VA launches a departmentwide 'review of its mission' as it seeks changes to its operations

While the Veterans Affairs Department has called off mass layoffs of its workforce, senior leaders are telling employees that major changes are still coming. 

VA plans to have cut 30,000 employees by the end of September, down from its original plan of chopping 80,000 workers and eliminating the need for “large-scale” reductions in force. The department is now launching a “VA-wide review of its mission” and structure, Christopher Syrek, the department’s chief of staff said in a memorandum last week, with the aim of improving operational efficiency. 

Syrek noted the memo formally canceled the one he sent out in March, which established the goal of 80,000 cuts through layoffs. He said the new review will be informed by the process of preparing for RIFs, suggesting VA “gained a host of new ideas for better serving veterans” and it will continue to use its authority to reorganize. While “large-scale” RIFs are off the table, he said, “VA is not done improving and continues to pursue organizational reform.” 

As one example of upcoming changes, Kristine Groves, head of the Veteran Health Administration’s Quality and Patient Safety office, told staff on Thursday she was working with VHA senior leadership on the agency’s restructuring. Groves told employees to expect new organizational charts by the end of last week and that the resulting staffing make ups would be released in the coming days.

One theme emerging from those conversations, she said, is that VA is looking to empower medical center directors. Several employees, based on meetings and internal conversations, speculated headquarters and possibly regional staff could be a casualty of that change. VA has said only it will not conduct a “large-scale RIF,” but employees remain concerned more targeted layoffs could still take place. 

One worker, a nurse who is currently serving at VA’s central office rather than in a clinical position, suggested she could be moved elsewhere. Employees without clinical backgrounds may have less job security. 

Steven Braverman, VHA’s chief operating officer, has told staff to expect reduced footprints in call centers, human resources, regional offices known as Veterans Integrated Service Networks, or VISNs, and the IT office, according to an employee that was part of those briefings. 

A small group of regional leaders are meeting this week in Nashville to discuss the current state of affairs in operations and to look for opportunities to improve efficiency, according to a VA official familiar with the plans. 

VA in March stood up a Reorganization Implementation Cell made up of senior leaders such as those meeting in Nashville to draft RIF plans and determine the future structure of the department. Those involved in the RIC meetings were forced to sign non-disclosure agreements. One official that participated in the RIC said it was unclear how the new review Syrek announced last week would differ from those efforts, but they hoped it would not lead to a change in scope to existing dialogues.  

Groves told employees not to expect any sudden changes.

“We are being told that this will be a thoughtful journey and will take time to make the changes,” she said.