Court Deals Yet Another Blow to Firing Reform Law – By Eric Katz (Nextgov) / Aug 13 2021
Thousands of workers may now have a new avenue to getting their jobs back.
The federal government was dealt another blow in its effort to more easily fire employees after a court once again ruled a key reform law was being unfairly implemented.
The Veterans Affairs Department used a too-low evidentiary standard to justify the firing of a patient advocate employee, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled on Thursday, remanding the case back to an independent appeals board. The ruling was the latest in a series of setbacks for the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, a law Congress passed with broad bipartisan support—and then-President Trump heralded—in 2017.
The case involved Ariel Rodriguez, a Florida-based VA employee who was fired after he took part in a heated exchange with a patient. The argument began after the patient came in to discuss a payment and escalated to the point that VA police became involved. Officers escorted Rodriguez back to his office, but he later returned to continue yelling and cursing at the individual. VA ultimately fired Rodriguez for his actions, calling a subordinate to ask her to change her witness statement and for giving a misleading account to investigators
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