The competitive service is a part of the United States federal government civil service. Applicants for jobs in the competitive civil service must compete with other applicants in open competition under the merit system administered by the Office of Personnel Management, unlike applicants in the excepted service and Senior Executive Service. There are several hiring authorities for the competitive service, including "traditional" competitive examining, as well as expedited procedures such as Direct Hire Authority and the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act. Notably, the procedures for firing and demoting a member of the competitive service are considerable in order to protect the employment rights of the member, yet to provide the employer (the US government) a fair and incremental method to manage employees. A written notice of thirty days, a statement of reasons for dismissal, and a right to a hearing must be granted. In 2015, 69.9% of the federal workforce was in the competitive service. Legislative basis According to U.S. Code Title 5 §2102, The "competitive service" consists of: all civil service positions in the executive branch, except— positions which are specifically excepted from the competitive service by or under statute; positions to which appointments are made by nomination for confirmation by the United States Senate, unless the Senate otherwise directs; and positions in the Senior Executive Service. Hiring authorities A hiring authority is the law, executive order, or regulation that allows an agency to hire a person into the federal civil service. Competitive Examining is the "traditional" competitive hiring authority, but it is not the only one. Direct Hire Authority allows an expedited process for agencies to fill certain positions that have been deemed to have a severe candidate shortage or a critical hiring need. The Veterans Employment Opportunities Act allows eligible veterans to apply for certain positions. There are also hiring authorities for reappointments of both permanent and temporary positions. Title 21 appointments were created by the 21st Century Cures Act in 2016 for scientific, technical, or professional positions in the Food and Drug Administration that support the development, review, and regulation of medical products. The following chart shows the number of hires for each of the top-used competitive service hiring authorities in fiscal year 2014: Competitive examining Competitive examining is the "traditional" method for making appointments to competitive service positions. It requires adherence to the full range of procedures and protections listed in Title 5 of the United