IG: Lack of appeal process is especially problematic at DOJ components that indefinitely suspend employees without pay. Image: Kristi Blokhin/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe inspector general’s office at the Justice Department has called on the department to strengthen protections for whistleblowing employees, saying its policies do not comply with a law allowing employees to appeal the suspension of a security clearance as retaliatory.
Federal law and guidance from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence require agencies to establish a security clearance review process that permits individuals with a retaliation claim to retain their government employment status while the security clearance review is pending, the IG said. ” DOJ policy does not address this requirement, and it also does not place any limitations, or even provide guidance, on how long an employee can be kept indefinitely suspended without pay while the component’s security review process is ongoing,” it said.
“This lack of appeal process is especially problematic at DOJ components that indefinitely suspend employees without pay for the duration of the security investigation and review process, which can sometimes last years,” it said.
A “management alert” said those issues arose as the IG assessed retaliation complaints from employees whose clearances had been suspended and who had been placed on unpaid leave. It cited one case of an FBI employee who has been suspended without pay for more than two years, and said that of employees who had such suspensions lasting more than six months over the last five years, the average time between suspension and a decision to revoke or reinstate the clearance was 18 months.
Said the IG, “The DOJ policy does not require DOJ components to consider any practicable alternatives to indefinite suspension without pay during a security investigation for employees, including those with a reprisal claim, such as identifying duties that do not require a security clearance. In many cases, it is financially unrealistic for an employee suspended without pay who claims retaliation to retain their government employment status” while the security clearance review is pending given the length of time a security clearance inquiry often takes, it said.
“As a practical matter, therefore, the ability of an employee who has been indefinitely suspended without pay to retain their employment status can be rendered meaningless when that suspension lasts for a substantial period of time. Therefore, existing DOJ practice is inconsistent with the intent of the federal statute,” it said.
Neither the FBI nor the other Justice components the IG contacted have agency-specific policies granting the protections missing from the departmental policy, it added.
It said that management agreed with recommendations including to ensure that a process is in place for employees to file a retaliation claim with the IG when a security clearance review or suspension lasts longer than a year.
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