Download or read book Office of Accountability Whistleblower Protection written by United States. Department of Veterans Affairs. Office of Inspector General and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 91 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The VA Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP) was established in 2017 to improve VA’s ability to hold employees accountable and enhance protections for whistleblowers.1 This goal was to be accomplished, in part, by expanding VA’s ability to hold senior executives accountable for specified misconduct; preventing retaliation against whistleblowers and initiating action against supervisors who retaliate; and addressing senior executives’ poor performance. The OIG’s review focused on answering the following questions that emerged from these complaints and allegations: 1. Whether the OAWP was exercising its authority in accordance with the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 and other applicable laws 2. Whether the OAWP conducted adequate, thorough, and procedurally fair investigations of matters it investigated 3. Whether VA employees were held accountable by making appropriate use of the authorities provided in the Act 4. Whether the OAWP was adequately protecting whistleblowers from retaliation as required by the Act and other applicable laws 5. Whether VA complied with other requirements of the Act, including making timely and accurate reports to Congress.
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States. General Accounting Office and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 58 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection Program written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection Program written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 47 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Workers who 'blow the whistle' on prohibited or unlawful practices that they discover during their employment can play an important role in the enforcement of federal laws. However, these whistleblowers may also risk reprisals from their employers, sometimes being demoted, reassigned, or fired. Federal laws establish whistleblower protection processes, whereby workers who believe that they have faced retaliation for blowing the whistle can report their allegations to the appropriate federal agency, which then determines the merit of their claims. The Whistleblower Protection Program at the Department of Labor's (Labor) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is responsible for receiving and investigating most whistleblower complaints filed by nonfederal workers. We found that OSHA has done little to ensure that investigators have the necessary training and equipment to do their jobs, and that it lacks sufficient internal controls to ensure that the whistleblower program operates as intended. More specifically, we found the following: (1) OSHA enhanced its whistleblower training, establishing two mandatory 2-week courses between 2007 and 2008, but has not ensured attendance or taken steps to ensure that investigators have necessary equipment to do their jobs; (2) OSHA lacks sufficient internal controls to ensure that the whistleblower program operates as intended due to several factors, including inconsistent program operations, inadequate tracking of program expenses, and insufficient performance monitoring. Program operations vary by region in significant ways, as exemplified by differing standards used to screen out complaints, and by some regions not having formally trained supervisors who approve investigation decisions. The whistleblower program's national office lacks mechanisms, such as access to accurate data and actual case files, to monitor compliance with policies and procedures. We provided a draft of this report to OSHA for its review and comment. In its response, OSHA concurred with two of our recommendations and cited ongoing activities in areas covered by the other three. OSHA also expressed concern with some of our findings.
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by U S Government Accountability Office (G and published by BiblioGov. This book was released on 2013-06 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) whistleblower protection, focusing on the: (1) actions VA has taken since October 29, 1994--the enactment of the 1994 Whistleblower Protection Act amendments--to inform its employees about their rights to protection against reprisal when reporting misconduct; (2) extent to which VA employees are aware of their rights to such protection; (3) extent to which VA employees are willing to report misconduct in VA operations, should they become aware of it; and (4) number and disposition of whistleblower reprisal complaints filed by VA employees with agencies responsible for providing whistleblower protection.
Download or read book The VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Veterans' Affairs and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Department of Energy Whistleblower Protections Need Strengthening written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 39 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Federal employee whistleblowers— individuals who report violations of law or certain agency mismanagement— may risk reprisals from their agencies. WPEA seeks to strengthen the rights of and protections for federal whistleblowers. WPEA includes a provision for GAO to report on the law’s implementation. This report (1) describes changes in the number of whistleblower reprisal appeals filed with MSPB, as well as the outcome of appeals, since WPEA’s effective date; (2) provides subject matter specialists’ views about granting MSPB summary judgment authority for whistleblower cases; and (3) provides subject matter specialists’ views about granting jurisdiction for a subset of whistleblower appeals to be decided by a district court of the United States. GAO recommends that MSPB help ensure the accuracy of its reporting on whistleblower appeals received and closed by (1) updating its data entry user guide to include additional guidance and procedures, and (2) adding a quality check in its data analysis and reporting process to better identify discrepancies.
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 101 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Safeguarding confidentiality to the maximum extent possible is essential for encouraging whistleblowers to report wrongdoing without fear of reprisal. In fiscal year 2018, DODIG received over 12,000 contacts from potential whistleblowers related to fraud, waste, abuse, employee misconduct, or other violations. This report assesses the extent to which DODIG and the military service IGs (1) met and took steps to achieve key fiscal year 2018 timeliness and quality goals , (2) established processes to protect whistleblower confidentiality, and (3) are able to safeguard sensitive information necessary to handle whistleblower complaints. It also evaluates (4) the extent to which select cases involving certain senior DOD civilian officials met key requirements. GAO is making 12 recommendations, including that the IGs take additional actions to improve timeliness, develop additional procedures to protect whistleblower confidentiality, and take steps to further limit IG employee access to sensitive whistleblower information.
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection Program written by United States Government Accountability and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2016-01-03 with total page 74 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Workers who "blow the whistle" on prohibited practices play a role in enforcing federal laws, but these workers risk reprisals from their employers. The Whistleblower Protection Program at the Department of Labor's (Labor) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is responsible for investigating whistleblowers' complaints. OSHA's decisions generally may be appealed to the Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) and, ultimately, the Administrative Review Board (ARB). GAO examined (1) what is known about processing times for complaints and what affects these times, (2) what outcomes resulted, and (3) what challenges OSHA faces in administering the program. To answer these questions, GAO analyzed electronic data files from OSHA, OALJ, and ARB; visited five OSHA regional offices; reviewed case files; conducted a Web-based survey of investigators; and interviewed key officials.
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 79 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Whistleblowers help guard the federal government against waste, fraud, and abuse. The Military Whistleblower Protection Act provides servicemembers with a means to seek relief from reprisals and to hold subjects accountable. GAO was asked to determine the extent to which the Department of Defense (DOD) has (1) satisfied statutory timeliness requirements for processing military whistleblower reprisal cases, (2) established and implemented oversight mechanisms for its process, and (3) taken corrective action in cases where the DOD Inspector General (DODIG) substantiated reprisal claims. GAO also analyzed case characteristics. GAO examined laws, regulations, and guidance documents; interviewed officials from DODIG, service IGs, service Boards for the Correction of Military Records (BCMRs), and the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness; and collected and analyzed case data. GAO also conducted a detailed file review using a representative sample of cases closed between January 1, 2009 and March 31, 2011. GAO recommends that DOD implement procedures to track and report data on its case processing timeliness, take actions to improve oversight of its investigative process, and develop processes to ensure appropriate corrective actions are taken in substantiated cases. DOD concurred with all of GAO's recommendations.
Download or read book Whistleblowers written by United States. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 27 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Federal employee whistleblowers—individuals who report allegations of wrongdoing—potentially help to safeguard the government from fraud, waste, and abuse. OSC was created to help protect whistleblowers. Probationary employees—generally those with less than 1 or 2 years of federal service—can be especially vulnerable to reprisal because they have fewer protections from adverse personnel actions, including termination. This report examines (1) the extent to which probationary employees filed whistleblower disclosures or reprisal complaints, (2) termination rates of complainants, and (3) OSC procedures related to probationary employees. GAO recommends that OSC require claimants to identify their status as permanent or probationary employees.
Download or read book The VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Veterans' Affairs and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 69 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by United States Government Accountability Office and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2018-02-14 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: GGD-00-70 Whistleblower Protection: VA Did Little Until Recently to Inform Employees About Their Rights
Download or read book Whistleblower Protection written by U.s. Government Accountability Office and published by . This book was released on 2017-08-04 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Whistleblowers help guard the federal government against waste, fraud, and abuse. The Military Whistleblower Protection Act provides servicemembers with a means to seek relief from reprisals and to hold subjects accountable. GAO was asked to determine the extent to which the Department of Defense (DOD) has (1) satisfied statutory timeliness requirements for processing military whistleblower reprisal cases, (2) established and implemented oversight mechanisms for its process, and (3) taken corrective action in cases where the DOD Inspector General (DODIG) substantiated reprisal claims. GAO also analyzed case characteristics. GAO examined laws, regulations, and guidance documents; interviewed officials from DODIG, service IGs, service Boards for the Correction of Military Records (BCMRs), and the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness; and collected and analyzed case data. GAO also conducted a detailed file review using a representative sample of cases closed between January 1, 2009 and March 31, 2011."
