FEDERAL EMPLOYEE PROTECTION AGAINST REPRISALS, OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH PROGRAM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 13
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 4, 2013
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: August 21, 1987
• Content Type: MEMO

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
ROUTING AND RECORD SHEET
SUBJECT: (Optional)
FROM:
Ga E. Foster
WO
1D4040 HQ
EXTENSION
NO.
DD/4. 144i St rY
gl- //Mr
DATE
2 1 AUG 1987
TO: (Officer designation, room number, and
building)
DATE
OFFICER'S
INITIALS
COMMENTS (Number each comment to show from whom
to whom. Draw a line across column after each comment.)
RECEIVED
FORWARDED
1. DDA \ ?-1, i't
7D24 HQ
IV
,r,
1
rW-I16,MR c'F' 7)) W
!i''L i ii g IIA if
4.
2.
3.
4.
5.
(?'Z ciAji-A.24.J&S
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
FORM 61 0 EDITIONSus'PREv*us
1-79
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
U.S. Government Printing Office: 1985-494434/49156
?
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
r.D5/41 Re4istry
9-EL_:fjj9j_k____
STAT
2 1 AUG 1987
MEMORANDUM FOR: Deputy Director for Administration
FROM: Gary E. Foster
CIA Designated Safety and Health Official
SUBJECT:
REFERENCE:
Federal Employee Protection Against
Reprisals, Occupational Safety and
Health Program
Letter to Deputy Director of Administration,
CIA from Assistant Secretary, Occupational
Safety and Health, Department of Labor
1. Reference letter emphasizes concern of the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration with the issue of
reprisal and how to provide adequate protection to employees
when they exercise their rights provided in Executive Order
12196 and 29 CFR 1960. Eight elements considered essential for
the protection of employees from reprisals are listed in the
letter.
2. Executive Order 12196 states that each agency head
shall " establish procedures to assure that no employee is
subject to restraint, interference, coercion, discrimination or
reprisal for filing a report of an unsafe or unhealthy working
condition or other participation in agency occupational safety
and health program activities." Compliance with this mandate
is, of course, one of our concerns in implementing the CIA's
Occupational Safety and Health Program and is provided for in
the following:
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
STAT
3. The above publications include the eight elements
and also encourage employees to participate in the CIA OSHP and
to report unsafe or unhealthy working conditions. These
reports are handled promptly by Safety Division personnel. No
reports have been received from employees regarding restraint,
interference, coercion, discrimination or reprisal for filing
such a complaint.
cc: Chairman,
CIA Occupational Safety and Health Committee
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
STAT
STAT
STAT
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
?
22 June 1987
MEMORANDUM FOR: Chief, Safety Division, OMS
FROM:
Chairman, Agency occupational Safety and
Health Committee (OSHC)
SUBJECT: Federal Employee Protection Against Reprisals
1. In accordance with our discussion on 16 June 1987, a
copy of the attached letter with attachments from John A.
Pendergrass to William F. Donnelly on the subject was given to
you. In our discussion you indicated the Agency Safety and
Health Program has incorporated information and guidance to
employees on how to obtain protection against reprisals when
they exercise their rights under Executive Order 12196 and 29
CRF Part 1960, Basic Elements for Federal Employee Occupational
Safety and Health (S&H) Programs. Consistent with our meeting,
I am forwarding this memorandum to you requesting that you
review the Agency S&H regulations, notices, etc. to ascertain
whether or not they contain the eight elements Mr. Pendergrass
believes are essential for the protection of employees from
reprisals.
2. Once you have completed the above review, it is
requested a memorandum be prepared for Mr. Gary Foster, the
Agency's Designated Safety and Health Official)to Mr. Donnelly
outlining whether or not the Agency S&H guidance includes the
eight elements enumerated by Mr. Pendergrass, and if not, whet
needs to be done to incorporate all eight elements in the Agency
S&H Program.
Attachments
CC:
EXA/DDA
--- Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
STAT
AND intAtistermt. nu;
Data
?11 June 87
yck me. oft* symbol. room numbv..
. Alisncy/Past) -
L Chairman, Agency Occupational Safety
Initials
Date
and Health Coranittee, 1D4061 Hgs
2.
.
S.
___
Action
FIM
Sots and Return
Approval
For Clearance
Per Com,ersation
. As Requested
For Correction
Prepare Reply
'Circulate .
For Your Infoomation
See Me
? .'pzminent ,
Investigate
Signature
??!Coordlnation
Justify
REMARKS
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
U.S. Department of Labor
Assistant Secretary for
Occupational Safety and Heatth
Washington, D.C. 20210
Mr. William F. Donnelly
Deputy Director for
Administration
Central Intelligence Agency
Washington, D.C. 20505
Dear Mr. Donnelly:
IDD/A Rer-f.:--stry
67--/aL441X
Since the issuance of Executive Order 12196, the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Federal agen-
cies have been concerned with the issue of reprisal and how
to provide adequate protection for Federal employees when they
exercise their rights provided under the Executive Order and
29 CFR Part 1960, Basic Program Elements for Federal Employee
Occupational Safety and Health Programs.
The responsibility for establishing procedures and for assuring
that reprisals do not occur is placed clearly on the agency
head by both the Executive Order and the Department of Labor's
implementing regulations, 29 CFR Part 1960. The adequacy of
agencies' procedures has been the subject of frequent discus-
sion by the Federal Advisory Council on Occupational Safety
and Health.
To bring a degree of uniformity to agencies' reprisal programs
and OSHA's evaluation of those programs, we are presenting the
following eight elements which we believe are essential for
the protection of employees from reprisals:
O Issuance by the agency head of a strong policy statement
to management and employees identifying employee involvement
in the safety and health program as an important goal of
management and stating that the taking of reprisal action
against an employee for identifying unsafe or unhealthful
working, conditions or for other involvement in the program
is not to be condoned;
O Dissemination of information on employees' right to be free
from reprisal for exercising rights under Executive Order
12196;
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
-2-
Dissemination of information regarding the details of where and
with whom to file a reprisal complaint;
Investigation of reprisal complaints by an official with the
necessary ability and authority to conduct an effective inquiry
within appropriate time frames and to recommend redress if
warranted;
o The right of appeal to the agency head or an appropriate deputy
if the employee is dissatisfied with the initial denial of the
reprisal complaint;
o Provision of timely information to any certified safety and
health committees and collective bargaining representatives
concerning the findings of the investigation and the
determination;
? A means of informing the appropriate agency safety and health
office of allegations of reprisal and their disposition if
these officials are not involved in the investigation or
adjudication; and
o Inclusion of criteria in the agency's self evaluation program
which will provide information regarding the effectiveness of
the reprisal program.
It is our hope that you will review your current reprisal program
to ensure that it contains all eight elements and modify that
procedure to include any element not addressed.
OSHA for its part will utilize these eight elements, as well as
actual case experience, to judge the adequacy of reprisal proce-
dures when conducting an evaluation of an agency safety and
health program. OSHA will also continue to work through your
safety office to resolve any reprisal allegations and any.defi-
ciences alleged in agency investigative reports brought to our
attention.
Should there be any question about these procedures, please con-
tact Mr. Leo Carey, Director, Directorate of Field Operations,
OSHA, on 523-7725.
Since ely,
J hn A. Pe ergra
Assistant Secretary
Enclosure
. Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04 : CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
PRESENTATION - - REPRISALS
BACKGROUND
- Legal Authority
The Act:
Section 11 (c) which defines the Secretary's
role in private sector reprisal cases does not
apply in the Federal sector.
Section 19 which addresses "Federal Agency Safety
Programs and Responsibilities" is silent on the
issue of reprisal.
Executive Order 12196:
Section 1-201 (f) requires the head of each Federal
Agency to "Establish procedures to assure that no
employee is subject to restraint, interference,
coercion, discrimination or reprisal for filing a
report of an unsafe or unhealthy working condition,
or other participation in agency occupational
safety and health program activities."
29 CFR Part 1960.46
Section 1960.46 (a) expands somewhat on the
requirement of the Executive Order. The
responsibility is clearly on the head of the
agency to protect employees from reprisal but
specific guidelines as to how this is to be
done are not provided.
Section 1960.46 (b) required the Secretary of Labor
to evaluate agency procedures and provide findings
and recommendations to the President regarding
the handling of allegations of reprisal.
History
Section 46 (b) report to the President:
OFAP surveyed the Federal agencies to determine
what they were doing to prevent reprisal actions
from occurring.
Most agencies relied on existing grievance
procedures. Some confusion was found to exist
about the use of these procedures to prevent
reprisals and a lack of knowledge on the
part of employees was also apparent.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04 : CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Decision was to assist agencies in clarifying and
publicizing the use of procedures to prevent
reprisal and not to establish a separate procedure
for prevention of OSH reprisals.
Interface with OPM:
OPM assured OSHA and the FACOSH that sufficient
procedures existed in the Federal sector which
an agency could utilize as their reprisal
procedure or part thereof.
OFAP attempted to develop with OPM an instructive
paper for inclusion in the Federal Personnel
Manual which would outline the various existing
procedures which could be utilized by an agency
in formulation of its reprisal prevention program.
A final document was never completed - the draft
version relied almost solely on the negotiated
grievance procedure.
Reprisal experience:
Allegations of reprisal have been refered to OFAP
by Regional & Area Offices, Congressmen or sent in
directly by a complainant.
Regional staff has expressed its concern for the
adequacy of existing procedures - based on its
experience, in the field.
Few agencies appear to have fully developed and
implemented reprisal procedures - based on
evaluations of agency OSH programs.
The grievance procedures appear to contain several
inherent weaknesses - the individual complainant
cannot always retain control over the case since
the union must bring it forward; the cost of the
grievance procedure might serve to discourage
presentation of all but the strongest cases; on
large facilities with different unions, the
grievance procedure might differ from one case to
the next; employees not in the bargaining unit
may be covered by a separate agency grievance
procedure; and management could be without a
reprisal procedure at all.
- Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
OSHA Plan of Action:
In an attempt to offer an element of standard-
ization to the situation both for agency programs
and OSHA's evaluation of those programs, we are
presenting the the following eight elements
addressing both the positive and remedial aspects
of a program we believe essential for the protection
of employees from reprisal:
O Issuance by the Agency head of a positive policy
statement to management and employees identifying
employee involvement in the safety and health
program as an important goal of management
and stating that the taking of reprisal action
against an employee for identifying unsafe or
unhealthful working conditions or for other
involvement in the program as a practice not
to be condoned;
O Dissemination of information on employees' right
to be free from reprisal for exercising rights
under Executive Order 12196;
O Dissemination of information regarding the
details of where and with whom to file a
renrisal complaint;
O Investigation of reprisal complaints by an
official with the necessary ability and
authority to conduct an effective inquiry
within appropriate timeframes and to recommend
redress if warranted;
The right of appeal to the agency head or an
appropriate deputy in event the reprisal
complaint is denied;
O Provision of timely information to any
certified safety and health committees and
collective bargaining representatives concerning
the findings of the investigation and the
determination;
0
A means of informing the appropriate agency
safety and health office of allegations of
reprisal and their disposition if these
officials are not involved in the investigation
or adjudication; and
O Inclusion of criteria in the agency's self
evaluation program which will provide information
regarding the effectiveness of the reprisal
program.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
?
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
OSHA will utilize these eight elements to judge
the adequacy of reprisal procedures when conducting
an evaluation of an agency safety and health program.
OSHA will also use actual case experience in those
evaluations.
OSHA will continue to work through an agency's
safety staff to resolve any reprisal allegations
and any discrepancies alleged to exist in the
agency's investigative report brought to the
attention of OSHA. The attached flow chart depicts
how we anticipate this process working.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Reprisal Allegation Submitted to OSHA
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04: CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4
?
Basic Elements of a
Reprisal Program
Positive Steps
?10
1
Remedial Steps
? Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2013/12/04 : CIA-RDP89G00643R000300070003-4