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FAA Inclusive Hiring Initiative Targets Individuals with ‘Severe Intellectual’ and ‘Psychiatric’ Disabilities

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is actively pursuing a diversity and inclusion hiring initiative, recruiting individuals with “severe intellectual” disabilities, psychiatric issues, and various mental and physical conditions, as outlined on the agency’s website.

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Designated as “targeted disabilities,” these conditions include hearing and vision impairments, missing extremities, partial or complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability, and dwarfism.

This diversity and inclusion effort is a component of the FAA’s broader “Diversity and Inclusion” hiring plan, asserting that diversity is fundamental to achieving the FAA’s mission of ensuring safe and efficient travel nationally and internationally. The FAA’s guidelines on diversity hiring were last updated on March 23, 2022.

Overseen by Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s Department of Transportation, the FAA, responsible for regulating civil aviation, employs approximately 45,000 people. Recent attention on the FAA intensified following an incident on January 5, where a plug door on a Boeing 737 Max 9 malfunctioned during an Alaska Airlines flight, leading to the grounding of all 737 MAX 9 planes for an extensive inspection and maintenance.

In response to the incident, the FAA announced increased oversight of Boeing, including audits of the 737 Max 9 jetliner production line and its component suppliers. However, concerns have arisen on social media and among public figures, questioning whether an emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives within airlines and manufacturers compromises safety.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk expressed skepticism about prioritizing diversity over safety in a recent tweet, suggesting that such practices may impact the safety of air travel. Critics argue that these comments oversimplify the relationship between diversity initiatives and safety, while civil rights groups condemn Musk’s stance as “abhorrent and pathetic.”

The FA contends on its website that individuals with “severe” mental and physical disabilities constitute the most under-represented segment of the federal workforce. In response to inquiries about the initiative, the FA emphasized its commitment to seeking and vetting qualified candidates from diverse sources for various positions within the agency.

Dr. Stanley Goldfarb, chairman of Do No Harm, an organization focused on protecting health care from divisive ideologies, emphasized the shared responsibility of the aviation industry for traveler safety, echoing sentiments that people with disabilities should not face discrimination if they can successfully perform the required tasks.

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