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I never dreamed of being a Whistleblower, who is someone that exposes unethical, illegal or prohibited personnel practices of a company or government agency. I am a relatively quiet person. I hate drama, but I dislike people being abused by others. In my case, I reported the second-largest federal agency for perceived nepotism and training only certain people to groom them for promotion, which violates the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) prohibited personnel practices. https://www.mspb.gov/ppp/ppp.htm
My first week in my new job, I could not believe that there were only around five black employees out of about 500 in my Veteran Affairs agency in West Asheville, NC. One of the black employees worked in my department and we would later become very close friends. Ironically, we were both armed with knowledge and experience to know that our management was hiring family and friends, instead of following the mandated practices of hiring government employees. Both of us would speak up during meetings about perceived nepotism and we quickly made our management very nervous. I had over 22 years of Human Resources experience at the time in 2012 and my friend had an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) background.
On my own, I contacted the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) https://osc.gov which is where government employees report prohibited personnel practices (PPP) and provided evidence that our management was committing nepotism. An OSC lawyer reached out to me and dismissed the case to my dismay. I felt I had given plenty of evidence. Ironically, I would meet a lawyer who worked in the Food and Drug Administration at a bed and breakfast hotel. I was having coffee in the breakfast room and he and his wife asked if they could join me. Looking around, they could have sat at five other tables, but they chose to join me.
After sharing pleasantries, I shared my work matter with this lawyer and he told me that it seems like OSC only gets involved in cases where there is retaliation for reporting prohibited personnel practices. I don’t believe in coincidences, but that all experiences happen for us to grow and learn. I was getting retaliation for reporting my managers. It actually helped me to meet the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC) criteria for disability discrimination and then later, retaliation for reporting my managers to the EEOC. I felt that meeting that FDA lawyer had given me the insights to seek help through the EEOC, instead of OSC.
At the time, I was refused a Reasonable Accommodation to perform my work duties as a disabled military veteran by my managers. I needed an ergonomic workstation and the two computer monitors were about less than a foot from the edge of my desk. I am five feet and ten inches tall and I could not perform my work with the misplaced monitors that were fixed on metal pipes. It created pain in my neck and back because I was working in a very cramp workspace. My management ignored my doctor’s letters asking for the monitors to be moved back and to create a safe work environment for me.
I was retaliated and put on administrative leave for about 100 days with false charges, I would eventually lose my nice home as my paycheck was cut off as I was not allowed to work from home as a Reasonable Accommodation, like some other employees. Most of my doctor’s request for a Reasonable Accommodation would be ignored. I was unable to call a loved one and my co-worker without calling and hanging up five times before they could hear me. Ironically that problem went away the day after I settled with the Veteran Affairs without a non-disclosure agreement. I would occupy one of the four female veteran beds in the mental health ward at the Charles George VA Hospital because of all the stress, safety issues, and mistreatment.
In the end, I am glad I spoke up for myself and others. I paid a high price, but I would do it again. I transformed from being a victim to helping others who are being mistreated in the workplace. I would get recognition in the Christian Monitor. I would help another VA whistleblower who gained a lot of attention on TV. I would interview Erin Brockovich on my podcast to let people know simple ways to stand up for yourself. My work would evolve as new doors opened. The best part of my experience has been empowering others to stand up for themselves and others.
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This post is republished on Medium.
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