Federal Grievances101 How to make your point in the Federal system

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Federal Grievances101How to make your point in
the Federal system

• Mike Boucher, RN
• National VA Council President (2001-2005)

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Federal Grievances 101

• Objectives
• Define the following terms
• Grievance
• Prohibited Personnel Practice
• Unfair Labor Practice
• EEO Complaint
• Whistleblower Retaliation
• Given a scenario, select the proper method to
  deal with the grievance to provide the grievant
  with the best remedy

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Federal Grievances 101

• Part 1
• Definitions

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Federal Grievances 101

• Grievance - Defined
• Definition 1
• Any complaint by an employee related to
  management behavior or conditions of employment
• Definition 2
• A violation of one or more provisions of a
  labor-management contract
• Unless otherwise stated, this presentation uses
  Definition 1

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Federal Grievances 101
Who Can Prosecute or Mediate Grievances?
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Federal Grievances 101
Common Causes of Grievances
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Federal Grievances 101

• Prohibited Personnel Practices Defined
• Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPP) are defined
  at 5 USC 2302(b)
• Twelve specific types of PPPs
• One of the twelve is violation of a Merit Systems
  principle (found in 5 USC 2301)
• One of the twelve is Whistleblower Retaliation
  when the retaliation takes the form of
• Taking, or failing to take, a personnel action
• A threat to take, or fail to take, a personnel
  action

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Federal Grievances 101

• Unfair Labor Practice Defined
• Committing of any of the specific practices cited
  in 5 USC 7116
• Violating any provision of the Federal Sector
  Labor Management Relations Statute (FSLMRS or 5
  USC Chapter 71)

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Federal Grievances 101
Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) - Defined
Discrimination based on any of the following

• Race or Color
• Religion
• Sex / Gender

• National Origin
• Age (over 40)
• Disability

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Federal Grievances 101

• Whistleblower Retaliation Defined
• Several different definitions in use
• Simply stated, a whistleblower protection exists
  whenever an employee reports any situation which
  the employee reasonably believes is a violation
  of law, regulation or policy, or exercises a
  protected right.
• Jurisdiction will depend on what form the
  retaliation took, or what the nature of the
  protected disclosure was.

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Federal Grievances 101

• Part 2
• Jurisdiction

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Federal Grievances 101
Grievance Procedures

• Contract Violations
• Grievances (using Definition 2)
• Union or VA Process?
• Limitations of the VA Grievance Process
• Limitations of the unions negotiated Grievance
  Process
• Key Question Will a grievance get me what I
  want?

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Federal Grievances 101
US Office of Special Counsel (OSC)

• Jurisdiction
• Merit Principles
• Prohibited Personnel Practices (PPP)
• Whistleblower Retaliation
• Hatch Act Violations
• Veterans Preference Violations
• Certain types of discrimination

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Federal Grievances 101

• Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
• VA Office of Resolution Management (ORM)
• Jurisdiction
• Civil Rights Violations
• EXCEPTIONS Marital Status, Sexual Orientation or
  Political Affiliation

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Federal Grievances 101

• Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB )
• Jurisdiction
• Enforcing Merit Principles
• Ruling on Prohibited Personnel Practices
• Appeals of Personnel Actions (not through OSC)

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Federal Grievances 101

• VA Office of Inspector General
• Jurisdiction
• Complaints involving fraud, waste, abuse
• Complaints involving legal or risk/liability
  issues
• Criminal complaints within the VA

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Federal Grievances 101

• Jurisdiction
• Unfair Labor Practices (ULP)
• Negotiability Appeals
• Clarification Petitions
• Appropriate Units
• Compelling Need

• Impasses
• Federal Service Impasses Panel
• 7422No Jurisdiction

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Federal Grievances 101

• VA under existing Appeals Processes and the VA
  Grievance Process
• Undersecretary for Health (USH)
• Jurisdiction
• 7422 Determinations
• Disciplinary Appeals Boards (DAB)
• Proficiency Appeals

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Federal Grievances 101

• Federal Courts
• Jurisdiction
• Violations of specific laws
• Appeals of USH 7422 determinations
• Pretty much everything that doesnt fit somewhere
  else

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Federal Grievances 101

• Jurisdiction
• Mediation for
• Negotiation Impasses
• Contract Grievance Impasses
• Federal Rulemaking
• Consultation Training in
• Conflict Resolution including ADR
• General labor-management relations
• Partnerships

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Federal Grievances 101

• Part 3
• Deciding on a Means to Resolve

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Federal Grievances 101

• So many resources, so little time!!!
• How do you select the best method to resolve a
  grievance?
• Begin with the end in mind!
• What do you want as a remedy?
• Which process will get you where you want to be?

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Federal Grievances 101
Available Grievance Procedures

• Agency Grievance Procedure
• No Arbitration
• No 7422 Issues
• Many Exclusions

• Negotiated Grievance Procedure
• Binding Arbitration
• 7422 Determination
• Appeal Court System

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Federal Grievances 101
Excluded by VA Grievance Procedure (VA Dir 5021)
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Federal Grievances 101

• From VA Handbook 5023, Part I Chapter 5
• Section 2. c. The following are instances when
  an employee must choose between negotiated and/or
  statutory procedures.
•  
• (1) Negotiated grievance procedures must be the
  exclusive procedures for employees in the unit
  for all matters within its scope. In those cases
  where adverse actions and discrimination
  complaints are included under the scope of the
  negotiated procedure, unit employees may use
  either the negotiated or statutory procedure, but
  not both. The employee will be deemed to have
  made his/her election of procedure when he/she
  timely files a grievance under the negotiated
  procedure or a timely appeal under the applicable
  appellate procedure, whichever takes place first.
  Exceptions to arbitrators' awards may be filed
  with the Authority in accordance with the
  provisions of the statute and the rules of the
  Authority.

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Federal Grievances 101
U.S. OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL

• Prohibited Personnel Practices
• Personnel Actions as Whistleblower Retaliation
• Political Pressure or Discrimination
• Violations of Veterans Preference

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Federal Grievances 101

• US Office of Special Counsel has jurisdiction
  over certain types of discrimination
• EEO-ORM does not exercise jurisdiction over these
  specific types covered by OSC

• OSC Exercises Jurisdiction over Discrimination
  Related to
• Marital Status
• Being a Parent
• Sexual Orientation
• Political Affiliation
• Conduct not affecting the performance of an
  employee

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Federal Grievances 101

• See UAN LLI 2002 presentation on the US Office of
  Special Counsel
• All information and instructions needed to file
  with OSC, including the forms, are found on the
  OSC web site
• www.osc.gov

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Federal Grievances 101

• Civil Rights Violations
• Race or Color
• Religion
• Sex / Gender
• National Origin
• Age (over 40)
• Disability

EEOC the VA Office of Resolution Management
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Federal Grievances 101

• EEO complaints should be made for
• Civil rights violations
• Hostile Work Environment as a result of general
  or specific civil rights violations
• EEO complaints are often overused because of
  the possibility of getting a monetary settlement
  if complainant wins and no cost if the
  complainant loses

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Federal Grievances 101

• Use Merit Systems Protection Board
• When general Civil Service protections are
  extended to Title 38 personnel, and a personnel
  action was involved
• Hiring
• Suspension
• Reassignment
• Termination
• To appeal issues that Office of Special Counsel
  has not accepted for prosecution as PPPs

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Federal Grievances 101

• Fraud, waste, or abuse of Federal system
• Criminal complaints
• Liability/Risk Management issues
• See VA OIG presentation

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Federal Grievances 101

• Unfair Labor Practices
• Determining bargaining unit membership

• Negotiability Appeals
• Determining compelling need for regulation

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Federal Grievances 101

• Use VA USH procedures for
• Disciplinary Appeals Board
• Promotion Reconsideration
• 38 USC 7422 determinations

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Federal Grievances 101

• Use Federal Courts for
• Lawsuit issues
• Appeals of 7422 rulings
• Issues not covered by another procedure

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Federal Grievances 101

• Summary
• Many choices or avenues of redress
• Choosing the right one is the key to success
• The issue and the remedy determines the right
  one
• Scenarios from the Audience