Letter to the Editor: Lower-Level VA Employees Followed for Unattainable Standards

I read your article about firing VA Secretary Shulkin.  

I wanted to point out the monthly Adverse Action reports on the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection website.  Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection

Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection By Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs

   

In one of Mr. Shulkin's recent talks, he mentions how VA employees are being held accountable.  However, he is not being held totally accountable for his own misconduct.  Someone in my position would be fired for the same misconduct he is guilty of.    

The VA Accountability Act was originally created because of the misconduct of two top VA officials, Diana Rubens and Kim Graves.    VA management is now using the same act to FIRE droves of lower-level employees in order to privatize.   Many of these employees are veterans or sadly, disabled veterans.   If you review these reports, very few managers are noted because they circle their wagons to protect themselves.   Many managers have no prior managerial experience or no military service.   Most of my co-workers on my level are veterans.  I would guess close than two-thirds of VA employees are veterans.

Fire David Shulkin NOW!

They are using the Accountability Act as a way to get rid of many of us lower-level employees based on performance standards that are unattainable and unfair.  Many of our new employees are leaving because the work is too much for them to handle.  If I could, I would leave but I'm a single mom with two young kids.  VA managers do not care about us.  They only care about watching their own backs.  They would rather blame a lower-level employee than take the heat for their own mismanagement.

 

Many of my co-workers are dedicated to help our nation's veterans.   Management blames the underdogs any type of backlog. What the public does not know is how many of us are veterans helping veterans or we are employees related to veterans helping other veterans.    In the process of trying to help, we subjected to workload procedures that change daily,   We are held to a very high quality standard. For example, mine is 96%.  Our quality is based on a review of only 5 cases per month.  If I have 1 error, then my quality will be 80%.  Our quality is measured cumulatively from October 2017 to September 2018.  If our quality is down, we have 2 pay periods to improve.  Based on the "act", they can fire us if we don't meet the standard in those 2 pay periods.  We are given 1 chance to improve in a Fiscal Year.  Only 1.

Our work systems and programs are constantly down because our servers can't handle the data from scanning countless records and  claim documents.  Also, due to our programs are being constantly updated due to procedural changes.

ADVERSE ACTIONS

Lower level employees are being fired for minor infractions or discipline or conduct issues discovered more than a year after it happened. 

If you look at the monthly reports from the above website, you will see housekeepers are being fired a half dozen at a time. This leaves the VAMC no choice to hire private contractors to do the work ASAP until they can hire more housekeepers if that actually happens.

Take a look at how very few managers ares being terminated.

I have to go or I will get on in trouble for being over my break.  

If this something significant to write about, please share.  

Your help is appreciated.

--Lady T

Letter to the Editor: Another Scandal Under Shulkin

Scandal at VA in Media

https://m.cityweekly.net/utah/triggered/Content?oid=5424623

Even after an investigation conducted by VA Central Office (Office of Accountability Review) was done, Veterans disability benefits are still being unlawfully denied at Salt Lake City VA. Please the 2 BVA remands I sent you for proof of that. 

The Central Office investigation unsubstantiated the allegation that Bennion (then Chief of Administrative medicine- compensation/pension) was making his subordinates unlawfully deny Veterans' benefits to cover it up. 

Wrongdoers in management such Bennion/Gribbin/ Stovall are being protected promoted and rewarded. 

Although Bennion was technically demoted to become Director of Employee Health (tier 2 salary), Stovall gave him a tier exception so that he could keep his previous higher tier 3 salary. He is still being allowed to unlawfully deny Veterans' disability claims despite substantiated anti-Veteran bias during investigation. 

Gribbin appears to be unscathed as she continues to remain the Chief of Staff.

Stovall was promoted from Acting Director to Director though Andrew Kalinen's testimony in investigation shows that she was aware of the problems with Bennion all along but she only protected Bennion/Gribbin and retaliated with disciplinary actions against whistleblowers (upheld admonishments against both Kulkarni's despite no faults found in their work), and asked both the Kulkarnis to resign in EEO settlement counteroffers. 

When we asked the Central Office for copy of the Investigation report, they suppressed it from us. In collusion with Central Office, in an unsolicited email to us Stovall covered up the 2 substantiated findings of mismanagement of compensation and pension by Bennion and Gribbin. The report was later made available to us when the House Committee of Veterans affairs got involved. 

On the other hand, whistle-blowers like us (Kulkarnis) are being forced out and made to suffer. Stovall upheld admonishment against us though no faults were found in our work. She asked both of us to resign in EEO settlement counter-offer. She also demoted us from higher pay table 2 to lower pay table 1 without justification. 

On the other hand, VA secretary Shulkin is wasting taxpayer money on himself , his wife, and his crony VA bosses, while Veterans' benefits are being unlawfully denied under his watch. 

Utah has the 2nd highest Veteran suicide rate, after Montana. Unlawful denial of their benefits surely does not help decrease Veteran suicide. How many Disabled Veterans could receive food clothing and shelter with the tax payer money wasted on Shulkin's recreation and tier 3 exception given to the mismanager Bennion by his accomplice Stovall?

Recently Shulkin wanted to take unemployment benefits away from older Veterans. Media is the only way to hold these misbehaving VA bosses accountable!!! Will you help our Veterans get what they have earned and deserve.....

S. and A. K. (Writers asked for anonymity, since they have multiple retaliation efforts)