Government employee whistleblowers are awaiting a potentially major decision in the case of Berry v. Conyers, prompting the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”) to file an amicus curiae brief for consideration by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in the case.  According to an OSC press release, the case concerns two [...]

Late last year, federal employees, government whistleblowers, and advocates for LGBT equality cheered when Scott Bloch, the former head of the Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”), a federal agency, was charged with destruction of government property.  Mr. Bloch is the subject of a longstanding investigation by the Office of Personnel Management’s Office of Inspector General [...]

Government whistleblowers who suffered for years under the failed leadership of the former head of the Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”), Scott Bloch, received encouraging news on December 21, 2012, when the government charged Bloch with the destruction of government property.  The government alleges that on or about December 18, 2006, Bloch directed that a [...]

Three civilian whistleblowers employed by the U.S. Army have been granted a stay of disciplinary action against them in a proceeding before the Merit Systems Protection Board (“MSPB”), the administrative body responsible for resolving disputes between federal employees and government agencies.  The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”) requested the stay from the MSPB after [...]

Ann O’Hanlon, spokeswoman for the Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”), announced last week that the OSC was projecting a record number of reported incidents from whistleblowers in fiscal year 2012.  GovExec.com, a government business news daily, reported on July 26, 2012, that through the first three quarters of the fiscal year, the OSC has received [...]

Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”) issued a memorandum on June 20, 2012, calling for government agency heads and agency general counsels to exercise caution when implementing policies monitoring employee communications.  The memorandum noted that while there were legitimate purposes for monitoring employee communications, monitoring must not interfere with [...]

The United States Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”) sent a letter to the White House and Congress yesterday urging more effective oversight of air safety on the part of the Department of Transportation’s (“DOT’s”) Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”).  In a press release, the OSC noted that the FAA has one of the highest rates of [...]

Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner of the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”) testified yesterday before the Senate Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia.  The OSC is a federal agency which works to protect federal employees and applicants from prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisal for whistleblowing.  Lerner spoke [...]

In an encouraging follow-up to a story we have blogged about before, the U.S. Office of the Special Counsel (“OSC”) has released its investigative report regarding the whistleblower retaliation that took place at the Port Mortuary in Dover, Delaware.  The report found that three United States Air Force officials – Quinton Randall Keel, Port Mortuary [...]

In its budget request for fiscal year 2013, the White House requested $18.7 million for the Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”).  As the government watchdog website MSPBWatch reports, this was less than was requested or appropriated last year — $19.5 million and $19 million, respectively.  This lowering in funding comes despite the fact that, as [...]