Department of Veterans Affairs clinicians are one step closer to being able to file a grievance challenging errors in their paychecks.
The House Veterans Affairs Committee May 1 approved H.R. 6538, the VA Correct Compensation Act, which would allow Title 38 employees to challenge payment errors. The bipartisan bill will now head to the full House.
AFGE applauds committee members for approving the bill on a voice vote. We urge the full House and Senate to follow suit. The bill is needed because for over 30 years the VA has often refused to correct payment errors in the paychecks of Title 38 employees – physicians, dentists, podiatrists, registered nurses, physician assistants, optometrists, chiropractors, and expanded-function dental auxiliaries.
These employees may be required to work extra hours but may not receive overtime pay, shift differentials, and other payments they’re entitled to.
Federal pay rates for VA employees are not subject to substantive negotiation. The law enacted in 1991 was originally intended to prevent employees and federal unions from negotiating or filing grievances over the salaries paid to Title 38 employees.
But because of the way the VA broadly interprets its authority under Title 38 Section 7422, it can preemptively deny an employee’s grievance challenging a simple payroll error.
This abuse of authority has hurt employee morale and exacerbated longstanding retention problems. It is unfair to the very medical professionals that the VA has said are its top priority to recruit and retain.
“While the VA claims to prioritize these employees, such unfair practices undermine the recruitment and retention of the medical professionals who provide essential care to our nation’s veterans and weaken employee morale,” said the AFGE National VA Council in an email message to members.
“For more than 30 years, hardworking Veterans Affairs healthcare providers have lost out on wages due to the VA’s over-broad use of its legal authority, preventing federal unions from ensuring the accuracy of paychecks, by remedying routine payroll errors through the grievance process,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley.
“During a time where fully staffing veteran healthcare facilities remains a top priority for both AFGE and VA, it is imperative that this technical correction is made to ensure that those who care for our veterans are compensated correctly. On behalf of the 304,000 VA workers represented by AFGE, a third of whom are veterans themselves, AFGE thanks Ranking Member Takano and Chairman Bost for their bipartisan leadership on this issue, and we call on Congress to pass the VA Correct Compensation Act.”
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