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Adverse Personel Actions
- Wrongful Termination - If you are fired improperly or unjustly you may be entitled to reinstatement, back-pay and attorney fees.
- Demotions and Suspensions (longer than 14 days)
The rights of employees to continued employment, promotions, etc. are governed by many laws, both state and federal. This office is primarily involved with protecting the rights of federal civilian employees. Such employees, working for the United States government, generally have the right to continued employment unless the employing agency can prove that there is "just cause" for termination. Such employees have appeal rights for all serious "adverse actions" taken against them by their employer, including terminations, lengthy suspensions without pay, demotions, etc.
Most federal civilian employees, including Postal Service employees who have served in the military, have the right to appeal such serious adverse actions to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB). This is a federal administrative agency which makes "quasi-judicial" decisions on such cases. Decisions of the Board are appealable to the federal courts. The Board also has jurisdiction over other matters such as denials of disability retirement applications, reduction-in-force disputes, etc.
Your employment is a valuable asset, and wrongful termination cases can result in your being reinstated to the job with back pay and benefits, plus payment of your attorney fees.
Examples of cases we have handled:
- An IRS employee was fired for poor performance after she had filed several discrimination complaints, had been called derogatory names, and as a union steward had represented others against IRS management. We challenged the termination at MSPB and simultaneously filed a discrimination lawsuit in federal court, resulting in a six-figure settlement.
- A Department of Defense worker was fired for unacceptable job performance. We proved that she was given no warning of her shortcomings and no opportunity to improve, and that she was fired by an inexperienced, incompetent manager. She was reinstated with back pay and legal fees.
- A Postal worker was wrongly accused of stealing money from a cash drawer and, after hours of interrogation by the Postal Inspection Service, confessed; he was then fired for stealing. We proved to the MSPB that the confession was coerced, resulting in his reinstatement with full back pay, benefits and attorney fees.(back to top)
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Disability and Retirement
This is an "early-out" option for federal employees disabled either due to industrial injuries and diseases, or for non-industrial reasons.
Federal employees who become disabled from performing their regular job, whether or not due to on-the-job injuries, may be eligible for disability retirement. This "early-out" for disablilty is a program administered by the US Office of Personnel Management. Federal regulations set out the requirements for a successful disability retirement application, but each case depends on its specific facts and the evidence presented.
With certain exceptions, an application for disability retirement must be received by OPM while the employee is still working for the federal government or within one year after employment ends. Specific medical information must be provided to OPM by the applicant.
Examples of cases we have handled:
- A Postal letter carrier suffered from post-traumatic headaches after an on-the-job injury. The Postal Service gave her limited-duty work inside the post office, but she had so much pain she cried at work every day. Even though the Postal Service claimed she had been reasonably and permanently accommodated, we proved to MSPB that she was disabled, and she received her disability retirement.
- A disabled IRS employee's disability retirement had been denied due to insufficient evidence, even though his doctors said he was disabled. We proved to OPM that despite the possibility that he could work, he was unable to do so in a useful and efficient manner; his benefits were then approved retroactively to when he stopped working and into the future.
- A disabled government employee did not file her claim for disability retirement within the one-year time limit and it was denied. We proved to OPM that she was incompetent during a sufficient period of time to make her application timely, and she was granted the benefits.(back to top)
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Discrimination
- Disablilty - If you feel that a disability has been the reason for your termination, denial of a promotion or other employment benefit.
- Age - If you feel that you have been denied an employment benefit due to your age.
- Sex - If you feel that you have been denied promotion or other employee benefit due to gender or have been sexually harassed.
The law prohibits discrimination in employment that is based on race, sex, age, religion, national origin, disability, or reprisal for prior EEO activity. This includes sexual harassment, and creating or allowing a work atmosphere that is hostile to those of a particular protected class of employees.
Federal employees must first seek EEO counseling at the office where they work, and then go through a "formal" EEO complaint process at their employing agency. Thereafter, if not satisfied with the employer's response to the complaint, they may take their case to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and/or to the federal courts.
Examples of cases we have handled:
- A female Postal employee was harassed by a coworker, resulting in lost work time and psychiatric care, but management did little to stop the harassment. We obtained a six-figure award at EEOC and, when the Postal Service refused to pay, we filed suit in federal court and settled the case for nearly the same amount.
- A female Navy Department employee was harassed at work by her male subordinates, but management told her she “had to live with it” and gave male employees awards for work she had done. We filed suit in federal court and obtained a six-figure settlement.
- A Defense Department worker was denied a merit increase and alleged that she was treated differently due to her sex and had to work in a work environment hostile to females. We obtained a portion of the increase plus her attorney fees, resulting in a substantial lump sum payment and a permanent increase in salary.
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Miscellaneous
- Drug testing
- Security Clearances
- Denial of insurance benefits
Our office has also been involved in other miscellaneous federal employment disputes - such as winning reinstatement for employees wrongly terminated for using illicit drugs based on random drug testing, obtaining federal group life insurance benefits to heirs of deceased employees, winning reinstatement for employees fired after sustaining on-the-job injuries, etc.
If you feel that your employer is about to take, or has taken, an action against you that you feel is unfair or improper, it is always a good idea to talk to an experienced attorney as soon as possible to determine if you have a legal remedy.
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