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When in Doubt, Don’t Wear Uniform to Off-base Events
Q: I am very active in community events off base. How do I know when not to wear my uniform? A: If you need to even think of the question, don’t wear your uniform. These days, many service members risk …
Brand Power – It’s How You Stand Out in the World
Greg Rinckey is an attorney the same way the Nike swoosh is running shoes or the Big Mac is fast food. “The Rinckey brand means federal employment and military law. I want to be known as the go-to firm for …
Lessons From the Air Force’s Mortuary Scandal
By Mathew B. Tully Bringing to light wrongdoing in the federal government can be a thorny matter. The law is very specific about how and to whom federal employees must “blow the whistle” in order to be considered a bona …
Ask the Lawyer: Even Legal Separation Can Lead to Adultery Conviction
By Mathew B. Tully Question: Can I be punished for adultery if I am legally separated? Could I be charged with anything else? Answer: Yes, you can be convicted of adultery even though you were legally separated at the time. …
Ask the Lawyer: Disobey an Order at Your Own Peril
By Mathew B. Tully Question: My commander is a little nuts. He keeps ordering me to do this or that. Sometimes I’m not even sure the things he’s ordering me to do are lawful. What should I do? Answer: One trait common …
Desertion Conviction Could Lead to Five-Year Prison Term
By Mathew B. Tully Question: I’ve never told anyone I plan to desert the military. So if I don’t report for duty for awhile, would the military come after me for AWOL or desertion? Answer: The main difference between being …
Ask the Lawyer: Lying to Get Out of Trouble Gets You Into More Trouble
Q: How bad is it if I stretch the truth a little when questioned by military police or a commander? A: For many people, it is unnerving to be questioned by a law enforcement officer. Even an officer’s simple or …
Agencies Drag Feet in Providing Reasonable Accommodations for Fed Employees
Federal agencies are notorious for dragging their feet. Unfortunately, many disabled federal employees are all too familiar with agencies’ reluctance, especially when it comes to providing them with reasonable accommodations that would help them do their jobs. One physically disabled, …
Fed Employee Survey Could Show Tip of the Iceberg for Favoritism
An annual Office of Personnel Management (OPM) survey is indicating many federal employees hold negative views about the legitimacy of performance-based raises and merit-based promotions. These findings could be showing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the …
Clock Ticks for Cash-Strapped Feds With Security Clearances
By Mathew B. Tully It’s hard to believe that it was four years ago this December that the nation entered what was to become the longest recession since the Great Depression. Although the National Bureau of Economic Research says that …
Locker Room Behavior – Pants Dropping, Sex Banter – Merits Demotion
The bar for excellence keeps getting higher for federal government supervisors. Perhaps that’s why, in 2011, 57 percent of federal employees surveyed by the Office of Personnel Management found that their organizations’ leaders maintained high levels of honesty and integrity, up …
Move Quickly to Ensure Vets’ Preference Honored for Fed Jobs
Q: I’m interested in entering federal civil service after I leave the military. I know veterans get federal hiring preference, but I know many veterans get passed over for jobs. How do I know when a federal agency has violated …
The Heavy Truth About Weight Discrimination
“Do I look fat in this?” How many times have we uttered or heard those words, not giving a second thought to the negative connotation that goes with them. These are the kinds of comments that influence children as young …
Federal Commissioned Officers Score Protections Against Discrimination
Federal commissioned officers, who seven years ago saw their protections against discrimination severely curbed, can now go on the offensive thanks to recent decision from the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB). Due to a loophole in federal law, federal …
Don’t Drop the Ball When Requesting FMLA Deployment-Related Leave
Federal employees have long had to juggle work, home and financial responsibilities, along with parting goodbye to loved ones, when family members were called to active duty in the armed forces. Soon, changes to the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) …
White House Takes On Diversity in Gov. as Hiring/Appt. Complaints Rise
Diversifying the federal workforce remains a work in progress. This point is evidenced by the Executive Order signed by President Barack Obama on August 18, 2011 (“EO 13583”). This EO is one of many passed by various presidents in recent …
Federal Employees Seeing Increase in Revoked Security Clearances
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence recently reported a 5 percent decline in the number of federal employees who held top secret clearance in the 2010 fiscal year as compared to the previous fiscal year. The cause for …
Air Force Reservist Wins Appeal on one of the Largest USERRA Lawsuits Ever
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has decided in favor of an Air Force reservist in his case against Wachovia Securities LLC, providing a major victory to service members who leave well-paying commission jobs to serve their country in …
Fed Employees’ Removals Reversed Because of Termination Secrets
Federal agency managers had better start laying all their cards on the table when it comes to the information they use in their decisions to fire employees. As of February 2011, the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) is no …
Former Army Special Forces SGT Wins Reinstatement With Postal Service
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit recently held that the U.S. Postal Service incorrectly terminated a member of the National Guard under false assumptions in that he abandoned his position. This huge win for veterans and service …
Veterans Federal Employment Complaints Remain at Escalated Levels
Amid a dearth of job opportunities in the private sector, a shockingly high number of veterans last year continued to run into problems as they attempted to enter or reenter the federal civil service. Recently released statistics show that the …
The D.C. Circuit Gives Agencies the Specifics About Informal Counseling
In a recent decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, the court vacated a previous decision dismissing a class action discrimination case against the Federal Reserve Board for failure to exhaust administrative remedies. At issue …
What Right to Workplace Privacy do Federal Employees Have?
By John P. Mahoney The nation’s largest employer, the federal government, is still pretty good at keeping secrets, even after the WikiLeaks scandal. The question is: To what extent does its employees and contractors have a right to workplace privacy? …
D.C. Circuit Clarifies Threshold for Retaliation in EEO Claims
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has clarified and lowered the threshold of what defines “retaliation” in claims of discrimination. The Court of Appeals held that an agency’s actions can be considered retaliatory …
Circuit Court Grants Federal Employee Right to File Action Against Agencies for Claims Lost at Agency Level
In a major federal employee upset, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit recently changed the way federal employees and agencies may approach partial relief in future discrimination claims. The court held that in Equal Employment Opportunity complaints, …
EEOC Finds DoD Liable for Not Reassigning Disabled Employee as an Accommodation
In a recent decision, Bowers v. Robert M. Gates, Secretary, Department of Defense, EEOC Appeal No. 0720070012 (March 22, 2010), the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission affirmed an Administrative Judge’s (AJ) decision finding the Department of Defense (DoD) liable for …
Clearing Up Sexual Orientation Discrimination Confusion
In response to my last article, “Legal for Agencies to Discriminate Based on Sexual Orientation,” I received numerous comments questioning whether it is “really” legal for agencies to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation under the current law. The …
Legal for Agencies to Discriminate Based on Sexual Orientation
Despite the Pentagon’s steps toward repealing the military’s controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy regarding gay and lesbian service members, it remains, to the surprise of many, legal for agencies to discriminate against federal employees based on sexual orientation. This …
The Ever Evolving Definition of Sexual Harassment
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit recently issued an en banc decision finding the U.S. District Court of for the Northern District of Alabama erred in granting summary judgment in a sexual harassment case where the harassment …
Federal Security Clearances: Fighting to Get & Keep One
The Federal Government is pretty good at keeping secrets. When it comes to national security, the Feds do their best to ensure that only trustworthy people have access to classified government information and operations. In order for federal employees and …
USERRA Rights: Veterans Entitled To More Than “Thank You”
One of the rights granted by the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Right Act (USERRA) to veterans who leave their civilian jobs to serve in the military is the right to be reemployed upon the conclusion of military service. Unlike …
Federal Circuit Says HHS Denied Veteran Preference Rights
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, in Marshall v. HHS, Fed. Cir., No. 2009-3086, ruled that an applicant for a position at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) who was passed over in violation of his veterans’ …
EEOC Holds that Employees Cannot Be Discriminated Against Due to Perceived Limitations of a Disability
In Reid v. Eric K. Shinseki, Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs, EEOC Appeal No. 0720070077 (November 13, 2009), the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reinforced the notion that federal agencies cannot discriminate against disabled employees based on subjective opinions …
Courts Open Window to Expand Employees’ Rights to Privacy in Electronic Communications
For years, the courts have been chipping away at employees’ privacy rights, particularly with regard to email and other electronic communications sent while the employee was on the clock or via the employer’s computer system. However, the courts are giving …
Avoid the Pitfalls of Holiday Office Parties
Throwing an office holiday party can be a welcome time to boost employee morale, but be mindful of the legal pitfalls that can lurk in the holiday cheer. From the punch bowl to the dance floor, liabilities exist for you …
National Security and the Commissary Cashier
In Crumpler v. Department of Defense, DC-0752-09-0033-I-1 (11/2/09), the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), reopened the case on its own motion to evaluate whether the Supreme Court’s decision in Department of the Navy v. Egan, 484 U.S. 518, 530-31 …
Discrepancies in the Federal Workplace According to EEOC
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released its Annual Report on the Federal Work Force for Fiscal Year (FY) 2008. The Annual Report reveals that power and pay discrepancies still exist between men and women, whites and minorities, …
Discharge for “Excessive” Military Service Absences Violated USERRA
The Merit Systems Protection Board erred in rejecting an employee’s claim that the Postal Service violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA) when it terminated him due to his “excessive” use of military leave, ruled …
Law Falls Short on Workplace Sexual Harassment
Admittedly, the evidence is largely anecdotal but the trend is unmistakable. The number of women unhappy about their working conditions is out of proportion to their numbers in the labor force. Their dissatisfaction runs the gamut from mild frustration to …
Updating the Employee Handbook
When you’re at the forefront of your company, it can be simple to forget about the basic foundations of your business. For example, when was the last time you read your own company’s employee handbook? Or better yet, do you …
Negotiating a Fair Severance
Many businesses are facing very tough economic times. Laying off employees is one of the options available to business owners and managers to reduce expenses. Many issues arise when you are considering layoffs. Depending on the size of the business …
Legal Pitfalls to Avoid
I see it over and over. Small business owners make decisions that they think are in the best interest of their business. Unfortunately, and especially in times of economic desperation, these decisions can lead to critical legal mistakes for entrepreneurs …
The Billion Dollar Case for Federal Employees
Our article yesterday summarizing a new court decision on back pay for some federal employees who used military leave for military reserve duties (See “Back Pay for Some Military Reservists Going Back to 1980?”) drew a response from a number …
Put Affairs in Order Before You Deploy
So you’ve received the call to deploy. You have many tasks to complete before you leave— including a number of personal legal affairs. While you should have the opportunity to see a JAG officer as part of your pre-deployment readiness …
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Feds Discriminate Against Veterans
Why is it so hard for US servicemen to land steady employment once coming home? For one thing, the same government that gave them guns isn’t so quick to give them jobs. The US government enacted the Uniformed Services Employment …
Returning Military Members Allege Job Discrimination – by Federal Government
Every year, more than a thousand National Guard, reserve and active-duty troops coming back from Iraq, Afghanistan or other military duties complain of being denied jobs or otherwise being penalized by employers because of their military obligations. The biggest offender: …
Military Members Accuse Feds of Job Discrimination
Every year, more than a thousand National Guard, reserve and active-duty troops coming back from Iraq, Afghanistan or other military duty complain of being denied jobs or otherwise being penalized by employers because of their military obligations. The biggest offender: …
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Love in the Military Could Cause Concern on Valentine’s Day
Dating, Cheating and Displays of Affection Can Lead to Serious Trouble. Valentine’s Day evokes the feelings of love and passion, but in the military it can attract a long list of criminal offenses. The military’s Uniform Code of Military Justice …
Holiday Gift Giving Could Give Federal Employees the Pink-Slip
The exchange of gifts is a favorite holiday tradition for many. A less popular and less known holiday tradition, however, involves the punishment of federal employees who stray from government rules by giving their boss a Christmas or Hanukkah gift. …
The Season of Giving Could Lead to a Court Martial
The exchange of gifts is a favorite holiday tradition for many. A less popular and less known holiday tradition, however, involves the punishment of service members who stray from military rules by giving their superiors a Christmas or Hanukkah gift. …
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Army Ten Miler Health & Fitness Expo – October 7-8
Join us at the DC Armory October 7 and October 8 from 10 am – 7 pm at the annual Army Ten Miler Health & Fitness Expo presented by Dell Federal and enter to win an Amazon Kindle, courtesy of …
Blacks In Government Annual National Training Conference – August 22-25, 2011
33rd Annual National Training Conference John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center Boston, Massachusetts August 22 – 25, 2011
EEOC EXCEL Conference – August 16-18, 2011
14th Annual EEOC Examining Conflicts in Employment Laws (EXCEL) Conference Conference Baltimore, MD August 16-18, 2011
