As vets await checks, VA workers get $24M bonuses

[and-justice-for-all]

Source: Associate Press

By KIMBERLY HEFLING, Associated Press Writer Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press Writer – 2 hrs 54 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Outside the Veterans Affairs Department, severely wounded veterans have faced financial hardship waiting for their first disability payment. Inside, money has been flowing in the form of $24 million in bonuses.

In scathing reports this week, the VA's inspector general said thousands of technology office employees at the VA received the bonuses over a two-year period, some under questionable circumstances. It also detailed abuses ranging from nepotism to an inappropriate relationship between two VA employees.

The inspector general accused one recently retired VA official of acting "as if she was given a blank checkbook" as awards and bonuses were distributed to employees of the Office of Information and Technology in 2007 and 2008. In some cases the justification for the bonuses was inadequate or questionable, the IG said.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090821/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_veterans_bonuses

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Why are they giving bonuses at the VA in the first place?

[MetaTrope]

1. Office of Information and Technology...identity theft anyone?

I seem to recall a number of reports of stolen data at the VA arising in recent years.

[BlueJazz]

2. "We gave out Bonuses for very good reasons...like perfect attendance"

:rofl:

[Robb]

3. Hm.

In 2007 alone, 4,700 employees were awarded bonuses, on average $2,500 each.

I'll admit this part doesn't sound awful. But expect to hear a lot about this in relation to "government-run health care."

[TBF]

4. Yes, the right-wingers will jump on it (and probably invented the story),

at which time they should be reminded about the bank bailouts and record bonuses the traders are getting again this year. Which are in the six-seven figures as opposed to a paltry $2500.

[madmom]

6. Yes but it was a bush run government, everything was different for them.

[tkauf0310]

5. non profit?

A non-profit shuld never be giving out bonuses. That's the kind of thing where people start talking about "their tax money'. I love the VA, but if employees in government want bonuses, they need to get out of service jobs.

[CreekDog]

8. Agencies have annual budgets for awards so they can reward good performance

I don't see what the big deal is.

Frequently, these bonuses work out to about 1% of annual salary.

Also, a number of years ago, VA had trouble retaining high technology employees with their pay scales and to address that they came up with a new pay classification which provided a premium for these employees as well as increased ability to pay retention bonuses for hard to keep employees.

This is just common sense. The government is saving money by paying bonuses by reducing turnover. Hiring a new employee often costs at least twice their annual salary by the time you train them.

[PSPS]

7. What? Another scandle involving federal money during the bush years? What a surprise!

[notesdev]

9. VA workers given millions in bonuses as vets await checks

Source: CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- While hundreds of thousands of disability claims lay backlogged at the Department of Veterans Affairs, thousands of technology employees at the department received $24 million in bonuses, a new report says.

A report issued by the VA's Office of Inspector General said the department issued millions of dollars in awards over a two-year period in 2007 and 2008.

"The frequent and large dollar amount awards given to employees were unusual and often absurd," the report stated.

The reports also called the payments "not fiscally responsible."

Four high-level employees received about $60,000, $73,000, $58,000, and $59,000, respectively, according to the report, without sufficient justification. Another employee received a $4,500 performance award within the first 90 days of her employment from a manager who said that she did not even remember her.


...

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/08/22/veterans.affairs.bonuses/index.html?iref=mpstoryview

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[MichiganVote]

10. Sigh..............

[AlinPA]

11. Headline never mentions that it happened during Bush**'s term.

[bertman]

12. This is part and parcel of big bureaucracy regardless of ilk. I have friends who work in

state government and local city governments. They comment frequently on two issues: people holding jobs and getting paychecks for doing little or no work, and people sand-bagging (doing as little work as possible) so more workers are hired by the government entity.

Then, you get the ones who are so arrogant as to authorize "bonuses" of thousands of dollars for fellow employees who do not deserve them.

This is the kind of crap that should be dealt with harshly--firings and public exposure, yet is often glossed over or covered up entirely because it would make politicians look bad.

Thanks for reporting this, notesdev. The part that REALLY pisses me off is the humongous backlog of unprocessed claims while these dipshits are getting bonuses.

[DollyM]

13. I know . . . while they skimp on care to veterans . . .

I saw an ad wanting nurses for VA that promised a $1000.00 bonus just for signing on and then another $1000.00 bonus after, I think, 30 days of employment. Meanwhile, we had to fight with VA to send my husband to a foot specialist while he nearly lost his foot due to an infection. I remember the nurse that was bandaging up my husbands foot told him that they had to beg for tape that did not pull on wounds when they changed dressings. VA kept denying them this until one of the top people had a spouse that had surgery there and the "special" bandages were ordered for their spouse. Then they couldn't deny it for the "regular" VA patients. Sorry, but VA is corrupt in many places. Veterans have a mind set of total obedience when they go to a VA facility as they have been trained this way and they won't speak up and say what they need or question the care, or lack thereof, that the are receiving. I still say we need to do away with the VA health care system and just give all Veterans medical cards so that they can use their local Dr and hospital. It would save millions of dollars that is being spent on VA medical administration costs as well as building upkeep and bonuses like mentioned here. That money could go back into the VA system. Our closest VA is 70 miles yet our family Dr. is five miles down the road. Seriously, who do you think we really want to go see?

[JDPriestly]

17. Here in L.A., the VA system is great.

The VA is cheaper than your local doctor and hospital. Can you afford insurance to see your local doctor? If not, then you want a public option. The costs and overhead for your private for-profit hospital will be higher than those at VA or in a public option arrangement.

You basically want the taxpayers to subsidize expensive private care for you. The taxpayers probably won't want to do that unless the taxpayers can form a large enough pool (through a public option) to give them leverage so that you can get the insurance that lets you see your local doctor.

That is what this whole insurance reform is about.

[DollyM]

20. VA care is VERY inconsistent in quality . . .

That is one of my beefs with the VA system. Our nearest VA (70 miles) was investigated a couple of years ago because of an unusually high number of deaths coming out of the surgery center. Turns out, VA hired a Dr. that has lost his licence in another state because of several botched surgeries from there. I have always said that DR's that could not get on anywhere else hid out in VA and it was true. Many other issues with lack of quality care came out in this investigation. The government shut down their surgery center and only recently began allowing simple surgeries there. Yet, this is a hospital and the only one supposedly available to Veterans in our area. No thanks, we will go our our local Dr. No, we don't have insurance, cant get it because of my husband having diabetes. He lost his job nearly a year ago so things are about as bad as they can get.
(VA was sued by several of the families that lost loved ones in these botched surgeries and paid out several million dollars. Believe me, THAT came out of the taxpayers pocket!)

[nightrain]

14. I had no idea that the government paid bonuses. especially sad when more vet actual care is needed

[marybourg]

16. They certainly didn't when I worked for DoD. Commendations

and Certificates were all we got and no perks at all. We had to pay to have our own business cards printed up. And we certainly couldn't keep our own frequent flier miles.

[JDPriestly]

18. The government pays enlistment and re-enlistment

bonuses to servicemen all the time. I'm unaware of bonuses in other branches of the federal government. Maybe I just don't know about them.

The tradition of sign up and re-enlist bonuses in the U.S. military started under Washington who offered them to his troops after the battle of Trenton. That battle took place around Christmas 1776 and many of the troops were entitled to go home around the end of that December. He paid them bonuses to get them to stay a little longer. Maybe as many a half of them were seriously injured, became ill or died in during their remaining service.

[jwirr]

19. And won't that apply to VA employees? Aren't they enlisted in the

military? When I worked at Social Services we were understaffed - one worker had 105 Medicaid cases to handle all by herself. She ended up having a nervous breakdown. We did not get bonuses of any kind. We also did not have the kind of waiting lists you are talking about - we did our jobs.

[dixiegrrrrl]

15. This headline ought to be put on the window of every recruiting office.