The VA has 188 employees working full-time on union duties, according to two Republican senators who are questioning that practice at a time when the agency is struggling with a backlog of veterans’ claims and recently ordered overtime to help deal with the workload.
The letter from two members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and Rob Portman of Ohio, said that "During this time of sequestration and tight budgets, it is important to know how so many employees can be spared to serve the interest of outside groups, instead of carrying out jobs that are essential to the health, safety and transition of our nation’s veterans."
It said VA has told them that at least 85 VA nurses, "some with six-figure salaries" are in 100 percent official time status, while the agency has hundreds of unfilled nursing positions.
Also on 100 percent official time are six police officers; two security assistants; four addiction specialists; nine pharmacists and pharmacists technicians; one orthotist/prosthetist; one blindness rehabilitation specialist; one audiologist; five social workers; 11 health technicians; 12 medical support assistants; 10 medical instrument technicians; two psychologists; seven therapists; three dental lab technicians/dental lab assistants; as well as other health specialists and health support staff.
Official time has long been a controversial topic, with proposals to stop the practice pending in Congress although not progressing beyond the hearing stage. The House counterpart committee recently passed a bill requiring detailed reports on the practice, including counts of the number of employees at each agency who spend all their time on union duties.