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Whistleblower retaliation allegations growing at VA, new report says

June 25, 2023

As a congressional committee continues to probe allegations of hostile working conditions at VA Loma Linda, a new federal report highlights the proliferation of whistleblower retaliation complaints within the Department of Veterans Affairs.

From 2018 to 2022, 69% of the VA’s Prohibited Personnel Practices cases assigned to a federal watchdog agency for investigation involved whistleblower retaliation allegations, the Government Accountability Office said in a May report.

PPPs are banned employment-related activities that include discrimination, retaliation and improper hiring. The number of PPP cases from VA employees that include whistleblower allegations has risen over the past five years, according to the GAO report.

The report found that over the four-year period, the independent Office of Special Counsel took an average of about 190 days to investigate VA cases with whistleblower retaliation allegations.

During that same period, only about 5% of the VA’s PPP cases with whistleblower retaliation allegations were closed in favor of the whistleblower. A majority of whistleblower retaliation claims from VA employees are closed due to insufficient evidence, the report says.

Retaliation ‘unacceptable’

Terrence Hayes, a spokesperson for Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough, said in a statement that “any retaliation for whistleblowers is unacceptable.”

“At VA, our top priority is delivering world-class care and benefits to the veterans we serve — and that means building a culture where every employee feels empowered and unafraid to raise concerns without fear of reprisal,” Hayes said.

The VA, he said, continues “to place a heavy focus on whistleblower rights and protections training for managers, supervisors, and employees — including communicating the remedies for workers who believe they have experienced retaliation.”

“We still have work to do, and we will not rest until we ensure that every whistleblower is respected, protected, and empowered at VA, every time,” he added.

VA Loma Linda whistleblowers

However, Hayes’ promise rings hollow for some VA Loma Linda whistleblowers dismayed that grounds department supervisor Martin Robles was promoted in February 2021, about a month after a federal investigation recommended that he be fired for intimidating, bullying and threatening behavior.

“Whistleblowers fear reporting because they see how others are retaliated against,” said a discouraged VA Loma Linda employee, who asked not to be identified because of potential retribution. “It’s almost like doing the right thing is a crime in itself. The fear of knowing if one reports the problem and risking losing your job and not being able to provide for your family is a reason everyone stays quiet.”

Many VA Loma Linda employees feel powerless to file formal complaints against their bosses for retaliation, another whistleblower said.

“The VA wants to maintain its authority and control over people when anything like this happens,” said the whistleblower. “They feel that what’s the use, and that it’s not going to do anything anyway.”

The Southern California News Group has been contacted by more than a dozen more VA Loma Linda whistleblowers. However, most are fearful to discuss allegations publicly, believing it may cost them their jobs.

Activist: VA culture protects institution

Darin Selnick, a senior adviser to New Mexico-based Concerned Veterans for America, says the VA has long fostered a culture in which bad managers are protected and whistleblowers are marginalized and harassed.

“Bad VA employees don’t get fired, they get shuffled off (to other assignments),” said Selnick, who served as a senior adviser in 2018 and 2019 to then-VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. “The VA has its own culture that says, ‘we are in charge’ and everyone else is transitory. It is all about the institution, not protecting veterans.”

Last week, U.S. Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Hesperia, met with VA Loma Linda’s interim director, Bryan Arnette, and other officials to discuss new allegations of retaliation, harassment and hostile working conditions amid a widening investigation by the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

Poor-performing employees

Under the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act signed into law in 2017, the VA was given expanded authority to fire employees at all levels, shorten the removal process, and ensure terminated workers are not kept on the agency’s payroll while appealing their cases.

The legislation also made it easier for the VA to remove poor-performing senior executives and replace them with qualified candidates and established the VA’s Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection.

In April, the VA stopped using the Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, following an Office of Inspector General report that said the legislation has “floundered.”

The VA has a long history of whistleblower retaliation, toxicity and scandal, which represents a “colossal failure of leadership,” said Joe Spielberger, policy counsel for Project On Government Oversight, a Washington, D.C., watchdog organization.

“Choosing to place the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection within the VA only ensured a lack of independence from agency leadership and a conflict of interest in addressing these issues meaningfully,” Spielberger said.

New legislation

On Friday, June 23, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chair Mike Bost, R-Illinois, and a bipartisan group of lawmakers introduced the Restore Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Accountability Act, which is aimed at strengthening the VA’s authority to quickly and fairly discipline bad employees and hold them accountable.

Specifically, the bill would:

Ensure VA decisions supported by substantial evidence are upheld on appeal.
Negate the requirement for a performance improvement plan prior to disciplinary action.
Unlock expedited removal, demotion or suspension authority for use with all categories of VA employees.
Align the disciplinary authority for unsatisfactory VA managers and supervisors with the process currently in place for members of the Senior Executive Service.

“In order to best serve veterans, the VA Secretary must have the authority to quickly and fairly remove, demote or suspend bad employees who are undermining the quality of services that our veterans have earned,” Bost said in a statement. “We’ve heard from too many whistleblowers that bad VA employees are impacting care and hurting employee morale.”

Orange County Register

News Details

Whistleblower retaliation allegations growing at VA, new report says

Retaliation ‘unacceptable’

VA Loma Linda whistleblowers

Activist: VA culture protects institution

Poor-performing employees

New legislation

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