VA whistleblower retaliation has been a problem even at the highest levels of the agency according to a recent investigation linked to technology contract procedures.
According to FedScoop, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection (OAWP) completed an investigation and issued a report into alleged retaliation implicating the conduct of at least one of the agency’s former Information Technology leaders.
FedScoop received an exclusive on the OAWP report that reportedly confirmed allegations of retaliation against a whistleblower by Paul Cunningham, the former VA chief information security officer (CISO).
His subordinate, IT leader Joseph Stenaka, made protected disclosures alleging wrongdoing by Cunningham in contracting procedures for software services that apparently implicated contracting practices by the CISO.
The FedScoop story indicated Stenaka was the victim of retaliation “after he raised concerns about contract negotiations between former CISO Paul Cunningham and software company Splunk.”
Stenaka was reportedly retaliated against twice by his boss as a result of his whistleblower communications. Cunningham gave Stenaka low performance ratings and removed him from his post as executive director for information security operations within VA OIT. It appears he was demoted to a similar role within Veterans Benefits Administration.
Not only did Stenaka get a low performance rating he did not deserve, but his supervisor...
The Kerala General Education Minister’s office has lodged a complaint with the state police chief, seeking immediate action against social media channels allegedly misleading students with false c...