(2) the individual retired or died during the period beginning on the effective date of the increase and ending on the date of issuance of the order granting the increase, and only for services performed during that period.

For the purpose of this subsection, service in the armed forces includes the period provided by statute for the mandatory restoration of the individual to a position in or under the Government of the United States or the government of the District of Columbia after he is relieved from training and service in the armed forces or discharged from hospitalization following that training and service. [§ 5345. Repealed. Pub. L. 95-454, title VIII, § 801(a)(2), Oct. 13, 1978, 92 Stat. 1221.]

§ 5346. Job grading system

(a) The Office of Personnel Management, after consulting with the agencies and with employee organizations, shall establish and maintain a job grading system for positions to which this subchapter applies. In carrying out this subsection, the Office shall

(1) establish the basic occupational alinement and grade structure or structures for the job grading system;

(2) establish and define individual occupations and the boundaries of each occupation;

(3) establish job titles within occupations;

(4) develop and publish job grading standards; and

(5) provide a method to assure consistency in the applica

tion of job standards.

(b) The Office, from time to time, shall review such numbers of positions in each agency as will enable the Office to determine whether the agency is placing positions in occupations and grades in conformance with or consistently with published job standards. When the Office finds that a position is not placed in its proper occupation and grade in conformance with published standards or that a position for which there is no published standard is not placed in the occupation and grade consistently with published standards, it shall, after consultation with appropriate officials of the agency concerned, place the position in its appropriate occupation and grade and shall certify this action to the agency. The agency shall act in accordance with the certificate, and the certificate is binding on all administrative, certifying, payroll, disbursing, and accounting officials.

(c) On application, made in accordance with regulations prescribed by the Office, by a prevailing rate employee for the review of the action of an employing agency in placing his position in an occupation and grade for pay purposes, the Office shall

(1) ascertain currently the facts as to the duties, responsibilities, and qualification requirements of the position;

(2) decide whether the position has been placed in the proper occupation and grade; and

(3) approve, disapprove, or modify, in accordance with its decision, the action of the employing agency in placing the position in an occupation and grade.

The Office shall certify to the agency concerned its action under paragraph (3) of this subsection. The agency shall act in accordance

with the certificate, and the certificate is binding on all administrative, certifying, payroll, disbursing, and accounting officials.

§ 5347. Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee

(a) There is established a Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee composed of

(1) the Chairman, who shall not hold any other office or position in the Government of the United States or the government of the District of Columbia, and who shall be appointed by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management for a 4year term;

(2) one member from the Office of the Secretary of Defense, designated by the Secretary of Defense;

(3) two members from the military departments, designated by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management;

(4) one member, designated by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management from time to time from an agency (other than the Department of Defense, a military department, and the Office of Personnel Management);

(5) an employee of the Office of Personnel Management, designated by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management; and

(6) five members, designated by the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, from among the employee organizations representing, under exclusive recognition of the Government of the United States, the largest numbers of prevailing rate employees.

(b) In designating members from among employee organizations under subsection (a)(6) of this section, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall designate, as nearly as practicable, a number of members from a particular employee organization in the same proportion to the total number of employee representatives appointed to the Committee under subsection (a)(6) of this section as the number of prevailing rate employees represented by such organization is to the total number of prevailing rate employees. However, there shall not be more than two members from any one employee organization nor more than four members from a single council, federation, alliance, association, or affiliation of employee organizations.

(c) Every 2 years the Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall review employee organization representation to determine adequate or proportional representation under the guidelines of subsection (b) of this section.

(d) The members from the employee organizations serve at the pleasure of the Director of the Office of Personnel Management.

(e) The Committee shall study the prevailing rate system and other matters pertinent to the establishment of prevailing rates under this subchapter and, from time to time, advise the Office of Personnel Management thereon. Conclusions and recommendations of the Committee shall be formulated by majority vote. The Chairman of the Committee may vote only to break a tie vote of the Committee.

(f) The Committee shall meet at the call of the Chairman. However, a special meeting shall be called by the Chairman if 5

members make a written request to the Chairman to call a special meeting to consider matters within the purview of the Committee.

(g)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), members of the Committee described in paragraphs (2)-(5) of subsection (a) of this section serve without additional pay. Members who represent employee organizations are not entitled to pay from the Government of the United States for services rendered to the Committee.

(2) The position of Chairman shall be considered to be a Senior Executive Service position within the meaning of section 3132(a), and shall be subject to all provisions of this title relating to Senior Executive Service positions, including section 5383.

(h) The Office of Personnel Management shall provide such clerical and professional personnel as the Chairman of the Committee considers appropriate and necessary to carry out its functions under this subchapter. Such personnel shall be responsible to the Chairman of the Committee.

§ 5348. Crews of vessels

(a) Except as provided by subsection (b) of this section, the pay of officers and members of crews of vessels excepted from chapter 51 of this title by section 5102(c)(8) of this title shall be fixed and adjusted from time to time as nearly as is consistent with the public interest in accordance with prevailing rates and practices in the maritime industry.

(b) Vessel employees in an area where inadequate maritime industry practice exists and vessel employees of the Corps of Engineers shall have their pay fixed and adjusted under the provisions of this subchapter other than this section, as appropriate.

§ 5349. Prevailing rate employees; legislative, judicial, Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and government of the District of Columbia

(a) The pay of employees, described under section 5102(c)(7) of this title, the Library of Congress, the Botanic Garden, the Government Printing Office, the General Accounting Office, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and the government of the District of Columbia, shall be fixed and adjusted from time to time as nearly as is consistent with the public interest in accordance with prevailing rates and in accordance with such provisions of this subchapter, including the provisions of section 5344, relating to retroactive pay, and subchapter VI of this chapter, relating to grade and pay retention, as the pay-fixing authority of each such agency may determine. Subject to section 213(f) of title 29, the rates may not be less than the appropriate rates provided for by section 206(a)(1) of title 29. If the pay-fixing authority concerned determines that the provisions of subchapter VI of this chapter should apply to any employee under his jurisdiction, then the employee concerned shall be deemed to have satisfied the requirements of section 5361(1) of this title if the tenure of his appointment is substantially equivalent to the tenure of any appointment referred to in such paragraph.

(b) Subsection (a) of this section does not modify or otherwise affect section 5102(d) of this title, section 305 of title 44, and section 5141 of title 31.

SUBCHAPTER V-STUDENT-EMPLOYEES

§ 5351. Definitions

For the purpose of this subchapter—

(1) "agency" means an Executive agency, a military department, and the government of the District of Columbia; and (2) "student-employee" means

(A) a student nurse, medical or dental intern, residentin-training, student dietitian, student physical therapist, and student occupational therapist, assigned or attached to a hospital, clinic, or medical or dental laboratory operated by an agency; and

(B) any other student-employee, assigned or attached primarily for training purposes to a hospital, clinic, or medical or dental laboratory operated by an agency, who is designated by the head of the agency with the approval of the Office of Personnel Management.

§ 5352. Stipends

The head of each agency, and the District of Columbia Council with respect to the government of the District of Columbia, shall fix the stipends of its student-employees. The stipend may not exceed the applicable maximum prescribed by the Office of Personnel Management.

§ 5353. Quarters, subsistence, and laundry

An agency may provide living quarters, subsistence, and laundering to student-employees while at the hospitals, clinics, or laboratories. The reasonable value of the accommodations, when furnished, shall be deducted from the stipend of the student-employee. The head of the agency concerned, and the District of Columbia Council with respect to the government of the District of Columbia, shall fix the reasonable value of the accommodations at an amount not less than the lowest deduction applicable to regular employees at the same hospital, clinic, or laboratory for similar accommodations.

§ 5354. Effect of detail or affiliation; travel expenses

(a) Status as a student-employee is not terminated by a temporary detail to, or affiliation with another Government or nonGovernment institution to procure necessary supplementary training or experience pursuant to an order of the head of the agency. A student-employee may receive his stipend and other perquisites provided under this subchapter from the hospital, clinic, or laboratory to which he is assigned or attached for not more than 60 days of a detail or affiliation for each training year, as defined by the head of the agency.

(b) When the detail or affiliation under subsection (a) of this section is to or with another Federal institution, the student-employee is entitled to necessary expenses of travel to and from the institution in accordance with subchapter I of chapter 57 of this title.

§ 5355. Effect on other statutes

This subchapter does not limit the authority conferred on the Secretary of Veterans Affairs by chapter 73 of title 38.

§ 5356. Appropriations

Funds appropriated to an agency for expenses of its hospitals, clinics, and laboratories to which student-employees are assigned or attached are available to carry out the provisions of this subchapter.