Five Employees in the Wrong Place at the Wrong Time

Did you know that if you are directly accused of wrongdoing, particularly in an OIG or internal management investigation into allegations of wrongdoing, that you will not be assigned an agency attorney? Did you know that even if you are, the attorney’s job is to represent the agency – not you – and that this can have an adverse effect on your future? Managers can and do become embroiled in the complexities of the federal legal investigative process and often become the targets in political agendas. Are you emotionally, financially and legally prepared to defend yourself if you are the next target? We deal with managers, daily, who had no idea the toll this job could take; they had no idea the price one’s family could pay when one is accused of wrongdoing.

Your exposure as a federal manager is often dependent upon special interests, lobbying agendas, and budgeting and fiscal matters. The extent of which varies based on agency mission and budget, the current power structure, the amount or manner of media coverage associated with the latest news story or political agenda, and/or the effects this has on the contentment and performance of your employees – not the performance of your duties or the integrity with which you perform your duties. In other words, sometimes, through no fault of your own, bad things happen to good federal mangers. Often, it is just being in the wrong place at the wrong time – and these employees, having worked for the FAA, IRS, GSA, and USFS can attest to just that:

“Employees make false accusations for many reasons that often take months or years to investigate and adjudicate. It is a lonely journey to resolution even if all the allegations are unfounded.” Tom Accardi

“I spent a wonderful 27 years with the IRS but never could have imagined the shocking and unexpected situation I experienced toward the end of my career. It doesn’t matter how well you are liked or how well you do your job.” Lynda Wadler

“It no longer mattered whether I was considered to be taking actions "well within my job duties", but appeared they were looking to provide Congress with their token wrongdoer or maybe just for something else. I was never informed of what I was being investigated for or accused of.” Catherine Lunderville,

“I only participated in one early planning session, did not attend the conference and had no responsibility for or control over those who made the decisions or handled the contracting and expenditures. I, along with the other leaders from the participating regions, was put on administrative leave immediately after the IG report became public.” Paul Prouty

“My opinion was that the focus was to assess blame and hold employees accountable in order to protect the perceived integrity and reputation of the organization and its upper management, as well as to appease outside stakeholders such as the media and Congress.” Rick Hafenfeld

Please don’t wait until it is too late. Call the association that represents your interests, the Federal Managers Association, the National Council of Social Security Management Association, the Professional Managers Association, or the Senior Executives Association and ask them why they recommend their members to get FEDS Protection. There is a reason your Agency reimburses all managers and supervisors up to half the cost of professional liability insurance.

The President of FEDS Protection is a former federal attorney. He will tell you, that at the very least, no one should manage without coverage in place for an allegation of harassment, discrimination, wrongful termination, retaliation, or whistleblower reprisal. You can have ten claims over the course of a career and can come out okay, or you could have one that could end a career and relationships. This is the very reason he includes coverage – at no additional cost – for these types of claims, often referred to as Employment Practices claims. First, he was one of you. Then, he defended managers like you in private practice. Now, he just does what he can to ensure that you have the very best legal representation for that dark day when you may need it.

You must have FEDS Protection in place prior to an incident that leads to an allegation or a claim or COVERAGE WILL NOT APPLY! Enrollment takes less than 5 minutes – the Agency pays half the cost for out of pocket costs of only $145 per year - and payroll deduction is available - so, no excuses. Visit www.fedsprotection.com or call 866.955.FEDS Monday – Friday 8:30 am – 6:00pm ET to enroll over the phone.