Maybe someone knows-- can a federal emploee be on welfare? (house, buy)

[whatisthedealwith]

here is a foolish situation.

I have an acquaintance (which means someone who is too much a pain in the ass to be a friend, but bothers me on the regular) who is a low level federal employee at an HQ somewhere in or around DC-- I don't pay that much attention. Everything about this job bothers the man-- his boss, the coworkers, the pay, the commute, sigh. We have a mutual contact who is a doctor. He went and complained about stress ("anxiety disorder") and got a note excusing him from work FOR A YEAR. That's right. A YEAR. Playa had used up all his vacation and is now on some kind of unpaid leave for a year but he still has a job because he is a gov't worker with tenure.

Now after several months of eatin corn chips and watching sports he has discovered, lord have mercy, that unpaid leave means you *dont* *get* *paid*! This was a shock that sent him to another friend, who works as a social worker. He has applied for public assistance. Emergency assistance. Can't buy food, too "sick" to go back to work (or leave the house except when he wants to meet up for a beer, which he is forever trying to scam someone to pay for), he needs emergency assistance.

My question is, because every loving one of us are payin for this fool to sit on his behind and sing woe is me-- we are paying his salary, and paying to keep his job open, even if he can't/won't do it, can he ALSO get public assistance?? this seems UnREAL to me. I am about to call the man's boss and tell him I know he's playin. Can someone restore my faith in where my tax money may be going?

[smarterguy]

Ha, first you need some new acquaintances and friends. That doc should be ashamed of himself. But I guess this is DC and corruption runs in it blood.

I don't know how public assistance works, but if someone can't work for a long period of time, even if they're on unpaid leave, I think they should be entitled to it. With that said, I think you should snitch on the doctor AND your acquaintances to who ever does the public assistance. They give public assistance programs like this a bad name.

[KStreetQB]

If he has been a federal employee for over a year and a half, and his disability will keep him from working for at least a year, as you have said, then he is eligible for disability benefits through the Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS).

Through FERS, he is entitled to roughly 60% of his average salary over the past 3 years, minus whatever SS disability benefits he is eligible to receive. The FERS disability is treated as income and is taxed.

If his physician has diagnosed him as incapable of performing any job, as opposed to just his current one, then he should be eligible for SS disability as well. As I mentioned the SS disability benefit is deducted from his FERS benefit.