a.  Definition.  An admonishment is a written statement of censure given to an employee for a minor act of misconduct.

b.  Procedure.  An admonishment will be in the form of an official letter to the employee describing the reasons for the action.  It will advise the employee that a copy of the admonishment and any written explanation or comments regarding the admonishment will be placed in the employee's Official Personnel Folder (OPF).  The admonishment will contain a statement advising the employee of the right to appeal the action under the grievance procedure in MP-5, part 1, chapter 771 or the negotiated grievance procedure, as appropriate, and will also contain a statement informing the employee of the withdrawal provisions.  Before release to the  employee, the admonishment will be forwarded to the Human Resources Management Office for review and concurrence.  A sample letter of an admonishment appears in appendix A, figure 1.

c.   Withdrawal of Admonishment.  After 2 years (or whatever time frame is specified in any applicable labor-management agreement), admonishments will be removed from the OPF and destroyed.  However, in cases of patient abuse, an admonishment may be retained in the OPF for as long as the individual is employed by VA.  The employee's supervisor may, after 6 months, make a written request to the Human Resources Management Officer that the admonishment be withdrawn, if the employee's conduct so warrants.  Upon receipt of such a request, the Human Resources Management Officer will return the admonishment to the supervisor for destruction.  If the request is initiated by a supervisor below the level of the official who issued the admonishment, it must be approved at or above the level of the official who issued it.

(1)   In determining whether an admonishment should be withdrawn early, consideration should be given to the fact that it may not be used after its withdrawal as a past disciplinary record in connection with any future proposed disciplinary or adverse action.  This is especially Important with respect to admonishments for patient abuse.

(2)   When an admonishment has been withdrawn early and destroyed, the supervisory official will inform the employee. In order to assure the employee that no record remains in the OPF, the supervisor may wish to destroy it in the employee's presence or give it to the employee for disposition.

(3) Since the admonishment may be appealed under the grievance procedure initially and, except in patient abuse cases, will automatically be removed from the OPF after 2 years, a grievance may not be filed based on a supervisor's decision not to remove it earlier than the expiration date.

d.   Right to File a Grievance.  The employee may appeal an admonishment under the VA grievance procedure in MP-5, part 1, chapter 771, or under the negotiated grievance procedure, as appropriate.  Under the VA grievance procedure, the grievance must be submitted through supervisory channels not later than 15 days after receipt of the admonishment.  Grievances from bargaining unit employees must be filed in accordance with the provisions of the applicable negotiated grievance procedure.  Reference should be made to that procedure for the appropriate steps and time limits.
 

2. REPRIMAND

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a.   Definition.  A reprimand is a written statement of censure given to an employee for misconduct.

b.   Procedure.  A reprimand will be in the form of an official letter to the employee describing the reasons for the action.  It will advise the employee that a copy of the reprimand and any written explanation or comments regarding the reprimand will be placed in the employee's OPF.  The reprimand will contain a statement of the right to appeal the action under the VA's grievance procedure in MP-5, part 1, chapter 771, or the negotiated grievance procedure, as appropriate, and will also contain a statement informing the employee of the withdrawal provisions.  Before release to the employee, the reprimand will be forwarded to the Human Resources Management Office for review and concurrence.  A sample letter of reprimand appears in appendix A, figure 2.

c.   Withdrawal of Reprimand.  After 3 years (or whatever time frame is specified in any applicable labor-management agreement), a reprimand will be removed from the OPF and destroyed.  However, in cases of patient abuse, the reprimand may be retained in the OPF for as long as the individual is employed by VA.  The employee's supervisor may, after 2 years, make a written request to the Human Resources Management Officer that the reprimand be withdrawn, if the employee's conduct so warrants.  Upon receipt of such a request, the Human Resources Management Officer will return the reprimand to the supervisor for destruction.  If the request is initiated by a supervisor below the level of the official who issued the reprimand, it must be approved at or above the level of the official who issued it.

(1)   In determining whether a reprimand should be withdrawn early, consideration should be given the fact that after its withdrawal, it may not be used as a past disciplinary record in connection with any future proposed disciplinary or adverse action.  This is especially important with respect to reprimands for patient abuse.

(2)   When a reprimand has been withdrawn early and destroyed, the supervisory official will so inform the employee.  In order to assure the employee that no record remains in the OPF, the supervisor may wish to destroy it in the employee's presence or give it to the employee for disposition.

(3)   Since the reprimand may be appealed under the grievance procedure initially and, except in patient abuse cases, will automatically be removed from the OPF after 3 years, a grievance may not be flied based on a supervisor's decision not to remove it earlier than the expiration date.

d.  Right to File a Grievance.  The employee may appeal the reprimand under the VA grievance procedure in MP-5, part 1, chapter 771, or under the negotiated grievance procedure, as appropriate.  Under the VA grievance procedure, the grievance must be submitted through supervisory channels not later than 15 calendar days after receipt of the reprimand.  Grievances from bargaining unit employees must be filed in accordance with the provisions of the applicable negotiated grievance procedure.  Reference should be made to that procedure for the appropriate steps and time limits.
 

3.  DISCIPLINARY SUSPENSION OF  .......14 CALENDAR DAYS OR LESS

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a.   Actions Covered.  The provisions of this paragraph apply to suspensions of 14 calendar days or less.

b.  Employees Covered.  This paragraph applies to all VA employees except:

(1)  Employees in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) appointed under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 74 covered by a proficiency rating system. (Note: Employees appointed under 38 U.S.C. 7401(2) and (3) are covered by the provisions of this section.)

(2)   Canteen Service employees appointed under 38 U.S.C. 78 (see Veterans Canteen Service Procedures, VCS-1);

(3)  Schedule C employees;

(4)  An individual appointed by the President;

(5)  Re-employed annuitants; and,

(6)  Members of the Senior Executive Service.

c.  Employee Entitlements

(1)  An advance notice stating the specific reasons for the proposed suspension;

(2)  A reasonable time to answer, orally or in writing, or both orally and in writing, and to furnish affidavits or other documentary evidence in support of the answer;

(3)  The right to be represented by an attorney or other representative;

(4)  The right to review the evidence relied upon to support the proposed action (evidence which may not be disclosed to the employee or the employee's designated representative may not be used to support the reasons in a notice of proposed suspension).  The evidence will be maintained in the Human Resources Management Office;

(5)   A reasonable amount of official time, if otherwise in a duty status, for reviewing the material relied upon to support the proposed action, and for preparing and presenting a written and/or oral reply.  This also applies to the employee's representative, If a VA employee;

(6)  The right to reply to either the decision official or to someone with authority to recommend what the final decision should be;

(7)   A written decision and the specific reasons supporting the decision at the earliest practicable date; and,

(8)   The right to appeal the action under the VA grievance procedure or under the negotiated grievance procedure, as appropriate.  There is no right of appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board of a disciplinary suspension of 14 days or less.

d.  Procedures

(1)  Preparation.  The appropriate supervisory official, with the assistance of the Human.
Resources Management Office, will prepare and issue the advance notice of proposed suspension.

(2)   Review.  Before being given to the employee, the notice will be reviewed by the Human Resources Management Office for compliance with applicable statutes, regulations, labor management agreements, and VA policy.  The Human Resources Management Office should also review the evidence and, if indicated, make a recommendation to the proposing official concerning the propriety of the action.

(3)   Content of Proposed Notice.  The advance notice of proposed suspension must contain the following information (see app.  A, fig. 3):

(a)  the number of days that it is proposed that the employee be suspended;

(b)  a statement of the specific reasons for the proposed action, including names, dates, places, and other data, sufficient to enable the employee to fully understand the reasons and to afford the employee a reasonable opportunity to respond to them;

(c)   a statement that the employee has the right to be represented by an attorney or other representative;

(d)   a statement that the employee has the right to reply orally or in writing, or both orally and in writing, and to submit affidavits and other documentary evidence in support of the reply;

(e)   a statement of the amount of time the employee has to submit the reply or replies (time limits may vary according to applicable labor-management agreements, but in no event may be less than 24 hours).

(f)   a statement informing the employee that the material relied upon to support the reasons for the proposed suspension will be made available to the employee and his/her representative upon request;

(g)   a statement that if the employee has any questions about the reasons for the proposed suspension, he or she may contact the official who signed the proposed notice or the Human Resources Management Office for further explanation;

(h)  a statement identifying the decision official;

(i)  a statement that the employee's written reply should be Submitted through supervisory channels to the decision official and that the decision official or his or her designee will receive the employee's oral reply;

(j)   when an employee's past disciplinary record is to be considered as part of the basis for the proposed suspension, a statement will be included that specifically cites and identifies the previous infractions and penalties, and advises the employee that he or she may make a statement concerning the consideration to be given to the past record in determining a penalty in the present case;

1  If cited, the previous disciplinary record will not be set forth as a current reason, but will be stated in a paragraph separate and apart from the current reasons.  In order to be cited in the post record paragraph, the disciplinary action must meet the following requirements:

(a)  The action must have been in writing;

(b)  The action must be a matter of record; and

(c)  The employee must have been given an opportunity to contest the action to a higher authority than the official who imposed it. (Note: Challenges to the past action need not be completed prior to citing the action in the past record paragraph.)

2.   Counselings and charges of "Absent Without Leave" (AWOL) without concurrent disciplinary action are not disciplinary actions and may not be included in the past record paragraph, However, counselings may be cited in a separate paragraph and may be considered in determining appropriate action against an employee.  If such counselings are cited, the counseling must have been in writing and must be included in the evidence file used to support the proposed action.  Any references to letters or memoranda of counseling in the proposal letter must be sufficiently clear so as to enable the employee to comment on the weight to be given to the counseling in determining the final action.

3.  Suspensions may not be cited in the past record paragraph unless the suspension has actually been served by the employee.

(k)   a statement that full and impartial consideration will be given to the employee's reply, if a reply is made;

(l)   a statement that the employee will be given a written decision as soon as possible after his or her reply has been fully considered or after the expiration of the time allowed for reply, if the employee does not reply;

(4)  Employee's Reply

(a)   If the employee requests an opportunity to reply orally, the decision official will receive
the employee's reply or will designate a representative to receive it.  The representative designated to receive the reply will be an official who has authority to recommend what final decision should be made.  The right to reply orally includes the right to be given a reasonable opportunity to make any plea which the employee believes might sway the final decision in his or her case.  The employee's oral reply must not be restricted to matters dealing solely with the charges against him or her.  The employee must be permitted to plead extenuating circumstances or make any other argument he or she deems proper.

(b)   A written summary of the employee's oral reply must be made and placed in the evidence file.  If a designee is named to hear the oral reply, the summary may contain a specific recommendation on the proposed action.

(c)   The employee may reply in writing to the notice in addition to making an oral reply or instead of an oral reply.

(d)   An employee's failure to reply is not to be considered an admission of the charges.  The burden of proof rests with management to support its reasons for the action.

(5)  Arriving at a Final Decision on a Proposed Suspension

(a)   The decision official will give full and impartial consideration to the employee's reply, if any, and all evidence of record.  If the decision official finds one or more of the reasons in the advance notice sustained, he or she will give consideration to the table of examples of offenses and penalties in appendix D to this chapter in determining the appropriate penalty.  This appendix also lists several factors to consider in arriving at a decision.

(b)   A decision adverse to the employee must be based only on the reasons stated in the notice of proposed action.  If none of the reasons are sustained, either in whole or in part, no penalty may be imposed, regardless of any past record cited in the notice.

(c)  The penalty may not be more severe than that proposed in the notice of proposed action.

(d)   If the notice of proposed suspension is determined to be procedurally defective, or if it is found that additional reasons other than those set forth should be considered or that the appropriate penalty should be more severe than that proposed, the notice of proposed suspension will be rescinded and a new notice of proposed action issued.  The new notice will include a new advance notice period and another opportunity to reply orally or in writing, or both orally and in writing.

(6)  Decision Notice

(a)   The decision letter will be dated and signed by the appropriate decision official, and will be delivered to the employee prior to the effective date of the action.

(b)   Before the decision is released to the employee, it will be reviewed by the Human Resources Management Office for compliance with applicable statutes, OPM regulations, and VA policies.  The Human Resources Management Office will also review the merits of the case and any mitigating factors and, if indicated, advise the decision official concerning the propriety of the action.

(c)  The decision letter will contain the following information (see app.  A, fig. 4):

1.   A statement that consideration has been given to all evidence developed, including the employee's reply.  A written reply made by a representative on behalf of the employee is considered to be an employee's reply.  If the employee replies both orally and in writing, both replies must be mentioned.

2.   A statement of the decision official's determinations regarding what reasons, if any, in the advance notice were sustained and what reasons, if any, were not sustained.

3.   If a record of prior disciplinary actions was cited in the advance notice, the decision will state whether the action takes the past record, as cited in the advance notice, into consideration in determining proper action.

4.  A statement of the inclusive dates of the suspension.

5.  A statement concerning the employee's rights to file a grievance, and the time limit within which it is must be filed.

6.  A statement advising the employee that a further explanation of his or her appeal rights may be obtained by consulting the Human Resources Management Office.

(d)  The guidelines in section C, paragraph 13e, concerning delivery should be followed.