FAA’s DEI Hiring Strategy: Recruiting People With ‘Severe’ Disabilities

Americans are growing concerned about their safety after it was revealed that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has prioritized hiring people with “severe intellectual” and “psychiatric” disabilities as part of its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.

The FAA’s website states: “Individuals with targeted or ‘severe’ disabilities are the most under-represented segment of the Federal workforce.”

Furthermore, the FAA’s People with Disabilities Program notes that the agency “actively recruits, hires, promotes, retains, develops and advances people with disabilities” — including people with the following disabilities: “Hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability and dwarfism.”

The website also explains that individuals with disabilities or people with veteran status can be hired via the FAA’s non-competitive, “on-the-spot” process if the manager files the correct paperwork — which gives these individuals preferential treatment in hiring.

Following backlash over the policies, the FAA claimed in a statement to Fox News that the agency “seeks qualified candidates from as many sources as possible, all of whom must meet rigorous qualifications that of course will vary by position.”

This news comes as concerns have grown over DEI initiatives in the aviation industry, as Americans are worried about their safety while flying if airline companies are prioritizing diversity over the employee’s ability to do their job.

Tech billionaire Elon Musk has been very vocal about the issue, arguing that “People will die due to DEI.”

Musk’s comment came in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, in the wake of a near-disaster after an Alaska Airlines door plug was blown off of a two-month-old Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft mid-flight, prompting an emergency landing.

“Do you want to fly in an airplane where they prioritize DEI hiring over your safety?” Musk asked. “That is actually happening.”

“People will die due to DEI,” he added.

Musk was also responding to a post from Dr. James Lindsay, who shared a report showing that Boeing began prioritizing DEI in 2022 as part of its hiring process — likely just before the aforementioned aircraft was being built.

“Boeing’s corporate filings with the SEC reveal that in beginning 2022, the annual bonus plan to reward CEO and executives for increasing profit for shareholders and prioritizing safety was changed to reward them if they hit DEI targets,” Lindsay wrote.

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