Whistleblowers: VA Should Assess Data and Monitor Settlement Agreements to Better Ensure Protections
Fast Facts
Federal employee whistleblowers can help fight fraud, waste, and abuse, so laws protect them from retaliation, such as demotion and firing. For Department of Veterans Affairs employees, the Office of Special Counsel—an independent agency—and an office within VA both investigate retaliation against whistleblowers.
But VA doesn’t track all actions taken to protect whistleblowers after retaliation. This incomplete record makes it hard to determine if the responsible officials are following through. VA also doesn’t ensure that it correctly implements its settlement agreements with whistleblowers.
Our recommendations address these issues and more.
Whistleblower's silhouette stands out in a crowd of blank silhouettes
Highlights
What GAO Found
The number and length of whistleblower retaliation cases filed by Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees have fluctuated since fiscal year 2020 (see figure). GAO analyzed data from the Office of Special Counsel (OSC), an independent agency, and VA’s Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP), which investigates whistleblower retaliation allegations.
- GAO found that VA is unable to consistently track corrective actions taken in whistleblower cases. These actions can include restored leave or reassignment. VA’s fiscal year 2022–2028 strategic plan calls for the agency to promote accountability by protecting whistleblowers, but officials said that VA data systems were not designed to track corrective actions.
- OSC and OAWP have contradictory data about settled cases. For example, according to GAO’s analysis, OSC’s data show 90 whistleblower retaliation settlement agreements from fiscal years 2019 to 2023, whereas OAWP’s data show 30 OSC settlement agreements. Officials at both agencies told GAO that their data do not include information on case outcomes from outside their own investigative processes unless the other agency voluntarily provides it. Without better coordination and comprehensive data on the outcomes of VA whistleblower retaliation cases, both agencies might miss opportunities to promote accountability for and protection of whistleblowers.
Number of Whistleblower Retaliation Cases Involving Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Employees, Fiscal Years 2020—2024
VA settled 71 whistleblower retaliation cases from fiscal years 2019 to 2023. Most settlements agreements provided for payments and personnel actions, according to VA data. VA’s data show that settlement agreements included payments to whistleblowers that ranged between $1,800 and $525,000, and that most involved personnel actions, such as reassigning the whistleblower.
While VA reviews copies of settlement agreements, it does not monitor their implementation. VA officials said this is because the Secretary of VA has not delegated the authority for them to do so. However, VA’s current strategic plan states that OAWP is responsible for fostering a safe environment to report wrongdoing. By ensuring that OAWP monitors the implementation of whistleblower retaliation settlement agreements, VA could better support its goal to promote and improve accountability for whistleblower retaliation.
Why GAO Did This Study
Federal employee whistleblowers—individuals who report allegations of wrongdoing such as a violation of law, abuse of authority, or gross mismanagement—can help protect the government from fraud, waste, and abuse. Whistleblowers may experience retaliation such as reassignment, demotion, or termination. VA has implemented administrative reforms to improve protections for whistleblowers.
GAO was asked to review the characteristics of VA whistleblower retaliation investigations, as well as VA’s process for settling whistleblower retaliation claims. This report examines, among other things, 1) the number, length, and outcomes of VA whistleblower retaliation cases; 2) typical components of VA settlement agreements; and 3) whether VA monitors the implementation of settlement agreements. GAO reviewed VA and OSC case management data from fiscal years 2020-2024, the most recent years with reliable data, and data on cases settled from fiscal years 2019-2023. GAO also analyzed responses to non-generalizable surveys GAO administered to 35 whistleblowers and 52 officials VA identified as negotiating settlements.
Recommendations
GAO is making four recommendations, including that VA and OSC coordinate settlement tracking and VA delegate OAWP authority to monitor settlement implementation. VA concurred with three recommendations and OSC disagreed with one, citing added burden among other reasons. GAO maintains the recommendation is warranted and can be implemented with existing coordination mechanisms.
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Veterans Affairs | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that OAWP consistently collects information on corrective actions VA takes on behalf of whistleblowers during the whistleblower retaliation investigation process. (Recommendation 1) |
VA agreed with this recommendation. OAWP plans to modify its tracking system and its standard operating procedures to collect and document any corrective actions taken for the whistleblower before a retaliation investigation is completed. Additionally, VA told us OAWP has drafted a revised directive that would require management to respond to non-disciplinary recommendations and other corrective actions, allowing OAWP to track all corrective actions. We await further progress on these efforts.
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| Office of Special Counsel | The Special Counsel of the Office of Special Counsel should coordinate with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure that VA whistleblower retaliation settlement agreements that arise from cases filed with OSC are accurately tracked. (Recommendation 2) |
OSC disagreed with this recommendation. OSC stated that exchanging settlement information with VA would place an administrative burden on its small staff, without clear benefit to the agency's effectiveness in addressing whistleblower retaliation. OSC also noted that it is not a data collection or data management agency. We maintain, however, that OSC could enhance the value of the data it already collects for its regular operations by using existing coordination meetings with VA to incorporate information-sharing on settlement agreement tracking. OSC also expressed concern that adopting this recommendation could lead to broader requests for reciprocal data-sharing across agencies. However, our report noted that VA accounts for a significant proportion of OSC's caseload. Also, OSC identified 90 relevant VA whistleblower retaliation settlement agreements from FY19-FY23. However, this did not include 11 additional agreements from FY19-FY23 that OAWP identified as settled. This discrepancy underscores the potential benefit of the improved agency collaboration we recommend.
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| Department of Veterans Affairs | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should coordinate with the Special Counsel of the Office of Special Counsel to ensure that VA whistleblower retaliation settlement agreements that arise from cases filed with OSC are accurately tracked. (Recommendation 3) |
VA agreed with this recommendation. VA stated that OAWP has drafted a revised directive that would require management to respond to non-disciplinary recommendations and other corrective actions, allowing OAWP to track all corrective actions. We will consider closing this recommendation when this effort is complete.
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| Department of Veterans Affairs | The Secretary of Veterans Affairs should ensure that OAWP is delegated the authority to monitor and then monitors whistleblower retaliation settlement agreement implementation, including tracking of relevant settlement agreement data. (Recommendation 4) |
VA agreed with this recommendation. The agency expressed willingness to work with OSC on negotiating a memorandum of agreement to enable secure data sharing about settlements and for its Office of General Counsel and OAWP to prepare appropriate documentation from the Secretary of VA for OAWP to monitor settlement implementation. VA also noted that OAWP has already updated its tracking to track all relevant settlement agreement data, including both agency and complainant obligations. We await further progress on these efforts.
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