|
Federal civil service abuses bigger than just the VA
[Daily Torch] When news broke of employees at the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) putting the lives of veterans at risk with waiting lists to die, the country was outraged. When it became clear that these employees were not being terminated for their failures and mismanagement, Florida Senator Marco Rubio led bipartisan legislation that protected whistleblowers and provided management the authority to remove bad employees. Unfortunately, the VA is not the only department allowing bad employees to stay on the job despite grotesque violations of employee guidelines and even the law. Here we highlight some of the worst stories of civil service abuse in recent years and how they have been allowed to occur.DEPARTMENT OF VETERAN AFFAIRS Some stories of abuse are obvious, like the Washington Times of April 2016 which reported on two senior VA officials who were responsible for the death of nearly 300 veterans on waiting lists, yet took over two years to even be proposed to be terminated. But as Senator Rubio argued in a May 2017 press release, this large-scale abuse flourished because of a culture of mismanagement. Rubio explained, "To list just a few examples, one VA employee was arrested and spent time in jail for armed robbery. Another employee was caught watching pornography on the job. In my home state of Florida, there have been several instances of prescription drugs being diverted, gone missing from VA facilities... In all of these cases, the employees involved were ultimately allowed to keep their jobs, or resign with their benefits intact... It is clear that under existing civil service rules and pressure from unions and others, VA leaders have not been able to hold individuals accountable for their actions. Over and over again, we’ve seen the VA attempt to take disciplinary action against an employee, only to see the appeals process prove so complex, lengthy and lenient that real accountability was virtually impossible to achieve." To combat this problem, the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act reduced the burden of proof required for removal under Title 5 of the Civil Service Reform Act Chapter 75 from a preponderance of evidence standard to substantial evidence for removal and expedited the removal process. As a result, firings for cause from the VA has increased by 26 percent since the bill’s passage, according to data retrieved from the Office of Personnel Management’s FedScope. So far, the law has improved employee accountability within the VA, but other departments need the same accountability standards. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY (EPA) The EPA has been in need of employee accountability reforms for years. A March 2018 Heritage Foundation panel discussion revealed several ridiculous stories of abuse which have gone nearly completely unaddressed. In one case a GS-12 Public Affairs Specialist from Atlanta stole a video camera from her work and attempted to pawn the item. After being arrested and convicted of a felony, the employee was placed on a 30-day suspension and returned to her office. Similarly, another EPA employee was arrested for growing marijuana plants in her home and received seven months of paid leave for her time absent the office. Posted by: Besoeker 2018-09-03 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=522176 |