Two park rangers at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado have received full corrective action after being retaliated against for filing a complaint with the Interior Department’s inspector general, the Office of Special Counsel has announced.
OSC investigated the matter, and found that the rangers – a married couple at Mesa Verde National Park – had alleged that the then-park superintendent used National Park Service funds to travel excessively to conferences and seminars, in support of a private company.
According to OSC, the rangers filed Freedom of Information Act requests for information on the matter and also filed a complaint with the IG, which concluded that the superintendent’s actions “created the appearance of a conflict of interest.”
In the year following the complaint, the couple received a tentative offer for park ranger positions but the offer was later rescinded. OSC concluded that Mesa Verde management blocked the hire partly because of perceived whistleblowing on the part of the couple.
OSC said that following its investigation the National Park Service offered the couple seasonal work at another national park of their choosing and to reimburse them for expenses incurred in anticipation of the rescinded rehiring.