The VA, which has come under frequent criticism from Congress and veterans’ groups for allegedly being too lenient on misbehaving employees, has told Capitol Hill that it nevertheless must observe due process protections.
A VA report to Congress on disciplinary actions it has taken since mid-2014 related to patient scheduling, record manipulation, appointment delays or patient deaths has been made public, showing that the department has taken a range of actions ranging from admonishments to removal. The document does not name employees or facilities but rather characterizes the position and the action proposed and taken.
As is common in federal employee disciplinary matters, the final action in many cases was less than the proposed action—in some cases revoked.
“When taking any adverse action, VA must ensure that the action is legally supportable and that the subject employee is afforded the appropriate procedures under the law, including the right to review and respond to the evidence VA has relied upon to take the action,” the document says. “If a proposed personnel action is made public, the employee’s justifiable perception is that the agency has already made its final decision without regard to the employee’s due process rights. This may jeopardize the final outcome of the proposed action.”
It added that the department’s IG has many investigations ongoing into manipulation of scheduling data and that for the meantime management “cannot commence an administrative investigation or otherwise compile evidence to support an adverse employment action.”
