Office of the Federal Register (OFR)

Executive Orders

Executive Order 10577--Amending the Civil Service Rules and authorizing a new appointment system for the competitive service

Source: The provisions of Executive Order 10577 of Nov. 23, 1954, appear at 19 FR 7521, 9315, 3 CFR, 1954-1958 Comp., p. 218, unless otherwise noted.

By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution, by section 1753 of the Revised Statutes (5 U.S.C. 631), by the Civil Service Act of January 16, 1883 (22 Stat. 403), by section 301 of title 3 of the United States Code, and as President of the United States, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Part I--Civil Service Rules

Section 101. The Civil Service Rules are hereby amended to read as follows: [Deleted] 1

Part II--Special Provisions for Transition From Indefinite Appointment System to Career-Conditional Appointment System

Sec. 201. (a) Under such conditions as the Office of Personnel Management may prescribe, all employees serving under indefinite appointments in the competitive service on the effective date of this order who were appointed by selection in regular order from appropriate competitive civil-service registers established subsequent to February 4, 1946, shall, as of the effective date of this order, have their appointments converted to career-conditional appointments if they have had less than three years of creditable service, and to career appointments if they have had three or more years of such service since they were appointed: Provided, That, any such employees who left their positions prior to the effective date of this order to enter the armed forces of the United States and are reemployed in the competitive service after the effective date of this order pursuant to application for employment made within ninety days after honorable discharge, or after hospitalization continuing after discharge for not more than one year, shall have their former indefinite appointments converted to career-conditional or career appointments in accordance with this section: Provided further, That employees serving in excepted positions who would meet the conditions for career-conditional or career appointments if they were serving in competitive positions shall be granted competitive status upon completion of a probationary period.
(b) The Office may prescribe the conditions under which employees who are serving under indefinite appointments in the competitive service on the effective date of this order and who were not appointed by selection in regular order from competitive civil-service registers may be examined and have their names entered on existing competitive civil-service registers. When such employees are within reach for appointment from such registers they shall be eligible for career-conditional appointments if, since they were given indefinite appointments, they have had less than three years of creditable service, and for career appointments if they have had three or more years of such service.
(c) All employees in the competitive service who on the effective date of this order are serving under indefinite appointments made noncompetitively based upon prior service with a competitive status shall, as of the effective date of this order, have their appointments converted to career-conditional appointments if they have had less than three years of creditable service, and to career appointments if they have had three or more years of such service under either permanent or indefinite appointment: Provided, That any such employees who left their positions prior to the effective date of this order to enter the armed forces of the United States and are reemployed in the competitive service after the effective date of this order pursuant to application for employment made within ninety days after honorable discharge, or after hospitalization continuing after discharge for not more than one year, shall have their former indefinite appointments converted to career-conditional or career appointments in accordance with this section: Provided further, That any such employees in the field service of the Post Office Department whose salary rates are fixed by the act of July 6, 1945, 59 Stat. 435, as heretofore or hereafter amended and supplemented, shall have their appointments converted to career appointments if they are serving in positions in the authorized complement of permanent positions (consisting of regular positions and positions within the authorized quota of substitutes).
(d) The Office shall define &quotcreditable service&quot and shall prescribe the conditions for completion of the period of creditable service required for career appointment.
(e) Except as provided in section 201 (c) hereof, this section shall not apply to employees serving under indefinite appointments in the field service of the Post Office Department whose salary rates are fixed by the act of July 6, 1945, 59 Stat. 435, as heretofore, or hereafter amended and supplemented.

[Sec. 201 amended by EO 12107 of Dec. 28, 1978, 44 FR 1055, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264]

Sec. 202. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 201(a) of this order, and subject to such noncompetitive examination or other requirements as the Office may prescribe, any employee entitled to veteran preference who has a compensable service-connected disability of ten per centum or more may, upon recommendation of the agency concerned, noncompetitively acquire a competitive status subject to completion of a probationary period: Provided, That he is serving under an indefinite appointment, a temporary appointment pending establishment of a register, or a temporary appointment for job employment which has been continuous for more than one year: Provided further, That recommendation for acquisition of status under this section is made not later than December 31, 1957.
(b) Any employee who is recommended for noncompetitive acquisition of competitive status under section 202(a) hereof and who satisfies the noncompetitive examination and other requirements of the Office shall have the appointment under which he is serving converted to a career appointment if he has completed a probationary period or to a career-conditional appointment if he has not completed a probationary period. The career-conditional appointment of such an employee shall be converted to a career appointment upon completion of probation.
(c) An employee in the field service of the Post Office Department whose salary rate is fixed by the act of July 6, 1945, 59 Stat. 435, as heretofore or hereafter amended and supplemented, may not be recommended for competitive status under section 202(a) hereof unless he can be appointed to a vacancy in the authorized complement of permanent positions (consisting of regular positions and positions within the authorized quota of substitutes). When such an employee is recommended for noncompetitive acquisition of competitive status and satisfies the noncompetitive examination and other requirements of the Office, his appointment shall be converted to a career appointment subject to satisfactory completion of a probationary period.

[Sec. 202 amended by EO 12107 of Dec. 28, 1978, 44 FR 1055, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264]

Sec. 203. The career-conditional appointment of any employee entitled to veteran preference who has a compensable service-connected disability of ten per centum or more and who is selected in regular order from a competitive civil-service register may, notwithstanding the provisions of section 2.2(a) of Civil Service Rule II, be converted to a career appointment: Provided, That not later than December 31, 1957, the agency in which he is employed so recommends and certifies to the Office that he has satisfactorily completed a one-year probationary period: Provided further, That any such employee who is not certified for career appointment under this section shall have his career-conditional appointment converted to a career appointment when he has completed the service requirements for such appointment prescribed under section 2.2(a) of Civil Service Rule II.

[Sec. 203 amended by EO 12107 of Dec. 28, 1978, 44 FR 1055, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264]

Sec. 204. In order to effectuate the purposes of section 1310 of the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 1952 (65 Stat. 757), as amended, the Office shall, after consultation with the agencies concerned, determine the division of allowable permanent appointments within and between the excepted service and the competitive service.

[Sec. 204 amended by EO 12107 of Dec. 28, 1978, 44 FR 1055, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264]

Sec. 205. The Office shall issue such regulations and instructions as may be necessary to effectuate the purposes of this part.

[Sec. 205 amended by EO 12107 of Dec. 28, 1978, 44 FR 1055, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264]

Part III

Sec. 301. The following-described executive orders and parts of executive orders are hereby revoked:
Part II of Executive Order No. 9830 of February 24, 1947, amending the Civil Service Rules: Provided, That the positions listed in Schedules A, B, and C as provided for in Civil Service Rule VI of that order, as amended, shall be considered as being listed in Schedules A, B, and C, respectively, as provided for in Civil Service Rule VI of this order, unless and until they are removed therefrom by the Office.
Executive Orders No. 9973 of June 28, 1948, No. 10440 of March 31, 1953, and No. 10463 of June 25, 1953, amending Civil Service Rule VI.
Executive Order No. 10180 of November 13, 1950, establishing special personnel procedures in the interest of national defense.

[Sec. 301 amended by EO 12107 of Dec. 28, 1978, 44 FR 1055, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 264]

Part IV

Sec. 401. This order shall become effective on the first Sunday after the sixtieth day after the date hereof.


1Editorial note: The Civil Service Rules are codified at 5 CFR Parts 1-9.


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