Management
Vast Majority of VA Employees Have Either Witnessed Or Experienced Racism at Work, Survey Finds
Nearly 76% of respondents to union survey have experienced "racially charged actions," and three-quarters of those who haven't experienced incidents themselves say they have witnessed them.
Workforce
VA Should Better Protect Employees From Sexual Harassment, GAO Says
Inconsistent and outdated policies are coupled with management structures that leave employees vulnerable.
Workforce
Fired VA Employee, Facing Allegations of Poisoning Patients, Pleads Guilty to Seven Counts of Murder
VA facility first flagged the suspicious deaths two years ago.
Pay & Benefits
VA Significantly Boosts Hiring as COVID-19 Cases Among Employees and Veterans Spike
Coronavirus cases among VA workers are climbing much faster than in the general population.
Management
Union Files Grievance Over VA's Refusal to Bargain
The Veterans Affairs Department claims it doesn't need to negotiate with labor leaders until the pandemic is over.
Management
GovExec Daily: Three-Dimensional Innovation at VHA
Sammie-nominated Dr. Beth Ripley joins the show to talk about her work creating an interconnected, hospital-based 3D printing network.
Management
Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Buddy Used His 'Shadow' Sway Over the VA to Promote His Comic Book Empire
Marvel chief Ike Perlmutter arranged for comic book characters to ring the NYSE closing bell with the VA secretary in 2017, according to a new government audit. Perlmutter has denied benefiting from his role as an informal adviser to President Trump.
Workforce
VA Says It's Providing a COVID-19 Test to Any Employee Who Asks. Employees Say That's Not True.
Employees were being denied tests as recently as Friday and a dozen workers said widespread testing is not available for staff.
Management
The VA Grand Challenge: Looking for Love in The Wrong Places
To solve a problem as complex and critical as veteran suicide, throw out the procurement playbook.
Management
Veterans Benefits Administration May Be Having Its Best Year Ever
Despite having to make operational changes, the agency has exceeded performance targets set before the pandemic.
Workforce
How Profit and Incompetence Delayed N95 Masks While People Died at the VA
Federal agencies have hired contractors with no experience to find respirators and masks, fueling a black market filled with price gouging and multiple layers of profiteering brokers. One contractor called them “buccaneers and pirates.”
Oversight
Did He Talk About Her? VA Secretary Changes His Story Amid Allegations He Sought Dirt on House Staffer.
Robert Wilkie is under investigation after a complaint that he sought information to discredit a House staffer who said she was sexually assaulted in a VA hospital. Wilkie denied discussing her with Rep. Dan Crenshaw. But an email indicates he did.
Defense
GovExec Daily: How VA Is – and Isn't – Supporting Its Personnel During the Pandemic
Eric Katz joins the program to talk about the ways that Veterans Affairs employees feel management has backed them up while treating coronavirus patients.
Workforce
VA Instructs Coronavirus-Exposed Staff to Continue Working, Places Those Who Don’t in AWOL Status
"This is the absolute worst-case scenario of anything I have ever experienced in my nursing career," according to one registered nurse.
Management
Agencies Can Launch Retaliatory Investigations Into Whistleblowers, Court Rules
Ruling sets a new governmentwide precedent.
Workforce
Three VA Health Workers Have Died of COVID-19. 776 Have Tested Positive.
After workers reported shortages of tests, masks and gloves, VA health staff in Detroit; Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Indianapolis have died of COVID-19. Almost 800 have tested positive.
Workforce
VA Looks to Boost Hiring to Confront Coronavirus as Employees Decry Shortfalls
Medical staff only able to provide "subpar care" to patients under current circumstances, one nurse says.
Workforce
Court Deals Major Blow to Trump's Signature Civil Service Reform Law
Ruling will put "structure" and "safeguards" in place for employee discipline law, attorney says.
Management
This VA Hospital Cited 'Misleading' Data to Restrict Mask Use for Health Care Workers
Workers at a VA hospital in New Mexico have been told not to wear face masks in certain cases, even though earlier CDC guidance said masks can protect against spread of the coronavirus.
Management