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Good day to all. A little background before I get to my questions... I am a 70% disabled veteran and was recently let go from my job as a service technician. Admittedly, the job was hard on me because of my main disability (back condition). The owner of the company gave me a letter that stated I was "laid off" on a permanent basis. Essentially, I was fired. I was "laid off" the day after I came back from a week off for recuperating after aggravating my back condition on the job. I did have a doctor's note and the owner was already aware that I was a disabled vet. During my meeting with the owner I told him that I knew he was letting me go because of my disability issues. He said nothing. I have a good rapport with the office manager. She said she would add something to my "layoff" letter or possibly write a letter for me that I can have for VA purposes. Now, on to my questions: I'm unsure as to how I should phrase the letter. Should I just have the office manager put a sentence in my original layoff letter that states "Unfortunately, due to the nature of this position, no reasonable accommodations can be made" or "Unfortunately, due to the nature of this position and your physical limitations, no reasonable accommodations can be made?" Or should I ask if she would type an entirely new letter for me? If so, what should I have her write? Would this letter hold any weight on my behalf when I go for a re-eval? This leads up to my second question. The 20-year anniversary is coming up on my rating. Which means, if I'm not mistaken, that the VA cannot decrease my rating unless they can prove fraud. Is that correct? I'm waiting for that anniversary because frankly, I do not trust the VA. If I go before that time there's always that small chance that they could find a way to decrease my rating. And I just cannot risk that. If my rating falls below 50% not only would I lose 20% of my VA income, but also my retirement concurrent receipt. That would be a devastating blow, and that's the main reason I'm waiting for the 20-year mark. Should I have an organization like the American Legion or DAV work on my behalf? Or should I look at getting a disability attorney? Not sure which is better. I do know that a caring and knowledgeable representative is hard to find. I do see VA disability attorneys often on YouTube but I'm not sure which one to go with. Any suggestions would be very helpful. Thank you for taking the time to read my post. All replies are very much appreciated!

I'm currently applying for a position within a Police Department... what military records will an agency/employer be able to receive? My question is, will they be able to get full copies of my service record, medical records, etc... or just my DD Form 214 and whatever I provide to them. I didn't know if there is a "by law" clause for Veterans on what potential employers can get from the military. Thanks

I have a question. Does anyone know of any "case law" on 38 CFR 4.16, the part on "marginal employment?" I had a long email discussion with my former attorney regarding TDIU. She was considering coming back on my claim. But I want my TDIU claim back to 1987 when I first submitted it. I worked, part time, in a sheltered environment following giving up on rehab. I gave a shot at trying to get jobs I thought I might be able to do by working extra time off the clock. Jobs that required a lower skill level than I have when I'm functioning. She is now refusing to come back on the claim because she believes (personally apparently, no case law cited) that if you are getting charity money in connection to a job it counts as "a substantially gainful occupation" if the pay is near, at or above poverty level. My part time employer made a statement in writing to the VA that made me realize I wouldn't have made it as a Hotel Night Auditor which is a low paying low bookkeeping skill job that I had been applying for in addition to part time jobs. After 3 years I gave up the part time job because of increased charity. It made me feel like a beggar on behalf of the VA. My employer's statement said he had twice moved part of my work to another employee. Also that the most difficult thing for him to deal with was my being unable to function on demand when he needed me at times. I was employed to work a specific client's, famous actor, books. Out of charity, the statement said, they agreed to pay me 4 days per week to do a 3 day per week job. I was unable even keep up the 3 day a week job working an extra 16 to 30 hours over the 32 hours I was on the clock. And I knew the job was really a 3 day per week job or even less because at times, when I was clicking, I could catch up a great deal of work. The work didn't change in quantity or complexity. I just changed in functioning level because of enervations, partial and complex partial seizures that were untreated.

Hello, I hope everyone is well. Does anyone have any experience or knowledge regarding Federal Government Title 38 employees (Professional Healthcare worker such as RN, Physician, etc.)? Has any veteran experienced difficulty in obtaining employment at the MEDVAMC in Houston, Texas or any VA facility? If yes, do they feel that veteran status had a negative impact? Who else should I contact in order to file a grievance against the Title 38 veterans preference exemption? I have a Masters Degree as a Registered Nurse (Nurse Practitioner) and I am interested in seeking employment at the MEDVAMC in Houston, Texas. I have applied at the facility for more than 8 years without success. I am greater than 50% Service Connected. Registered Nurses and other healthcare professionals are considered "Title 38" employees which means that we cannot use Veterans Preference when applying for jobs at the VA. I am board certified as an Adult Gerontology Nurse Practitioner, Adult Health Clinical Nurse Specialist, Critical Care and Wound Ostomy and Continence. I wrote the Secretary of VA and inquired as to why Title 38 employees are exempt from veterans preference and my letter was forwarded to the Director of HR in Houston, TX. I asked her to explain the reason military veteran RNs and other health care professionals cannot use veteran preference.....Her answer because the VA only wants the best qualified candidates. My question to her was that if a veteran is qualified to be a commissioned officer in the military as a Registered Nurse why are they not considered among the best qualified to work in a Veterans Hospital? I also asked to know the qualifications of Nurses and Advance Practice Nurses that were chosen instead of me. Her answer was that hiring was strictly up to the hiring manager. I have nothing against foreigners (several of my in-laws are foreigners) but all of the hiring managers that I interviewed with were foreigners--Filipino, East Indian, and/or African. The staff nurse interview panels were always completely homogenous either all Filipino, East Indian, or African. I feel that by exempting Veterans from preference there is a possibility that Veterans may be inadvertently discriminated against due to their Veteran Status. The reason I say this is because at every interview the hiring manager or panel come across as 'skittish' or 'unsure' when my military service is illuminated. I asked the HR Director how many nurses at the facility were military veterans? Her answer was approximately 6%. She could not provide any information on how many of the 6% were in leadership positions or hiring managers. I wrote both of my Senators this past summer (Ted Cruz and John Cornyn) regarding the Title 38 exemption for Veterans Preference. I feel that RNs, Physicians, and other healthcare workers should be entitled to Veterans Preference. I received no response from Ted Cruz. John Cornyn's office thanked me for my service and gave some generic response on how they supported veterans. Congressional Veterans House and Senate members, the ones that make laws, do not provide responses. I know illuminating race/country of origin is a sensitive subject for some people. If my letter is coming across as brash, abrasive, or offensive that is not my intention. I am primarily concerned about the possibility of being discriminated against due to my veteran status not race or natural born citizenship.

Does anyone know or they themselves ever received assistance through Voc Rehab for self employment? I need specific information... I would greatly appreciate anyone's help and I am going to share what I find after reviewing Board of Veterans Appeals Decisions in regards to the matter. Maybe no one ever has? §21.257 Self-employment. (a) Approval of self-employment as a vocational goal. A program of vocational rehabilitation benefits and services may include self-employment for an individual if VA determines that such an objective is a suitable vocational goal. VA will make this determination based on— (1) The results of the individual's initial evaluation conducted in accordance with the provisions of §21.50; and (2) The provisions of this section. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)) (b) Definition. For purposes of this subpart, individuals with the most severe service-connected disability(ies) who require self-employment means individuals who have been determined by VA to have limitations affecting employability arising from the effects of each individual's service-connected disability(ies), which are so severe as to necessitate selection of self-employment as the only reasonably feasible vocational goal for the individuals. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104) (c) Scope of self-employment benefits and services. (1) VA may provide the self-employment services listed in paragraph (d) of this section to program participants who are pursuing the vocational goal of self-employment. (2) VA may provide the more extensive services listed in paragraph (e) of this section to individuals with the most severe service-connected disability(ies) who require self-employment. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)) (d) Assistance for other individuals in self-employment. Subject to the provisions of §21.258, VA may provide the following assistance to any individual for whom self-employment is determined to be a suitable vocational goal— (1) Vocational training; (2) Incidental training in the management of a business; (3) License or other fees required for self-employment; (4) Necessary tools and supplies for the occupation; and (5) Services described in §21.252. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104(a)) (e) Special self-employment services for individuals with the most severe service-connected disability(ies) who require self-employment. Individuals described in paragraph (b) of this section who are in a self-employment program may receive— (1) The services described in paragraph (d) of this section; and (2) The assistance described in §21.214. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104, 3116, 3117) (f) Feasibility analysis of a proposed self-employment business plan. VA will conduct a comprehensive review and analysis of the feasibility of a proposed business plan, as submitted by the individual or developed with VA's assistance, prior to authorizing a rehabilitation plan leading to self-employment (a “self-employment plan”). The feasibility analysis must include— (1) An analysis of the economic viability of the proposed business; (2) A cost analysis specifying the amount and types of assistance that VA will provide; (3) A market analysis for the individual's proposed services or products; (4) Availability of financing from non-VA sources, including the individual's personal resources, local banks, and other sources; (5) Evidence of coordination with the Small Business Administration to secure special consideration under section 8 of the Small Business Act, as amended; (6) The location of the site for the proposed business and the cost of the site, if any; and (7) A training plan to operate a successful business. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104) [75 FR 3170, Jan. 20, 2010] §21.258 Cost limitations on approval of self-employment plans. A self-employment plan with an estimated or actual cost of less than $25,000 may be approved by the VR&E Officer with jurisdiction. Any self-employment plan with an estimated or actual cost of $25,000 or more must be approved by the Director, VR&E Service. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 3104) [75 FR 3170, Jan. 20, 2010]

Hello, I have been rated service connected 100% Permanent and Total Disabled with a SMC Special Monthly Compensation-S and that I have been found to meet the housebound criteria. I also receive SSDI. The 100% is based on one claim--others follow with an accumulated 165% service connected disablement. Retirement date: Jan 2006 I recently received a Bachelor's degree under the Post 9/11 program. I'm cautiously seeking some extra income as a trial, however, I am confused with all of the information I have sought over the internet to include the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 38 in particular section 4.15. My regional VA Officer said that it shows that I am 100% service connected P&T and that I can make any amount I choose without penalty. Can anyone help unconfuse me on all of this information? and/or Am I risking much too much?

I'm rated 80% overall with 40% for mental disability. I have a strange employment record and I wonder if it's worth applying for TDIU I have been able to get jobs, but I have not been able keep them. My longest was 3 years, 6 months. In two cases I was laid off, in one case I was "encouraged" to resign, I left one after being injured in an auto accident, and in the last (2017 ) I was escorted under armed guard off the Air Force base on which I was working as a contractor. (I was accused of making threats ag'nst the life of the Pres'dent who was scheduled to be onboard during the day. I've left two words unspelled because I am now paranoid.) I left my last job in 2011 after being very badly injured in an auto accident. I was then on the fast track to being fired. I'd been warned that I was under a special "performance management" program (the last step before being let go), I was unable to return until recently and now I'm 65. I can get a letter from my psychiatrist explaining that he thinks my employment difficulties are primarily due to my SC mental disability Does this look like it will be a good application for a TDIU rating?

I have to admit that I did not do much research on this opportunity, but it did come to me from a different Veterans Benefits web site, and I think there may be one or two or more on this site who could/would take advantage of such an opportunity. Overall summary, is that if you are unemployed, and looking for some retraining, but can not afford the cost of changing courses, then you may be interested in reading/pursuing more: http://benefits.va.gov/vow/education.htm I am also attaching the wording of the VA Notification so you can decide if you want to pursue this link and the advertised benefits on your own. I assume that I personally do not qualify for this benefit, due to my ongoing need for treatment, but that is not an official answer. Anyway, this is a time-sensitive benefit, and in my opinion, an extremely valuable opportunity for a lot of folks on this site or their significant others. I wish you all well!!!! Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP) Congress passed, and the President has signed into law, the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011. Included in this new law is the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program (VRAP). VRAP offers up to 12 months of training assistance to unemployed Veterans. The Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) and the Department of Labor (DOL) are working together to roll out this new program on July 1, 2012. The VRAP offers 12 months of training assistance to Veterans who: Are at least 35 but no more than 60 years old Are unemployed Received an other than dishonorable discharge Are not be eligible for any other VA education benefit program (e.g.: the Post-9/11 GI Bill, Montgomery GI Bill, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Assistance) Are not in receipt of VA compensation due to unemployability Are not enrolled in a federal or state job training program The program is limited to 45,000 participants from July 1, 2012, through September 30, 2012, and 54,000 participants from October 1, 2012, through March 31, 2014. Participants may receive up to 12 months of assistance equal to the monthly full-time payment rate under the Montgomery GI Bill–Active Duty program (currently $1,473 per month). DOL will offer employment assistance to every Veteran who participates upon completion of the program. Participants must be enrolled in a VA approved program of education offered by a community college or technical school. The program must lead to an Associate Degree, Non-College Degree, or a Certificate, and train the Veteran for a high demand occupation. High Demand Jobs VRAP will provide training for programs of education that lead to a high demand occupation, as determined by the Department of Labor. Click here to see a listing of high demand occupations. VRAP Applications Are Open We are accepting VRAP applications now. Please visit eBenefits to apply. Remember, to complete the application, you will need to know your direct deposit information (bank routing number and account number), the name and location of your school, the program you wish to pursue, and the applicable high demand occupation