Discrimination against hiring Veterans

[Be'Be']

Hospital Veterans Administration facilities do not have to consider "Veterans Preference" for certain medical specialties (Physicians, Dentists, Podiatrist, Chiropractors, Optometrists, Registered Nurses, Physician Assistants, and expanded-function dental auxiliaries) due to Title 38 USC 7401. Some VA facilities are using Title 38 USC 7401 as a loophole in order NOT to hire the above mentioned specialties in their facilities because professional Veteran Employees would not allow VA facilities to cut corners when providing care to Veterans.

As a Service Connected Veteran and Masters prepared Registered Nurse, I believe that Title 38 USC 7401 should be amended to include Veterans Preference for medical specialties. The Federal Government has a long standing tradition of including Veterans Preference when hiring Federal Employees.

Myself and several Veteran RN employees have attempted for 5+ to gain employment at the MEDVAMC in Houston, Texas but despite our education, experiences, etc. we have not been successful. The salient issue is that many of our former RN colleagues who are not Veterans and have less experience/education are hired. My colleagues and I have applied for a variety of positions (even staff level RN jobs that do not require Masters Degrees and Certifications but are still unsuccessful). Due to Title 38 USC 7401, we cannot inquire or obtain information with regards to candidates that were selected instead of us in order to ascertain whether or not they were more or less qualified.

On November 9, 2009, President Obama, issued an Executive Order for the Federal Government to increase employment initiatives and hiring of Veterans. MEDVAMC and many VA facilities are going backwards when it comes to hiring Veterans. The MEDVAMC is mandated to employ 40% Veteran at its facilities they are currently at 20% and have been shrinking over the last 5 years.

Veterans Preference is not an AFFIRMATIVE ACTION program. Veterans often times are automatically labeled and overlooked for jobs we are well and often times over qualified for simply because we are Veterans (example: Vietnam). Some employers discriminate against Veterans who are active Guard and Reserve members because of the weekend drills and two week annual training requirements. (Been there and witnessed with my own eyes.) Many Iraq War veterans are experiencing an extremely difficult time obtaining employment NOT because they are unqualified but due to discriminatory practices of hiring Veterans.

I remember a conversation I had with an RN Colleague and she assumed that many Veterans are mentally unstable and have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or Military Sexual Trauma and often abuse drugs and alcohol due to the stress of being in the military. Sadly, I fear that she is not alone in her assumptions although they are false.

If you are a Veteran and you are having difficulty obtaining employment at VA Hospitals please comment on this thread. I would love to hear from you.

You can also contact your local or National VSO and submit a formal complaint with the:

[COLOR=#333c41]

National Veterans Legal Services Program

P. O. Box 65762

Washington, DC 20035[COLOR=#333c41]Phone: [phone]

Email: [email protected]

Their website is:

http://www.nvlsp.org/

If you are not a Veteran and you are interested in having Title 38 Amended requiring VA facilities to include Veterans Preference I encourage you to contact the NVLS above, your congressman, and/or a local VSO organization. Thank you.

[RNsRWe, ASN, RN]

"Myself and several Veteran RN employees have attempted for 5+ to gain employment at the MEDVAMC in Houston, Texas but despite our education, experiences, etc. we have not been successful. The salient issue is that many of our former RN colleagues who are not Veterans and have less experience/education are hired. My colleagues and I have applied for a variety of positions (even staff level RN jobs that do not require Masters Degrees and Certifications but are still unsuccessful). Due to Title 38 USC 7401, we cannot inquire or obtain information with regards to candidates that were selected instead of us in order to ascertain whether or not they were more or less qualified."

This statement does not allow for even the possibility that you (or your colleagues) were not selected for a particular job or jobs for reasons OTHER than being a Veteran. Since there are many intangibles in play for hiring any candidate (for any position), how is it that you cannot possibly accept you didn't get the job you were seeking for reasons OTHER than post-military status?

[caliotter3]

I was passed over for such a job one time. After that experience, (was more qualified than the person chosen), I just decided not to seek employment in that sector. Veteran status is just one discrimination situation I prefer to avoid for my own peace of mind.

[SummitRN, BSN, RN]

OP: did you or your colleagues ever get an interview or were your applications rejected outright?

[Be'Be']

My colleague that has her Master's in Healthcare Administration and CCRN was interviewed for a staff Nurse Position in CCU at the MEDVAMC but was never called back. Mr. Seltzer who has a BSN and CCRN has never been called for an interview. We all continue to apply on a regular basis in hopes of at least receiving an interview.

Forgot to mention, the entire RN staff and manager were Filipino. My colleague, who is was an Air Force Officer, stated that the began speaking "Tegalog" during her interview which she told them was "Highly Inappropriate".

[Be'Be']

I understand your frustration. I often feel the same way. I have a great job at a civilian hospital in the Houston Texas Medical Center. I often feel that as a Veteran and Advance Practice RN I could be instrumental in improving the care that my fellow Veterans receive at the Veterans Hospital. (Yes, it would be a drastic decrease in pay.) Stories like what happened in Phoenix, AZ really saddens me.

[Be'Be']

If it walks like a duck, looks like a duck, acts like a duck, and quacks like a duck it's probably a duck. I am a service connected Veteran, I receive Health Care at the MEDVAMC. I always ask the employees about there Veteran status. The answer is always I am not a Veteran.

The MEDVAMC has been mandated since 2009 to hire 40% Veterans. I began applying for positions at that time. I have been working with a Veterans Recruitment Authority (VRA) since 2009. In 2009, MEDVAMC had approx. 28% Veterans employed at the facility. Today there are only 20% Veterans employed at the facility. The VRA that I have been working with blatantly told me that he feels the MEDVAMC is ANTI-VETERAN as he has been unsuccessful in 5 years obtaining employment for veterans there including simple Food Service Jobs. My VRA covers areas in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. In addition, former RN employees with less experience, less education have been successful at obtaining jobs there.

I have a Masters Degree as an Adult Health Clinical Nurse Specialist and a post-Masters as an Adult Gerontology Nurse Practitioner. I am CCRN Certified, ANCC Certified, and certified as a WOC. I cannot get a simple job interview for a staff nurse position? I called the Nurse Recruiter once at the MEDVAMC to inquire as to why I was found "INELIGIBLE" for a simple staff nurse job her answer "Must have been an oversight, because you were qualified".

I cannot request qualifications of nurses that were chosen instead of me due to Title 38. I even emailed someone from OPM to inquire but due to Title 38 she was not allowed to view qualifications of the chosen applicants.

[SummitRN, BSN, RN]

Other VAMCs love veteran employees and they even get special badge hangers that say Veteran.

So, if the problem is as you describe, they are discriminating against veteran status in the hiring process in Houston and this is ALREADY illegal.

Why would you try to solve illegal action at one VAMC by changing national laws? They are already breaking the law according to you. If you truly believe they are happy to break the law now in Houston, why would changing a national laws make them any more likely to follow?

Your proposed solution seems very strange and off target. Instead, you should ask for an investigation from your VSO and congressmen?

[Be'Be']

I have done that and both are in the process of investigating the facility. In addition, my colleagues and I have filed a complaint with the National Veterans Legal Services Program asking them to investigate as well.

I feel that the Houston MEDVAMC is not an isolated incidence which is the reason for my post. I am illuminating my experience in an effort to find out if other Veterans have experienced similar issues.

[Be'Be']

"Veterans Preference" is extended to federal employees in non medical specialties why should RNs, Physicians, PAs, etc. not receive the same.

I would simply like to know why other RNs were chosen for certain positions instead of myself. The provisions in Title 38 prevent me from doing so.

[RN_2012, BSN, RN]

There is more to the hiring of someone other than qualification.

[caliotter3]

When someone begins speaking Tagalog during a conversation, you are probably being told all you need to know about the situation. For that matter, it could be German or Japanese, same difference.