Court Opinion

ID: 9372801
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-02-22 16:00:46.054968+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:16:37.699992
License: Public Domain

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
                        MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD

     MARCOS MELENDEZ,                                DOCKET NUMBER
                 Appellant,                          DC-1221-16-0303-W-1

                  v.

     DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE,                          DATE: February 21, 2023
                 Agency.

                  THIS ORDER IS NONPRECEDENTIAL 1

           Nina Ren, Washington, D.C., for the appellant.

           Michael J. Buxton, and William R. Kraus, Alexandria, Virginia, for
             the agency.

                                           BEFORE

                               Cathy A. Harris, Vice Chairman
                                Raymond A. Limon, Member
                                 Tristan L. Leavitt, Member

                                     REMAND ORDER

¶1         The appellant has filed a petition for review of the initial decision, which
     dismissed this individual right of action (IRA) appeal for lack of jurisdiction. For
     the reasons discussed below, we GRANT the appellant’s petition for review ,

     1
        A nonprecedential order is one that the Board has determined does not add
     significantly to the body of MSPB case law. Parties may cite nonprecedential orders,
     but such orders have no precedential value; the Board and administrative judges are not
     required to follow or distinguish them in any future decisions. In contrast, a
     precedential decision issued as an Opinion and Order has been identified by the Board
     as significantly contributing to the Board’s case law. See 5 C.F.R. § 1201.117(c).
                                                                                 2

     REVERSE the initial decision, and REMAND the case to the regional office for
     further adjudication in accordance with this Remand Order.

                                      BACKGROUND
¶2         In this IRA appeal, the appellant, a GS-14 General Engineer in the agency’s
     Office of Inspector General (OIG), asserted that the agency subjected him to a
     hostile work environment, put him on a performance improvement plan (PIP), and
     lowered his October 16, 2015 performance evaluation in reprisal for his alleged
     protected disclosures of a hostile work environment in OIG Oversight and
     Technical Assessment Directorate (TAD). Initial Appeal File (IAF), Tabs 1, 4,
     13, 20-22.     He alleged that on November 21, 2014, he wrote letters to
     Congressman Gerry Connolly and Senators Charles Grassley, Tim Kaine, and
     Mark Warner, regarding the treatment of employees, including himself, by his
     first- and second-level supervisors, the Director of the OIG TAD (Director) and
     the Deputy Inspector General for Policy and Oversight (Deputy). IAF, Tab 4 at 4,
     10-13. He also alleged that he had made similar protected disclosures to the OIG
     Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Office and to the Internal Review
     Division (IRD) employees tasked with investigating his allegations. Id. at 4-5.
     The appellant further alleged that his subsequent contacts with agency officials,
     and his follow-up disclosures with Senator Grassley’s office, which he contended
     gave his supervisors confirmation that the Deputy was the subject of a
     congressional inquiry, also constituted protected activity. Id. at 6-9.
¶3         Without holding the requested hearing, the administrative judge issued an
     initial decision dismissing the appellant’s appeal for lack of jurisdiction. IAF,
     Tab 1, Tab 24, Initial Decision (ID). Although he found that the appellant had
     exhausted his administrative remedies before the Office of Special Counsel
     (OSC) and had made nonfrivolous allegations that the agency had placed him on a
                                                                                       3

     PIP and subjected him to a hostile work environment, 2 the administrative judge
     found that the appellant had failed to nonfrivolously allege that he had made a
     protected disclosure because his purported disclosure lacked “sufficient,
     far-reaching importance.” ID at 4-6.
¶4         In his petition for review, the appellant challenges the administrative
     judge’s finding that he failed to make a protected disclosure. Petition for Review
     (PFR) File, Tab 1 at 4-6.     He also argues that his protected disclosures were
     contributing factors to the personnel actions at issue in this IRA appeal.            Id.
     at 6-8.   Lastly, the appellant challenges the administrative judge’s failure to
     address his October 2015 performance evaluation. Id. at 9. The agency responds
     in opposition. PFR File, Tab 3.

                     DISCUSSION OF ARGUMENTS ON REVIEW
¶5         Under the Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA), the Board has jurisdiction
     over an IRA appeal if the appellant has exhausted his administrative remedies
     before OSC and makes nonfrivolous allegations that: (1) he made a disclosure
     described under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8) or engaged in a protected activity
     described under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D); and (2) the
     disclosure or protected activity was a contributing factor in the agency's decis ion
     to take or fail to take a personnel action. 3 Corthell v. Department of Homeland

     2
       Concerning the appellant’s October 16, 2015 performance evaluation, even though the
     appellant exhausted this personnel action with OSC, the administrative judge
     determined before the close of the record that the appellant was precluded from
     appealing his evaluation to the Board because he had filed an informal grievance on the
     issue before filing his IRA appeal. IAF, Tab 20 at 2. The agency subsequently
     conceded that the appellant was not covered by a collective bargaining agreement, such
     that its informal grievance procedure did not preclude him from also appealing the
     performance evaluation in his IRA appeal, IAF, Tab 22 at 7, but, despite this
     concession, the administrative judge did not address the performance evaluation in his
     initial decision.
     3
      The WPA has been amended several times, including by the Whistleblower Protection
     Enhancement Act of 2012.    The references herein to the WPA include those
                                                                                      4

     Security, 123 M.S.P.R. 417, ¶ 8 (2016). A nonfrivolous allegation is one that, if
     proven, could establish the matter at issue, is more than conclusory, plausible on
     its face, and is material to the legal issues of the appeal. 5 C.F.R. § 1201.4(s).

     The appellant made a nonfrivolous allegation of a protected disclosure.
¶6         On November 21, 2014, the appellant sent identical letters to his
     representative in the U.S. House of Representatives and three U.S. Senators. IAF,
     Tab 4 at 4, 10-13. The letter stated, among other things, that his workplace had
     become “increasingly unreasonable, hostile, abusive, and degrading,” and he
     sought their assistance in initiating an “immediate investigation of this constant
     abuse, berating, discrimination, and harassment against [himself] and [his]
     coworkers.” Id. at 10. Shortly thereafter, the appellant made similar complaints
     to the agency’s EEO office and to IRD during their subsequent investigations. Id.
     at 14-18.
¶7         At the outset, we agree with the administrative judge that the appellant
     failed to nonfrivolously allege that he disclosed gross mismanagement. ID at 6.
     Neither the PIP nor the alleged hostile work environment represents management
     action or inaction that would create a substantial risk of significant adverse
     impact on the agency’s ability to accomplish its mission. ID at 6; see Embree v.
     Department of the Treasury, 70 M.S.P.R. 79, 85 (1996).
¶8         However, the same is not true for the appellant’s contention that the hostile
     work environment he allegedly disclosed represented an abuse of authority. PFR
     File, Tab 1 at 5. The Board has found that supervisory bullying, harassment, or
     intimidation may constitute an abuse of authority.          See Special Counsel v.
     Costello, 75 M.S.P.R. 562, 580 (1997), rev’d on other grounds, 182 F.3d 1372
     (Fed. Cir. 1999).    Under the WPA, an abuse of authority is an arbitrary or
     capricious exercise of power by a Federal official or employee that adversely

     amendments. We have also reviewed the relevant legislation enacted since the filing of
     this appeal and find that it does not impact the outcome.
                                                                                        5

      affects the rights of any person or that results in personal gain or advantage to
      himself or to preferred other persons. Pulcini v. Social Security Administration,
      83 M.S.P.R. 685, ¶ 9 (1999), aff’d, 250 F.3d 758 (Fed. Cir. 2000).
¶9         The appellant has alleged an arbitrary and capricious exercise of power by
      his supervisors that adversely affected him and his colleagues in TAD.            IAF,
      Tab 21 at 5-10. Because there is no de minimis standard for abuse of authority,
      we find that the appellant has made a nonfrivolous allegation that he made a
      protected disclosure of an abuse of authority. Pulcini, 83 M.S.P.R. 685, ¶ 9.

      The appellant made a nonfrivolous allegation that his disclosure was a
      contributing factor in the personnel actions at issue.
¶10        To satisfy the contributing factor criterion at the jurisdictional stage of an
      IRA appeal, the appellant only need raise a nonfrivolous allegation that the fact or
      the content of the protected disclosure was one factor that tended to affect the
      personnel action in any way. E.g., Bradley v. Department of Homeland Security,
      123 M.S.P.R. 547, ¶ 13 (2016).       One way to establish this criterion is the
      knowledge/timing test, under which an employee may nonfrivolously allege that
      the disclosure was a contributing factor in a personnel action throu gh
      circumstantial evidence, such as evidence that the official who took the personnel
      action knew of the disclosure and that the personnel action occurred within a
      period of time such that a reasonable person could conclude that the disclosure
      was a contributing factor in the personnel action. Id.
¶11        The administrative judge found that the appellant failed to nonfrivolously
      allege that his disclosure was a contributing factor in the personnel actions he
      alleged, remarking that he failed to identify any event or circumstance that might
      have given his supervisors knowledge about his disclosures.          ID at 7-8.    We
      disagree. The appellant alleged that his disclosures were a contributing factor in
      the personnel actions at issue because, shortly following his disclosures to
      members of congress, the Director announced in a weekly group staff meeting
      that the Deputy had just identified himself as the subject of an IRD investigation.
                                                                                          6

      IAF, Tab 4 at 4. The appellant also argued that the small size of his office gr oup
      would have made it easy for the Director and the Deputy to figure out who was
      the source of the disclosures that spurred the subsequent EEO and IRD
      investigations.   Id. at 4-5. Additionally, the appellant alleged that the Deputy
      observed him leaving the office of the OIG’s Chief of Staff under circumstances
      that suggest the appellant may have made a complaint. PFR File, Tab 1 at 8; IAF,
      Tab 4 at 8.
¶12         We find that these allegations, considered in context, amount to a
      nonfrivolous allegation that the appellant’s supervisors were aware of his alleged
      protected disclosures.    See Cahill v. Merit Systems Protection Board, 821 F.3d
      1370, 1374-75 (Fed. Cir. 2016) (finding that the appellant’s allegation of a small
      group meeting in which his disclosures were discussed adequately conveyed a
      contention that at least one of the pertinent individuals was aware of the
      disclosure at issue). Moreover, despite the agency’s assertions to the contrary,
      for example, the contention that agency management had concerns about the
      appellant’s performance that predated his disclosures, IAF, Tab 22 at 10-11,
      Tab 15 at 129, 135-36, such arguments are properly considered in the merits
      phase of an IRA appeal, and cannot defeat an otherwise sufficient allegatio n of
      jurisdiction, see, e.g., Piccolo v. Merit Systems Protection Board, 869 F.3d 1369,
      1371 (Fed. Cir. 2017); see also Hessami v. Merit Systems Protection Board,
      979 F.3d 1362, 1369 (Fed. Cir. 2020) (“The Board may not deny jurisdiction by
      crediting the agency’s interpretation of the evidence as to whether the alleged
      disclosures fell within the protected categories or whether the disclosures were a
      contributing factor to an adverse personnel action[.]”). 4 Furthermore, any doubt

      4
        Historically, the Board has been bound by the precedent of the U.S. Court of Appeals
      for the Federal Circuit on these types of whistleblower issues. However, pursuant to
      the All Circuit Review Act, Pub. L. No. 115-195, 132 Stat. 1510, appellants may file
      petitions for judicial review of Board decisions in whistleblower reprisal cases with any
      circuit court of appeals of competent jurisdiction. See 5 U.S.C. § 7703(b)(1)(B).
                                                                                     7

      or ambiguity as to whether the appellant made nonfrivolous jurisdictional
      allegations should be resolved in favor of finding jurisdiction. Drake v. Agency
      for International Development, 103 M.S.P.R. 524, ¶ 11 (2006).

      The appellant’s informal grievance does not preclude             considering       his
      October 2015 performance evaluation in this IRA appeal.
¶13        Concerning the appellant’s October 16, 2015 performance evaluation, we
      find that because he is not covered by a collective bargaining agreement, he is not
      precluded by his decision to employ the agency’s informal grievance procedure to
      pursue the evaluation in his IRA appeal. See Garrison v. Department of Defense,
      101 M.S.P.R. 229, ¶ 16 (2006) (finding that, because the appellant did not file his
      grievance pursuant to a negotiated grievance procedure under a collective
      bargaining agreement, 5 U.S.C. § 7121(g) did not bar him from pursuing his IRA
      appeal).   Because the record also reflects that the appellant exhausted his
      administrative remedies before OSC on this issue, ID at 4; IAF, Tab 4 at 49, the
      administrative judge should consider the merits of the appellant’s claim that the
      agency lowered his October 2015 performance evaluation in reprisal for protected
      activity on remand.

      The appellant alleged that he engaged in activity protected under 5 U.S.C.
      § 2302(b)(9)(C).
¶14        As the appellant notes on review, he also made disclosures that may be
      protected under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(9). PFR File, Tab 1 at 5-6. The provisions of
      the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 provide that, under
      5 U.S.C. § 1221(a), if the jurisdictional requirements are otherwise met, an
      employee may seek corrective action before the Board concerning any personnel
      action taken against that individual as a result of a prohibited personnel practice
      under 5 U.S.C. § 2302(b)(8) or § 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D).      Corthell,
      123 M.S.P.R. 417, ¶ 10. On remand, after an opportunity for the parties to submit

      Therefore, we must consider these issues with the view that the appellant may seek
      review of this decision before any appropriate court of appeal.
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      evidence and argument, the administrative judge should consider whether the
      appellant established jurisdiction over these claims in his IRA appeal and, if he so
      finds, adjudicate the merits of the claims.

                                            ORDER
¶15         For the reasons discussed above, we remand this case to the regional office
      for further adjudication in accordance with this Remand Order.

      FOR THE BOARD:                                        /s/ for
                                                    Jennifer Everling
                                                    Acting Clerk of the Board
      Washington, D.C.