Coalition of Agencies Push for Cyber Workforce Paradigm Shift
The drumbeat of agencies, working groups, and commissions calling for heightened national attention to the cybersecurity workforce ratcheted up again last week, with a new report from the interagency Federal Cyber Workforce Management and Coordinating Working Group advocating for “strategic changes” to the nation’s approach to developing a cyber workforce.
Nominations Update: Over 400 Positions Filled, Several Hundred to Go
President Biden has to fill roughly 4,000 politically appointed positions in the executive branch and independent agencies. Of these, roughly 1,200 require Senate confirmation.
FMLA & OWCP Claims Aren't Protected Activity, MSPB Rules
A Department of Veterans Affairs employee was terminated for threatening agency employees after HR called the hospital to confirm the employee’s claim that he had not been released.
MSPB Finds Veterans Employment Violations Require Reconstructed Selection Process
The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) ruled that an agency’s mere reannouncement of the original vacancy doesn’t constitute a proper reconstruction under veterans’ preference laws.
VHA Staffing Shortages Worsen After Years of Improvement
In a recent report, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) found Veterans Health Administration (VHA) personnel shortages after years of improvement.
VA Accountability Office, Whistleblower Protection May See Restructuring
The House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC) has discussed a proposed restructure to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP).
Proposed Legislation to Ensure Relief for All Toxic-Exposed Veterans
A year-long, bipartisan initiative is set to deliver health care and benefits under the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to all toxic-exposed veterans.
VA Reconsiders Workforce Benefits to Address Health Care Staffing Challenges
In a meeting with stakeholders and local staff, Secretary Denis McDonough affirmed burnout and low salaries are causing poor employee retention at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
Federal Circuit Rules VA Must Use Higher Evidence Standard, Apply Douglas Factors
The Federal Circuit issued two complementary opinions applying its 2021 precedent to disciplinary actions taken by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
House Lawmakers Encourage VA to Expand Recruiting Capabilities, Urge Lead on Medical Innovation
House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA) and Ranking Member Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL) proposed legislation that aims to improve the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ability to produce medical advancements.
As Federal Agencies Disclose Vaccine Enforcement Actions, the Disciplinary Process Begins
As the vaccine mandate deadline looms for federal employees, agencies are beginning to plan and initiate their enforcement plans. On October 18, 2021, the Department of Defense (DOD) announced in a memo “progressive enforcement actions” regarding vaccine mandates for civilian employees, contractors, and visitors.
President Biden Mandates COVID-19 Vaccination for Federal Employees
On September 9, 2021, President Biden issued an “Executive Order on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees,” an executive order “requir[ing] COVID-19 vaccination for all Federal employees, subject to such exceptions as required by law.”
Federal Circuit Disputes VA’s Interpretation of 2017 “Accountability” Law
In two opinions issued on August 12, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit found that the Department of Veterans Affairs erroneously interpreted the provisions of the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 when disciplining its employees. The purpose of the 2017 law, codified at 38 U.S.C. § 714, was to provide for expedited discipline of VA employees, strip MSPB of its authority to mitigate the VA’s chosen penalty, and to impose a less rigorous burden of proof on the agency at the appellate level than a traditional MSPB appeal.
Federal Circuit: For the Third Time, No Retroactive VA “Accountability”
In 2017, Congress enacted the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 (“the Act”), which provided “a singular expedited procedure for all VA employees to respond and appeal to proposed removals, demotions, and suspensions for performance or misconduct,” and according to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, “provides less rigorous standards and expedited procedures” to discipline, and even terminate, employees.
Federal Circuit: No Waiver of Sayers Arguments in VA Removal Case
A VA police officer was removed by the Department of Veterans Affairs under the 2017 “accountability” law 38 U.S.C. § 714 that limited review of VA’s actions against general schedule employees. The removal was based on conduct occurring prior to the enactment of the law. The employee appealed to the MSPB, and the MSPB affirmed the removal. On December 7, 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit vacated the MSPB’s decision, and remanded the case to the MSPB with instructions to remand the case further back to the agency.
MSPB Must Determine Jurisdiction Over IRA Claims On Face Of Complainant’s Allegations
The MSPB cannot consider an agency’s interpretation or presentation of evidence to decide whether an individual-right-of-action presents a non-frivolous allegation of whistleblower reprisal, the Federal Circuit clarified in a recent holding.
VA Pilots New Tool to Better Understand COVID Mortality Rates
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is piloting a new artificial intelligence tool that can predict a COVID-19 patient’s prognosis and recommend next steps. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals have seen an influx of patients, and doctors and nurses often have to make quick, life-saving decisions in order to help their patients.
VA Employee Asks Eleventh Circuit To Ease EEO Reprisal Legal Standard For Federal Employees
FEDmanager recently reported the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Babb v. Wilkie. In Babb, the Supreme Court reversed a panel of U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and held the prohibition against age discrimination in the federal workplace was broader than that applied in the private sector. We update you now that plaintiff Noris Babb is requesting the full Eleventh Circuit to apply the Supreme Court’s holding to lower the bar to establish EEO reprisal claims in the federal workplace.