. In other words, they would qualify
with a score of 65, when the minimum passing score for everyone else was a 70,
and would be placed at the top of the certification list.
A year later, President Harrison issued an Executive Order allowing honorably
discharged veterans who were former Federal employees to be reinstated without
time limit. This was the first appearance of reinstatement eligibility as applied
to veterans. In 1892, reinstatement rights were extended to the widows and orphans
of veterans. The reinstatement provision was the last significant addition to
preference legislation until 1919.
Preference Between the World Wars
The first major expansion of VeteransPreference benefits occurred in 1919
in the form of the Census Act. This act, amended shortly thereafter by the Deficiency
Act of 1919 granted preference to all honorably discharged veterans, their widows,
and the wives of injured veterans. An excerpt reads as follows:
"That hereafter in making appointments to clerical and other positions in the
executive branch of the Government, in the District of Columbia or elsewhere
preference shall be given to honorably discharged soldiers, sailors, and marines,
and widows of such, and to the wives of injured soldiers, sailors, and marines,
who themselves are not qualified, but whose wives are qualified to hold such
positions."
This act is significant for two reasons: it no longer emphasized a service-connected
disability as the primary basis for granting Veteranspreference, and it introduced
the concept of spousal preference in the appointing process. This act redefined
eligible veterans to mean all persons who served in an active military capacity
and were honorably discharged, whether the service was in wartime or peacetime.
Added were their widows and the wives of those too disabled to qualify for government
employment. This act remained the basic Federal law for appointment preference
until June 27, 1944, when the VeteransPreference Act of 1944 was enacted.
Two significant modifications were made to the 1919 Act. In 1923, an Executive
Order was created which added a 10-points to the score of disabled veterans
and added 5-points to the scores of non-disabled veterans. This was the first
time the points were added to the examination scores in the appointing process.
Under this Executive Order, however, veterans were no longer placed at the top
of the certification lists. In 1929, another executive order restored the placement
of 10-point disabled veterans to the top of certification lists.
In 1938, a Civil Service Commission rule required that the decision by an appointing
official to pass over a veteran and select a non-veteran for appointment be
subject to review by the commission. Language regarding the passover of eligible
veterans existed in earlier executive orders, but these early versions only
required that the CSC be notified if a passover occurred. The 1938 rule strengthened
this requirement and marked the first time that the Commission could overturn
the passover if it did not regard the reasons as being adequate.
VeteransPreference Act of 1944
Veteranspreference, as it exists today, derives from the VeteransPreference
Act of 1944. This act, to a large extent, resulted from the veterans organizations'
desire to elevate the existing Executive and regulatory orders governing preference
to the level of National policy. With a victorious end to World War II clearly
in sight, both Congress and the Administration were sympathetic to the veterans
organizations' objective. In his endorsement of the legislation, President Roosevelt
wrote,
"I believe that the Federal Government, functioning in its capacity as an employer,
should take the lead in assuring those who are in the armed forces that when
they return special consideration will be given to them in their efforts to
obtain employment. It is absolutely impossible to take millions of our young
men out of their normal pursuits for the purpose of fighting to preserve the
Nation, and then expect them to resume their normal activities without having
any special consideration shown them."
The act, in essence, was a consolidation of the various preference provision already
in effect by the various Executive Orders and CSC regulations. It went a step
further by broadening and strengthening existing Veteranspreference rules by
giving them legislative sanction. Thus, the Executive Branch could no longer change
the provisions of Veteranspreference. Any changes must now be sought through
legislation. In addition, the act made clear that preference was a to be a reward
for patriotic duties by a grateful country willing to recognize the sacrifices
of its servicemen when peace comes. The Act would help ensure that veterans obtain
or regain an economic position they otherwise would have attained had they not
served in the armed forces.
The Veterans preference Act of 1944 defined to whom and under what circumstances
preference would be granted. It provided that Preference be given in competitive
examinations, in appointments to positions in the Federal service, in reinstatement
to positions, in reemployment, and in retention during reductions in force.
Preference would apply to civilian positions - permanent or temporary - in all
departments, agencies, bureaus, administrations, establishments, and projects
of the Federal Government, and in the civil service of the District of Columbia.
Further, the law provided that preference apply to positions in the classified
civil service (now the competitive service), the unclassified civil service
(positions excepted from the competitive service), and in any temporary or emergency
establishment, agency, bureau, administration, project and department created
by acts of Congress or Presidential Executive order. The legislative and judicial
branches of the Government, as well as positions in the executive branch, which
are required to be confirmed by the Senate, except Postmaster-ships, in the
first-, second-, and third-class post offices were exempt from the Act.
The Act originally granted preference to non-disabled veterans, disabled veterans,
wives of disabled veterans, and the widows of disabled veterans. These were
substantially the same groups granted preference under previous laws and regulations
with two exceptions. Non-disabled veterans whose only service was performed
during peacetime and the wives of non-service-connected disabled veterans over
55 years of age were no longer eligible for preference.
VeteransPreference Since 1944
In 1948, the Veterans Preference Act of 1944 was amended to include the mothers
of veterans. Mother preference was granted to certain widowed, or divorced or
legally separated mothers of veterans (men and women) who (a) died under honorable
conditions while on active duty in any branch of the armed forces of the United
States in wartime or in peacetime campaigns or expeditions for which campaign
badges or service medals have been authorized; or (b) have permanent and total
service-connected disabilities which disqualify them for civil service appointment
to positions along the general line of their usual occupations. In the case
of such widowed mothers, preference was granted provided they were widowed at
the time of death or disability of the veteran and had not remarried. The divorced
or legally separated mothers were granted preference only if the veteran was
the mother's only child. This provision was later amended in 1950 to allow preference
to mothers who are living with their husbands but whose husbands are totally
and permanently disabled.
In 1952, a bill was passed granting preference benefits to those honorably
separated veterans who served on active duty in any branch of the armed forces
of the United States during the period beginning April 28, 1952 and ending July
1, 1955 (the period after the termination of the state of war between the United
States and the Government of Japan during which persons could be inducted under
existing law for training and service in the armed forces). The bill also extended
preference to the widows and mothers of such veterans.
The Vietnam conflict in the 1960s resulted in several modifications of the
VP law of 1944. In 1966, legislation was passed which granted peace-time preference
for Vietnam-era vets who served on active duty for more that 180 consecutive
days between January 31 1955 and Oct 10, 1976; National guard and reserve service
was excluded from this legislation.
In 1967 legislation was passed which expanded preference to all veterans who
served on active duty for more than 180 days (no requirement to serve during
war, campaign, or conflict) between January 31, 1955 and October 10, 1976. As
with the previous year's law, National guard and reserve service was not included
in this expansion.
The end of the Vietnam conflict brought with it yet another law, passed in
1976. This law put added restrictions on veterans whose service begins after
October 14, 1976. For post-Vietnam era veterans, preference was granted only
if theses veterans became disabled, or served in a declared war, a campaign,
or expedition. This legislation was the result of the conclusion of the Vietnam
conflict and its draft, the Department of Defenses' desire to build a career
military service, and veterans organizations' concern that preference was not
appropriate for purely peacetime service.
The Civil Service reform act of 1978 created new benefits for veterans with
a 30 percent or more disability. It also gave veterans extra protection in hiring
and retention. Under this act, preference was no longer granted to nondisabled
veterans who retired at the rank of major or above.
In 1988, a law was passed that required the Department of Labor to report agencies'
violations of Veteranspreference and failure to list vacancies with State
employment services to the Office of Personnel Management for enforcement.
The last major legislation affecting Veteranspreference occurred in the form
of the Defense Appropriations act of 1997. Under this legislation, preference
was accorded to anyone who served on active duty during the Gulf War period
(August 2, 1990 through January 2, 1992). This law also granted preference to
certain service members who earned campaign medals for service in Bosnia and
Herzegovina in support of Operation Joint Endeavor (November 20, 1995 through
December 20, 1996) or Operation Joint Guard (December 20, 1996 through a date
designated by the Secretary of Defense).
Time line of VeteransPreference in the Federal
Civil Service
1865
First Veteranspreference (VP) in appointment law; for Union veterans separated
for wounds or illnesses. Vets must have been honorably discharged and qualified
for job.
1876
First VP in reduction in force (RIF) law
1919
After World War I, law grants VP to all honorably discharged veterans, their
widows, and the spouses of veterans too disabled to work
1923
To distinguish between the preference and granted by the 1865 and 1919 laws,
an Executive Order grants disabled vets 10 points and other vets 5 points, to
be added to their individual numerical ratings in examinations (pt system first
introduced)
1929
Executive Order places disabled vets at the top of examination lists of eligibles
and continues 10 extra points
1944
VeteransPreference Act incorporates 1865, 1876, and 1919 laws, plus Executive
Orders for extra points, passover protection, and rule of three. Continues to
be cornerstone of Veteranscivil service legislation today (applied preference
to active duty service during war, expedition, or campaign for which badge was
authorized, must be separated under hon cond, rule of three)
1952
Amendment extended 1944 law to include active duty service from 4/28/52 - 7/1/55
Korean War
1966
Peacetime preference for Vietnam-era vets added active duty for >180 consecutive
days between Jan 31 1955 and Oct 10, 1976; guard and reserve service not included
1967
Expanded 1967 act to all vets who served on active duty for >180 days (no req
to serve during war, campaign, or conflict) between Jan 31, 1955 and Oct 10,
1976 (guard and reserve service not included)
1968
Executive Order creates VeteransTransitional Appointment, a new way for Vietnam-era
veterans to enter Federal service without public examination. Forerunner of
Veterans Readjustment Appointment (VRA)
1974
1976
By law, veterans whose service begins after October 14, 1976 are granted preference
only if they become disabled, or serve in a declared war, a campaign, or expedition.
(This resulted from the end of the Vietnam conflict and draft, Department of
Defenses desire to build a career military service, and Veteransgroups concern
that preference was not appropriate for purely peacetime service.)
1978
Civil Service reform act creates new benefits for 30 percent or more disabled
veterans; special appointing authority, and extra protection in hiring and retention.
Preference ends for nondisabled retired majors and above. Efforts to broaden
rule of three and make exceptions to numerical ratings in examinations defeated
by Veteransgroups
1988
Law requires Dept. of Labor to report agencies' violations of Veteranspreference
and failure to list vacancies with State employment services to OPM for enforcement
1990
VRA law amended to include post-Vietnam-era veterans, but end coverage of most
Vietnam-era veterans
1992
VRA law revised to restore eligibility to Vietnam-era veterans
1997
Defense Appropriations Act grants preference to gulf war veterans and certain
campaign medal holders in Bosnia (included guard or reserve service if for other
than training)