The ruling stated that the government improperly placed FCIP positions in the excepted service, meaning vacancies do not have to be made public, according to Federal Times.

However, the intern program is a bit of a misnomer and has been used by some agencies to circumvent the competitive hiring procedures, The Washington Post reports.

In two cases brought by veterans -- one against the Office of Personnel Management and the other against the Veteran Affairs Department -- MSPB found "a violation of appellants' veterans' preference rights," according to the Post.

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