Protecting VA Employees Act

The "Protecting VA Employees Act" aims to standardize disciplinary procedures for certain Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees by repealing special, expedited processes for their removal, demotion, and suspension. This legislation amends titles 38 and 5 of the United States Code to ensure that these VA personnel are subject to the same disciplinary policies and procedures as other employees across the federal government. The bill specifically targets provisions that allowed for quicker disciplinary actions against VA employees, which were introduced by the 2017 VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act. Furthermore, the Act makes significant conforming amendments to Title 38, including striking subsections related to the expedited disciplinary actions and redesignating remaining sections to focus on whistleblower protections . It renames and repositions the section concerning whistleblower safeguards, ensuring these critical protections remain in place for VA employees. Finally, the bill restores specific disciplinary and grievance procedures for personnel within the Veterans Health Administration to their original form, as they existed prior to the enactment of the 2017 accountability legislation.