Alternative Service Program
Encyclopedia
The Alternative Service Program is a form of alternative service
for conscientious objectors in the United States
within its Selective Service System
.
The Alternative Service Program affects those persons whose conscientious objection encompasses both combatant and noncombatant military training and service. The program allows men who have been classified 1-O by their local Selective Service boards to fulfill their service obligation in a civilian
capacity contributing to the maintenance of the national health, safety or interest.
The Alternative Service Program is administered locally by the Alternative Service Offices which will be located in 48 major cities in the U.S. There is also a Civilian Review Board associated with each office which is composed of no less than three civilian volunteers. It is their responsibility to review certain appeals of job assignments by the Alternative Service Workers.
A major part of the contingency planning for Alternative Service is to identify agencies and associations which could assist the Selective Service System in placing conscientious objectors in suitable alternative service jobs. Examples of alternative service work are conservation, caring for the very young and the very old, education
al projects and health care
.
Conscientious objectors who are to be placed in the Alternative Service Program will be asked to describe their skills, aptitudes and interest in order to facilitate their placement. An attempt will be made to match the objector’s skills and aptitudes to an eligible job, while at the same time ensuring that his service makes a meaningful contribution to the national interest. All assignments will be made within 30 days of reclassification to conscientious objector status.
Employers will be asked to describe their job openings and the qualifications of persons required to fill them. The employer may interview conscientious objectors before deciding to hire them, or he may leave the placement decision in the hands of the Alternative Service Office. In all cases, the employer and the Selective Service System must execute an agreement for the employment of conscientious objectors before any work assignments are made. All assignments will be made within 30 days of reclassification to conscientious objector status.
Alternative service
Alternative service is a form of national service performed in lieu of conscription for various reasons, such as conscientious objection, inadequate health, or political reasons. See "labour battalion" for examples of the latter case...
for conscientious objectors in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
within its Selective Service System
Selective Service System
The Selective Service System is a means by which the United States government maintains information on those potentially subject to military conscription. Most male U.S. citizens and male immigrant non-citizens between the ages of 18 and 25 are required by law to have registered within 30 days of...
.
Official definition
The Selective Service System defines the purpose and scope of the Alternative Service as follows.The Alternative Service Program affects those persons whose conscientious objection encompasses both combatant and noncombatant military training and service. The program allows men who have been classified 1-O by their local Selective Service boards to fulfill their service obligation in a civilian
Civilian
A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...
capacity contributing to the maintenance of the national health, safety or interest.
The Alternative Service Program is administered locally by the Alternative Service Offices which will be located in 48 major cities in the U.S. There is also a Civilian Review Board associated with each office which is composed of no less than three civilian volunteers. It is their responsibility to review certain appeals of job assignments by the Alternative Service Workers.
A major part of the contingency planning for Alternative Service is to identify agencies and associations which could assist the Selective Service System in placing conscientious objectors in suitable alternative service jobs. Examples of alternative service work are conservation, caring for the very young and the very old, education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
al projects and health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
.
Conscientious objectors who are to be placed in the Alternative Service Program will be asked to describe their skills, aptitudes and interest in order to facilitate their placement. An attempt will be made to match the objector’s skills and aptitudes to an eligible job, while at the same time ensuring that his service makes a meaningful contribution to the national interest. All assignments will be made within 30 days of reclassification to conscientious objector status.
Employers will be asked to describe their job openings and the qualifications of persons required to fill them. The employer may interview conscientious objectors before deciding to hire them, or he may leave the placement decision in the hands of the Alternative Service Office. In all cases, the employer and the Selective Service System must execute an agreement for the employment of conscientious objectors before any work assignments are made. All assignments will be made within 30 days of reclassification to conscientious objector status.