
The MSPB has said it has authority to hear appeals brought under the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act by “dual status” National Guard technicians, overturning a decision to the contrary by one of its hearing officers
Case No. 2024 MSPB 19 involved an assertion by a technician that the Arizona Air National Guard did not give him credit for his veterans’ preference when not selecting him for a higher-level position to which he had applied. The Labor Department found the agency failed to follow the proper procedure to “pass over” him despite that preference but did not order him placed into the higher position. When he then appealed to the MSPB, the hearing officer ruled that the MSPB does not have authority over a state adjutant general, the ultimate authority over dual status technicians, who must hold military positions in order to hold civilian positions.
The merit board, though, noted that in a recent case it ruled that it has authority to order the employing agency of a National Guard technician to take an employment action. In a separate case, it extended that reasoning to say that it has authority to order relief to National Guard employees in appeals of disciplinary actions against them.
That reasoning further applies to VEOA appeals, the decision said, saying that “It would be implausible for Congress to have specifically provided for an administrative remedy under VEOA but for there to be no relief available to certain federal employees, like the appellant, from the Board, which has jurisdiction to adjudicate such claims.”
“We can conceive of no reason” why the law would preclude the MSPB from enforcing orders against state National Guards in VEOA appeals when it does not do so in disciplinary cases, the board wrote in sending the case back for reconsideration.
Senate Eyes Vote to Pay Federal Employees Working Unpaid
Series of Bills Offered to Address Shutdown’s Impact on Employees
Public Starting to Feel Impact of Shutdown, Survey Shows
OPM Details Coverage Changes, Plan Dropouts for FEHB/PSHB in 2026
Does My FEHB/PSHB Plan Stack Up? Here’s How to Tell
2025 TSP Rollercoaster and the G Fund Merry-go-Round
See also,
TSP Takes Step toward Upcoming In-Plan Roth Conversions
5 Steps to Protect Your Federal Job During the Shutdown
Over 30K TSP Accounts Have Crossed the Million Mark in 2025