SPEAKERS CONTENTS INSERTS
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SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN THE VA
THURSDAY, APRIL 17, 1997
House of Representatives,
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 9:37 a.m. in room 334, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. Terry Everett (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Representatives Everett, Stump, Buyer, Bilirakis, Clyburn, Evans and Snyder.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN EVERETT
Mr. EVERETT. The hearing will come to order. Please cease all conversations.
Good morning. Today's hearing by the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will examine sexual harassment issues in Department of Veterans Affairs. This is the first hearing of the 105th Congress for this subcommittee sitting alone.
Only yesterday we had a joint hearing with the Subcommittee on Health on another very important topic, the illness being suffered by Persian Gulf veterans.
Our hearing is at the request of Mr. Bilirakis of Florida, one of the most senior and active members of the full committee. He specifically requested a hearing on sexual harassment after learning of the demotion and transfer of a former VA medical center director of a Fayetteville VA Medical Center in North Carolina to the Bay Pines VA Medical Center in Florida.
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Without objection, his letter of March 5, 1997, will be made a part of the record.
His district is served by the medical center, and he has asked to participate in this hearing, although he is not assigned to this subcommittee. We are happy to have him here, and I commend him for taking this serious action.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time sexual harassment issues have been before this committee. Over 4 years ago when our present full committee Ranking Democratic Member, Mr. Evans, was chairman of this subcommittee, similar hearings occurred. I believe our Ranking Member, Mr. Clyburn, who will join us shortly, took an active in the second one back when he and I were relatively new to the committee.
We are not new anymore, and we are disappointed in what we have seen.
During the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing in September 1992, Ms. Donna Grabarczyk, a VA employee who still is on leave without pay status, stated in testimony, and I quote, ''Since when is a transfer a disciplinary action? Transfers are not the solution for habitual harassers, and by transferring these people the VA merely enables them in their illegal behavior and avoids disciplinary action.''
As a result of these hearings 4 years ago, the committee unanimously reported and the House passed a bipartisan bill, H.R. 1032, in April 1993 to provide for improved and expedited procedures for resolving complaints of unlawful employment discrimination arising within the VA. That, of course, includes sexual harassment.
However, Secretary Brown took the position that such a bill was unnecessary and that administrative actions combined with proposed legislation to cover the entire government would address the problems.
The Senate did not take up the House bill. The government-wide legislation was not enacted. Given what has happened, Mr. Evans and I intend to pick up where the previous legislation effort left off, and there will be more action soon.
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I do not question Secretary Brown's sincerity or his commitment to the zero tolerance policy he has implemented in the VA. Quite the contrary, it was a positive and necessary step.
However, nothing has been done to effectively remedy the problem the House legislation would have addressed. While the VA has a zero tolerance policy, it still has a long way to go in reaching zero tolerance and needs some help.
Back in 1993, Bob Stump, our now full committee Chairman, said the oversight hearings revealed a lack of employee confidence in fairness and timeliness of VA's EEO system, as well as fears of reprisal. Based on my review of the statements by today's witnesses, I believe the same lack of confidence and fears still exist.
Until the EEO's process in the VA becomes essentially independent of local management, I do not see how the trust of rank and file employees in the VA EEO system can be improved. I will be most interested in exploring this with our VA witnesses.
During this hearing we will have witnesses from the Fayetteville Medical Center, the EEOC, the VA, the VA Inspector General's Office, and from federal employee unions and associations.
Because the first panel of witnesses will testify about specific sexual harassment and abusive treatment which allegedly occurred at Fayetteville, I wish to advise any parents with children here today to exercise discretion in allowing them to stay.
The subcommittee's distinguished Ranking Democratic Member, Mr. Clyburn, prior to coming to Congress, was South Carolina's Human Affairs Commissioner and so his interest and expertise in EEO and sexual harassment are particularly welcome, and we will hear from him later today.
At this particular time, I would like to recognize the chairman of the full committee, Mr. Stump, for any statement he would like to make.
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Mr. STUMP. I do not have an opening statement. Thank you.
Mr. EVERETT. Mr. Evans, our Ranking Member on the full committee.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. LANE EVANS, RANKING MEMBER, FULL COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
Mr. EVANS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I want to thank you and Jim Clyburn for holding this hearing.
Obviously this is a great issue for us, and we are pursuing it on a bipartisan basis, and I look forward to working with you in terms of following up on those hearings in 1992.
Some of you may recall the compelling testimony we heard during the 1992 hearing from Donna Grabarczyk. She testified that she had been sexually assaulted by the Chief of Fiscal Service at the Lyons, New Jersey Veterans Hospital where she worked. It took the VA 7 months to investigate her allegations, and in the meantime, she was forced to live in the constant fear of another confrontation with her assailant.
Once the VA completed its investigation, the proposed resolution was to encourage her to transfer to another facility. Her harasser was allowed to take disability retirement.
In the meantime, Ms. Grabarczyk was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder because of harassment by the Director of an institution that is supposed to be helping veterans deal with their post-traumatic stress disorder problems.
Two months after her 1992 testimony, Ms. Grabarczyk was placed on leave without pay from the VA because of her harassment-related illness. She has been receiving regular medical care and therapy since December 1992. Her doctor has diagnosed her with a temporary total disability, and she is currently receiving worker's compensation because of her illness.
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She tells us she presently takes three different medications each day to treat her PTSD.
Mr. Chairman, Donna Grabarczyk's story is not a happy one. When we heard her testimony in 1992, most of us may have reasonably concluded that the worst was behind her and that there would be only minimal long-term effects from her harassment.
Obviously her troubles have not gone away since 1992. It is a tribute to the leadership of this subcommittee that the interest in this issue has not subsided since that time.
Until the VA truly addresses sexual harassment at the regional and facility levels, stories like the ones we have heard from Donna Grabarczyk, and stories like the ones we will be hearing today, will continue to be played throughout the halls of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
I believe it is our responsibility to do all we can as members of the committee to see to it that there is no need for this type of hearing 5 years from now.
In closing, I want to make it clear that I do not question Secretary Brown's personal commitment to eradicate the festering problem of sexual harassment in the VA. The Secretary's zero tolerance policy instituted in 1993 was a strong step in the right direction.
But until the VA can show that its policy has teeth, we will continue to keep the heat on the VA on this issue in the months and years to come. Our veterans and our employees of the VA who served us well should expect and deserve no less.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and at this point I would like to enter into the record a statement from Donna Grabarczyk, dated April 17, 1997. Unfortunately, because of a very serious illness in her family, she is not able to join us today, despite her willingness to do so, and I would ask that this statement be made part of the record.
Mr. EVERETT. Without objection, so ordered.
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[The attachment appears on p. 110.]
Mr. EVANS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you, Lane.
Mr. Bilirakis.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. MICHAEL BILIRAKIS, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF FLORIDA
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Chairman, thank you, and my thanks to Chairman Stump for responding to the request for scheduling today's hearing and also for giving me the opportunity to be a part of it.
During the 102nd Congress, as mentioned by both you and Mr. Evans, when the sexual harassment hearing was held, I served as the Ranking Minority Member of this same committee with Mr. Evans. At that time we heard from several VA employees who had been the victims of sexual harassment. It took a great deal of courage for these women to come forward and share their experiences with our committee, and many of these women were also subjected to acts of retaliation by their abusers and other VA employees.
Their perception, and I believe you mentioned this, which was shared by many other employees was that the VA did not take sexual harassment complaints seriously. There is a great deal of suspicion and distrust caused by too many years of apparent toleration of unacceptable behavior.
Without question, that hearing revealed that the process in place at the VA for investigating sexual harassment complaints was seriously flawed, and consequently, Mr. Chairman, this committee unanimously approved legislation which was later passed by the House to address the problems at the VA, and that was H.R. 1032, which would have provided for improved and expedited procedures for resolving complaints of employment discrimination, including sexual harassment complaints.
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When we considered H.R. 1032, Secretary Brown opposed the passage because he preferred to take administrative action instead. The Senate did not act on the bill, and it was never enacted into law.
To his credit, as mentioned by both you and Mr. Evans, and I certainly endorse your remarks in that regard, Secretary Brown did establish a policy of zero tolerance within the department early in his tenure as Secretary, and I guess the question facing us today is whether or not that policy is sufficient.
Almost 5 years after our first hearing, we're faced with a similar situation at the VA. Mr. Evans certainly set this out very, very clearly. Of course, this has been brought to our attention, I suppose, principally because of the Director of the Fayetteville Medical Center who was found to have sexually harassed one female employee, et cetera, et cetera.
The Director, as we know, was transferred to the Bay Pines VA Medical Center in St. Petersburg, which serves many of the veterans of my congressional district. He was allowed to retain a salary of more than $100,000 in a position created specifically for him.
I have, and I am sure all of us have heard from many of our constituents who are outraged by the department's actions on this matter. They do not believe that the VA took any punitive action against a senior VA employee.
I, too, have reviewed the testimony of today's witnesses. Sadly their stories do mirror those that we first heard in 1992, and despite the Secretary's zero tolerance policy, it appears that the VA has failed to adequately implement sufficient administrative procedures that deal with such complaints.
I know from their testimony that our witnesses believe that their harasser was not properly or adequately punished. In fact, they feel he was rewarded, and that is certainly the feeling that I had when I found out about it. He was clearly rewarded for his actions, not that that was the intent, but it would seem that way. Being sent to St. Petersburg, FL, certainly does not seem to me to be a very punitive type of thing.
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He got to be there with a raise in salary. This certainly appears to be the case. I am concerned that the VA's policy of zero tolerance has, at best, not been implemented uniformly and, at worst, has been ignored, and, Mr. Chairman, that is the reason you are holding this hearing.
The rest of my statement I would ask unanimous consent to be made a part of the report, and thank you so very much, sir, for being so diligent.
[The prepared statement of Congressman Bilirakis appears on p. 111.]
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you. Mr. Snyder.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. VIC SNYDER
Mr. SNYDER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Let me just say briefly I am real interested as a new member. Coming in the middle of the movie, the issues that are going to concern me are: do we have the right policy? Do we have the right people enforcing the policy? And then the third issue: are there other legal obstructions to the enforcement of that policy that we may need to look at and make changes to help the VA fulfill its goal of having zero tolerance?
And I appreciate the participation of everyone today.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you. Mr. Buyer.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. STEVE BUYER
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Chairman, I have to you an inquiry before I make a statement. I was under the understanding with you in a conversation at least 3 weeks ago that you were going to be sending out an invitation to Secretary Brown for him to appear here today, and I would like for you to explain to me whether or not that invitation ever went to the Secretary, and if so, did he respond, and what was that response?
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Mr. EVERETT. Mr. Buyer, the Secretary was invited. We invited the Secretary himself to this hearing today.
Mr. BUYER. Do you know what the date of that letter is that went out?
Mr. EVERETT. I have the staff now looking it up.
April 2.
Mr. BUYER. On April 2. All right, and what kind of response did you get from the Secretary?
Mr. EVERETT. The Secretary said he would be unable to attend, but he did designate the Assistant Secretary or Deputy.
Mr. BUYER. Did the Secretary say why he was unable to attend here today?
Mr. EVERETT. No, I have no knowledge why.
Mr. BUYER. Do you know what the date of his response was to us?
Mr. EVERETT. Can we have a copy of that letter?
Mr. BUYER. This is it, his response? April 14?
Mr. EVERETT. Right.
Mr. BUYER. I had a conversation with someone from the Secretary's staff in the hall yesterday after our meeting in which I asked. I had heard that the Secretary may not appear, and she said the Secretary was in California at a ceremony for the opening of a homeless shelter, but they never informed you of that?
Mr. EVERETT. No, I was not informed.
Mr. BUYER. I also was informed that the Secretary is back in town today and arrived perhaps about 2 hours before this hearing.
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I only want to bring that to your attention because it concerns me. Several of you are colleagues of mine on the National Security Committee, and you are well aware that I have been tasked by the chairman, Floyd Spence, to conduct the inquiry into sexual harassment, misconduct, fraternization in the U.S. military.
We also know about the zero tolerance policy we have in the U.S. military, and it appears that as we do this all-Service review with Tillie Fowler and Jane Harmon that a policy is great on paper, and that while the military is under many different attacks with regard to culture, I have a clear understanding that it is the leadership that sets the tone of the environment.
And I just wanted to say to you, Mr. Chairman, that I am disappointed the Secretary is not here, and that I will be a good listener throughout this, but I will ask of you whether or not there will be a follow-up hearing and if so, request the Secretary be here.
I have read the documents that you submitted to us last night, and I was left with a very strong sense that it appears that the VA has a ''Club Med'' level of punishment for sexual harassment that is unacceptable, and I want to have follow-on conversations with you in private.
Mr. EVERETT. I would be glad to. I would tell the gentleman that this is not the last hearing that we will have. I will also tell the gentleman that we will probably have continuous hearings on this matter until the issue is resolved to the satisfaction of this committee.
Mr. BUYER. Mr. Chairman, in the National Security Committee, the Secretaries of the Navy, the Army, the Air Force, all come and respond to us. The Secretary of Defense responds to us on this issue, and for the Secretary of the VA not to come here and respond and to be publicly accountable is unacceptable.
Mr. EVERETT. I thank the gentleman.
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The chair will now recognize Mr. Clyburn, our Ranking Member of the subcommittee.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN
Mr. CLYBURN. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
I am pleased to be here and join with you today, and I thank you for calling this important hearing, and I apologize for trying to get too much crowded into the morning.
There have been numerous and disturbing reports of the VA fostering a work environment in which women are discouraged from filing charges of sexual harassment and which insulated the most senior level officials from disciplinary action, even in light of substantiated allegations of harassment.
My close association with the Department of Veterans Affairs goes back many years, long before my joining this committee. My wife retired in 1993 from the Dorn Veterans' Hospital in Columbia after almost 30 years of service. I know this department very well.
I am particularly concerned with the serious allegations involving some of the Department's most senior career managers. I am even more concerned about the Department's handling of these cases, and what has been reported as insufficient disciplinary actions with regard to the perpetrators of these abuses.
Subsequent to this committee's hearings on this issue, in the 103rd Congress Secretary Brown announced and implemented a zero tolerance policy for sexual harassment. As mentioned by Chairman Everett, prior to coming to the Congress I spent 18 years as the South Carolina Commissioner of Human Affairs, heading an agency whose mission and authority include insuring fairness and equality in the work place.
I am interested in finding out how the Department of Veterans Affairs insures the same fairness in its work place and protects its employees from sexual harassment, how it investigates charges, and disciplines those who violate its policies.
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I look forward to this testimony this morning, and I am hopeful when it is all said and done we will, in fact, have a zero tolerance policy.
Mr. EVERETT. I thank the gentleman, and I state again that the gentleman's expertise in this field is welcomed not only by this committee, but by this Congress.
Mr. CLYBURN. Thank you.
Mr. EVERETT. I would like to welcome all of the witnesses testifying today. I realize some of our witnesses have taken time from their daily lives and have had to travel some distance to testify. I want to thank all of you in advance for being here today.
For those witnesses who are essentially private citizens and happen to be VA employees, it takes real courage to make public statements about difficult experiences and highly personal matters, and I understand that and appreciate it.
Because of the nature of some of today's testimony, I am taking an unusual step for this subcommittee hearing and have decided to have the witness panels who have direct knowledge of events testify under oath. All of these witnesses have involvement with Fayetteville or decisions made about this case.
Prior to seating the first panel of witnesses and in order to facilitate questioning, I ask unanimous consent to place the following documents in the hearing record.
Number one, the VA OIG report Number 7PR–GO2–007, dated November 8, 1996, alleged improper conduct by senior official, VA Medical Center, Fayetteville, NC, redacted.
Number two, VA Network 6 special inquiry report, subject, management effectiveness at VA Medical Center, Fayetteville, NC, dated September 26, 1996. The VA refers to this as the Whatley report. David Whatley, the author, is the VAMC Director in Augusta, GA.
Number three, VA letter of proposed removal from Dr. Leroy Gross to Jerome Calhoun, dated October 23, 1993.
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Number four, VA letter of rescission of proposed adverse action from Dr. Leroy Gross to Jerome Calhoun, dated September 6, 1996.
Number five, VA agreement of informal resolution, Jerome Calhoun, executed by Jerome Calhoun and Dr. Leroy Gross on January 14, 1997, and by Dr. Jule Moravec on January 16, 1997.
I ask that each witness limit your oral testimony to 5 minutes, and I so order that those documents be put in the record.
(See. p. 116.)
Mr. EVERETT. I ask each witness to limit your oral testimony to 5 minutes. Your complete written statements will be made part of the official hearing record.
I ask that we hold our questions until the entire panel has testified.
Will the first panel please rise and raise your right hands and repeat after me?
[Witnesses sworn.]
Mr. EVERETT. Please be seated.
The committee will now recognize our first witness, Ms. Cynthia Force.
STATEMENT OF CYNTHIA A. FORCE, DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE
Ms. FORCE. Good morning. Thank you for convening this hearing and inviting me.
Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Force, would you please pull that mic just a little bit closer to you, ma'am.
Ms. FORCE. Okay. Is that better?
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Mr. EVERETT. That is better.
Ms. FORCE. Prior to being forced to relocate to my current position, I had been assigned to work at the VA Medical Center, Fayetteville, NC. I worked as a budget analyst after being forced to ask for reassignment from my position as Chief, Medical Care Cost Recovery.
For the relevant period of time which I was employed at the VA Medical Center, Fayetteville, Jerome Calhoun served as Director. I, however, worked under the direct supervision of the Chief, Fiscal Service. It was Jerome Calhoun's unlawful behavior that forced me to leave the Fayetteville Medical Center where I had worked for 23 years.
Beginning in the fall of 1994, Jerome Calhoun asked me to have a personal relationship with him on two different occasions and once made an inappropriate comment about my body. These statements made me feel uncomfortable. I had a fear of reprisal for refusal to accept his offer. I felt demeaned and demoralized.
The working relationship started to fall apart shortly after the first two comments were made. On one occasion he became so furious that I was afraid he was actually going to strike me. He started to scream and curse at me, and he left the office, came back and started to scream again.
He later apologized to me and stated that he really missed the days when if a woman got out of line, you could just slap her around.
On May 8, I was informed by my supervisor that I was being removed from my position at Calhoun's request. My position description had been rewritten from a GS–9 to an 11–12, but I was not to be promoted to the new grade. No reason was given to me for my removal, except that Calhoun was not happy with my performance.
I asked to meet with Calhoun for an explanation of my removal, and on May 9, a meeting was held including me, Calhoun, the Chief Fiscal Officer, the EEO manager, health systems specialist, Acting Chief of Human Resources, and the Associate Director.
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I remarked that the only comment he had ever made to me regarding my performance was that you have a lot to learn, but you are doing a good job, and that did not equate to poor performance to me.
He responded that if he did not make himself clear, that that was something that he had to work on as a Director. He informed me that I could remain as MCCR Coordinator and be put on a performance improvement plan and he'd get rid of me in 90 days, or I could accept the position that was being offered by my supervisor as budget analyst.
From his remark it was clear to me that no matter what I did, in 90 days he would get rid of me. Even though I knew I was not qualified for the position of budget analyst, on May 24, 1995, as directed, I signed a memorandum requesting reassignment to the budget analyst position. Effective June 11, I was reassigned.
In June 1995, Calhoun had barred me from going into the main VA building at the Fayetteville facility. My supervisor was instructed to inform me of this decision. My duties were changed in order to accommodate this mandate. To the best of my knowledge and belief, this was never done to anyone else.
In July 1995, Calhoun and his wife encountered me at a roadside clean-up. My shoelace was untied, and Calhoun and got on bended knee to tie the shoe. He stated while doing this, ''When you're going to murder someone, you tie their shoes backwards so that it looks like they tied them themselves.''
I saw this as yet another threat not to my personal safety, but to my employment. Everywhere that I went for help I heard things like, ''Don't try to fight him. He's the Director, an African American Director. He was appointed by Jesse Brown. You may win the battle, but you will lose the war.'' I honestly felt like I had nowhere to turn.
I tried to find other positions within MCCR at VA facilities because of the hostile work environment and the fact that I felt sure he had plans to get rid of me altogether. All the positions for which I applied were canceled.
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I did secure a lateral position at another North Carolina VA and transferred there in October of 1995. This position was not in my career field and has no promotion potential. After 3 months of commuting several hours, I moved with my children and household goods at great expense, emotional, physical, and financial.
Since this time I have also been diagnosed as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, and I am currently on medication.
I was relieved that Calhoun had been removed from SES when I read the IG report. I just would like to feel more confident that he will not have the opportunity to return to any type of supervisory position.
I was a bit surprised when his punishment was announced. I never thought that he would be rewarded by being sent to the place he wanted to be with a raise in salary.
Additionally, all his moving expenses, as I understand, were paid, and if his house does not sell, the VA will purchase it. Unfortunately, I was not that fortunate.
It concerns me that at no time have the victims been contacted by anyone in headquarters. The only information I have received has been in the IG report and what I read in the newspapers. I read in the newspapers that headquarters had empathy for me, but I was not sure how that was possible since they had never had any contact with me.
Additionally, I read that the settlement with Calhoun was made in the best interest of all concerned. I guess I was of no concern.
There seems to have been much concern about how Calhoun could finish out his career, but no concern for what happens to mine. I never began this fight for what I could get out of it. However, when the accuser is so obviously rewarded, where is the justice for the victims?
A representative of this committee explained the reason for the settlement, which I much appreciated. Had this been explained to me earlier, I might not have felt so patronized, insulted and, frankly, victimized once again.
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What has been of greatest concern to me has been the implication that I filed sexual harassment charges because of inappropriate comments of a sexual nature. These have been the statements that have been made by the headquarters offices. I would have never gone through the hell of the past 2 years for comments made to me. Calhoun is not the first man who ever made inappropriate comments of a sexual nature. He is, however, the first man who tried to destroy my life when I rebuffed those comments.
The findings of the IG were quid pro quo sexual harassment and sexual harassment for a hostile work environment. Those are the reasons that I filed the charges, and those are the allegations that were proven by the Inspector General. I resent the implications made to the contrary.
Thank you very much.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Force appears on p. 158.]
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you. You may proceed.
STATEMENT OF SUSAN CARUANA, DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE
Ms. CARUANA. My name is Susan Caruana. I am pleased and honored to have been invited to present my testimony before such a distinguished audience.
I have worked for the Federal Government for 31 years. All but 1 1/2 years have been in the VA system.
I feel betrayed by the very system by which I am employed. I worked for Jerome Calhoun at the Buffalo VA Medical Center from June 9, 1985, until March 1994. He was appointed as Director of the Fayetteville, North Carolina, VA Medical Center in April 1994 by Secretary Jesse Brown.
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Shortly after his transfer to Fayetteville, he informed me that the Secretary to the Director position would soon be vacant and asked if I would be interested in applying. After much thought and contemplation, I decided to apply as it was a GS–8, Target 9 in one year, and I was a GS–7 with no promotion potential.
I was selected, excited about this promotion and career opportunity, and looked forward to the impending challenge.
Calhoun repeatedly promised me that I would eventually retire as a GS–11 or 12. Since I had worked with him for several years, considered him a friend and respected his position, I felt comfortable, though nervous of the move to a new area of the country alone.
I was performing the job to the best of my ability. However, the hostile work environment, repeated threats, verbal abuse, intimidation, and stressful conditions he created resulted in an atmosphere not conducive to my best performance. For example, he told me if I did not request a reassignment, he would make my life miserable and I would be a GS–3 by the time he was finished with me.
On another occasion I was threatened to be placed on a performance improvement plan and have 90 days to prove myself, but there is no documentation in my personnel records to substantiate less than satisfactory performance.
In fact, at his initiation, I received a $1,200 special award in 1995 for my superior performance.
After my coerced reassignment, I felt mortified, rather like a little girl made to stand in the corner. To add insult to injury, after this reassignment, he had the audacity to tell me he had a dream that he slept with me. I told him that I would never do that. He said it could be worth my while.
I transferred to Fayetteville as the Administrative Assistant to the Director, was illegally coerced by Calhoun into eventually requesting a reassignment in September 1995 after several months of hell, and then replaced by an individual who was hired without following established merit promotion procedures. I was under the impression that there were rules and regulations prohibiting such incidents from occurring.
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Under the EEO system in July 1996, I filed a formal sexual harassment complaint against Calhoun. Filing any EEO complaint is futile. The system never finds in the complainant's favor.
Prior to the actual EEO investigation, I was presented with a formal written statement in which I would receive my promotion to a GS–9 if I dropped my EEO charges. I emphatically refused to sign this agreement, noting I would not consent to this compromise under any circumstances and was insulted at the proposal.
As a victim, I lost my self-respect, felt worthless, powerless, frustrated, embarrassed, humiliated, and after experiencing total emotional distress, it was necessary to seek medical treatment over 1 year ago, which is still ongoing. I was diagnosed with severe depression and placed on medication, which I am still taking. To date the cost of this care is my responsibility.
I have been punished for acts beyond my control. I feel I have lost everything, and he has not suffered at all. The emotional ordeal and upheaval to the victims deserve appropriate corrective action, not a selective forgetfulness by the VA.
The IG investigation concluded that Calhoun's behavior was abusive, threatening, inappropriate, and that he had sexually harassed one woman employee and mistreated two others. I was sexually harassed. The fact the IG did not find in my favor does not mean it did not happen.
So what is his punishment? He is rewarded for his misconduct, transferred at taxpayers' expense to Florida, where has repeatedly stated he wanted to live and retire, with no state tax, maintaining his hefty $106,000-plus salary, to a non-management, non-supervisory position, tailor-made for him, with decreased responsibilities.
I find nothing fair about this. It is apparent to me that the Department of Veterans Affairs condones misbehavior and illegal actions for persons in high authority and solves personnel problems by merely transferring perpetrators to another facility at government expense.
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I find VA's response to this matter totally unacceptable and firmly believe they should be held accountable for their actions. To my knowledge, no VA officials have contacted us, inquired about any of the victims' welfare except for one, or provided any assistance in coping with the damage we experienced.
A system should be established to assist victims of sexual harassment and/or mistreatment by VA managers. This entire scenario certainly does not exemplify zero tolerance for sexual harassment, Secretary Brown's mandated policy.
A settlement agreement was reached with VA officials and Calhoun. The fact that the VA reportedly has no authority to change this settlement is a travesty, and I vehemently question the legality of such a negotiated settlement.
In my estimation, removal from Director status is not punishment when he saves salary, which is what his retirement is based on, the high 3 years. Has the VA considered those other employees that Calhoun had removed or demoted from their position, or those who found it necessary to retire early because of the intolerable working conditions under his directorship? Where is the justice for those persons? What about those employees that were promoted or received special favors as reward for complicity?
SES officials should not be protected against appropriate disciplinary actions. As such, it is in their realm of responsibility to lead by example and not use their position or power to emotionally bully and sexually harass subordinates.
The VA must apply the same standards and treatment to Directors and top management as it does to lower grade employees. The VA could truly learn from the Department of Defense.
These past 2 1/2 years have been a continuous nightmare with no apparent resolution for me, and I look forward to the day it is all behind me, though I seriously wonder if it will ever happen.
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Thank you for your concern and for this opportunity to speak with you. If I am able to help just one person from going through an ordeal such as what I experienced, that will give me a great deal of pleasure.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Caruana appears on p. 164.]
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you very much. Ms. Judy Dawkins.
STATEMENT OF JUDY DAWKINS, DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE
Ms. DAWKINS. Hi. From the time I began working for Mr. Jerome Calhoun— —
Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Dawkins, will you please pull the mic up close?
Ms. DAWKINS. I thought I spoke rather loudly, but I am sorry.
From the time I began working for Mr. Jerome Calhoun in September 1995 through May 1996, I was subjected to verbal abuse, profanity, outbursts of temper, and his fury and his wrath. I never said anything to him about his profanity because I was afraid of him. There were almost daily incidents of his cursing, yelling, and screaming at me or other medical center employees.
Even when I was not the one to whom he was angry with, it was depressing and discouraging to hear these conversations. His actions and his words were so brutal and heartless with employees that a destructive and harmful atmosphere existed.
At first I tried to ignore the conversations. However, I was unable to do this when his abusive behavior began in the morning and continued throughout the day. Each time he used profanity toward me and threatened to fire me, it became increasingly demoralizing for me to work under those conditions.
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My work performance was greatly affected by Mr. Calhoun's moves and actions. He set the tone for the office and for the entire medical center every day, which was unusually unsatisfactory, with harmful and injurious results to my health and well-being, to the health and well-being of other employees, and I believe that the atmosphere that existed in the Fayetteville VA Medical Center was harmful to our patients.
In all the years I have worked for the Federal Government at Fort Bragg and Fayetteville VA Medical Center, I have never been spoken to or treated in the manner in which Mr. Calhoun treated me. He created a very hostile work environment. He demoralized me to the point that he broke my spirit.
I went to work around 7:30 a.m. and continued until 5:30 p.m. and sometimes much later without even a break for lunch. I became exhausted, weary, and began experiencing physical problems, and then realized that I was becoming depressed. I had no energy at all, began to decline social invitations and other activities in which I had always participated. I experienced anxiety, sleeplessness and loss of appetite.
For the first time in my life I was scared. I was scared all of the time. It affected every area of my life. I never knew when Mr. Calhoun was going to erupt and if I was going to be the target of his explosion. It was and has been the most frightening experience of my life because I have led and lived a very good life.
On May 3, 1996, I told my husband because he kept asking me what was wrong with me. I finally realized that I could not handle the situation at work anymore, and that I did need help.
I did receive assistance from VISN 6 in Durham staff members when my husband contacted Dr. Gross personally regarding my condition and the circumstances leading to my physical and emotional problems. However, I have never received any support or backing from VHA headquarters.
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I believe that Mr. Calhoun received a special deal, as our Fayetteville paper said, when he was reassigned to the Bay Pines VA Medical Center in January 1997. Only his requests were taken into consideration.
No one from headquarters has ever contacted me to inquire or determine to see if I needed anything, any support or any assistance.
I was a victim. I never did anything to deserve the treatment that I received. My emotional stress and physical problems and those of other employees have never been addressed by the top management within the VA. It appears that they did not care about what happened to me or any of the other employees. They were only concerned with assisting Mr. Calhoun.
During the period that I worked for Mr. Calhoun, I became tense and nervous because I was so afraid of his temper and threats. I had personally seen four letters of proposed removal, two for service chiefs and two for assistant service chiefs, come across my desk. I had witnessed numerous abusive conversations and mismanagement actions by Mr. Calhoun. Therefore, I was afraid he would fire me, embarrass me, and humiliate me, especially since all I was was a secretary.
His abusive treatment was very demeaning to me as a human being, very disrespectful to me as a lady, and very painful for me to endure.
Mr. Calhoun also made inappropriate remarks about part of my anatomy. I chose not to include them here. However, details can be provided.
I have attached to my statement an outline of events giving specific dates and times of the treatment I received from Mr. Calhoun. In addition to what I have given you that will be part of the permanent record, I have personal knowledge of numerous mismanagement practices by Mr. Jerome Calhoun. I chose not to include these handwritten notes to outline the specific dates of his misuse of his position as Director and his total disregard for VA regulations and guidelines. I will furnish this information to the Office of the Inspector General if I need to.
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In closing I do want to say something positive about the VA. I have worked for this agency for over 21 years. The new VISN concept is going to be excellent for our veteran patients and our employees, too. Medical centers will now begin to work as teams and not individually. The benefits should be outstanding.
There should be more accountability of Directors since they will be working together as a team, and their authority will not be autonomous as in the past.
I want to say publicly that I appreciate the assistance which I received from Dr. Gross, Dr. Alexander, Ms. Ann Patterson, and Ms. Loretta Sauls. Their support was and continues to be outstanding for me, and this is not said to make them feel better. It is what I truly believe.
One of the best things to happen to the Fayetteville Medical Center—and Fayetteville is my home; I have lived there 40 years—is being under the leadership of the VISN 6 staff in Durham, NC. I believe that by each medical center working together, and especially at Fayetteville, we can care for our patients, which truly is what we are all about.
However, as employees, we must demonstrate our willingness to go beyond that which is necessary and support our patients. Without veterans, I do not even have a job, and a lot of the people in this room do not have a job either. We need them, and they need us, and I know that they are what the VA stands for.
I want that medical center on Ramsey Street to be there when I am dead and gone and buried across the street. I want my grandchildren and my great grandchildren to say, ''Mima worked there.'' I want it to continue as a medical center to serve the veterans of Eastern North Carolina.
We do care. We are good people there. We are not stupid hicks, as we were referred to. We might not have had all of the top rated things that Durham has because of Duke University Medical Center, but we care about those people because that is what we are all about and the VA is all about.
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Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Dawkins, with attachment, appears on p. 170.]
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you, Ms. Dawkins.
Ms. Barefoot.
STATEMENT OF LOVIA B. BAREFOOT, DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE (RET.)
Ms. BAREFOOT. To all committee members, I appreciate this opportunity. Can you hear me?
Mr. EVERETT. If you could move the mic a little closer or we will set up two mics.
Ms. BAREFOOT. I do not know if I need two, but I appreciate this opportunity to address the atrocities to which I was subjected while secretary to Jerome Calhoun from April of 1994— —
Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Barefoot, excuse me. I believe you are going to have to move that mic just a little bit closer if you can.
Ms. BAREFOOT. Which one or does it matter?
Mr. EVERETT. The staff, give her some assistance there.
Ms. BAREFOOT. This one? This one. Is that better?
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you.
Ms. BAREFOOT. I appreciate the opportunity to address the atrocities to which I was subjected while secretary to Jerome Calhoun from April 1994 through June 1994.
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Very soon after his arrival to the Fayetteville VA Medical Center it was quite apparent that he intended to make changes not only in the management of the medical center, but changes in personnel as well. Within the first week of his arrival, he advised me that I had 90 days to prove myself. I thought that a rather strange remark. I had 23 years of federal service in and had held similar positions at Pope Air Force Base, NC, for 6 years prior to going back to the VA.
During the transition briefing, I was assigned to take minutes. On the morning of the briefing, James Crocker, then Chief, Fiscal Service, offered to go and bring Mr. Billy Hightower, Transition Coordinator, from the motel to the hospital. Rather than accepting Mr. Crocker's officer, Mr. Calhoun accused Mr. Crocker of challenging his authority as the new Director.
After Mr. Hightower had presented the briefing, Jerome Calhoun stood before the group composed of service chiefs and some key staff personnel. He walked to the front of the semi-circle in which we were seated. He immediately held his arms away from his sides, slowly walked a 360 degree turn, fully exposing his wrists and hands.
When he had completed his turn, he rubbed the tops of his hands and referenced the color of his skin.
Mr. Calhoun's management style, if you could call it that, was one of threats, intimidation, and constant filthy language. I am not comfortable using these words, but the ''F'' word was frequently used in my presence, as well as other curse words.
In those 3 months, and which in some ways seemed like an eternity, he constantly inferred that my work was substandard, was not what he wanted, and I had better clean up my act or I would be out of a job. This was done in the form of yellow sticky notes, verbally, and written in the margin of finished products, such as, ''How much longer do I have to endure this?''
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I found these rejections of my work and threats for dismissal totally foreign to anything I had ever endured before in my federal career. I have always taken pride in my work, tried to do my best for my supervisors, and was recognized for this by receiving only highly satisfactory and outstanding appraisals and incentive and suggestion awards. Isn't it interesting to note that my performance appraisal in March 31, 1994, just prior to Jerome Calhoun's arrival, was highly satisfactory.
I soon began to live in such fear of being reprimanded and threatened, both actions never having been necessary by prior supervisors, that my fears did affect my performance. I felt I had no one to turn to. Who would believe my word against that of a medical center Director? I was a small fish in a very large pond.
I am the type of administrative employee who likes to organize her next day's work prior to leaving the office. On this particular afternoon, it was around five, and he called me into his office and gave me explicit instructions to call the regional office in Winston-Salem about some matter.
I went to the office, made a note on the calendar, said my ''good nights'' and went home. The next morning as soon as I walked in, he yelled at me to come in his office that very instant. He exhibited so much anger that I was terrified and yet had absolutely no idea what I had done wrong.
He began to yell at me for my insubordination and not taking my job seriously enough. I lived with threats the entire 3 months I worked for him, but he used his authority inappropriately. He had no need to scream at me as I have no hearing deficit, but I asked him what he was talking about. He responded he expected me to take care of the regional office matter at that moment and not wait until the next day. When I explained the late hour of his assignment, after office hours, his only response was something like, ''Oh, was it that late?'' Never once did he apologize.
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After he told me I appeared to not take my job seriously, I began to cry. He then asked me to step over beside his desk, and he opened one of the drawers on the left side. Inside that drawer was a large box of beige colored tissues. He told me they reminded him of me, soft and beige, and that whenever he upset me to the point of tears just to feel free to get a tissue from his desk, as they had been bought especially with me in mind.
In May of 1994, the medical center Director was visited by Mr. Hershel Gober, Deputy Secretary to Jesse Brown. Early in the day, prior to the reception for Mr. Gober and unknown to Jerome Calhoun, Tomi MacDonough, a vet center leader, had a moment to chat with Mr. Gober about some concerns he had for the vet center. Later in the reception Mr. Gober asked Mr. Calhoun about these issues and apparently took Mr. Calhoun totally by surprise.
After Mr. Gober had departed the station, while seated at my desk, Mr. Calhoun came bursting through the main office doorway past my desk, jerking his tie off, cursing and screaming, ''That G.D. M.F. S.O.B. MacDonough'' was going to hear from him.
Tom Arnold, then Associate Director, was right on his heels trying to calm him down. Mr. Calhoun slammed his office door. I just stared in disbelief.
In a short while, he came out of his office, stepped up to my desk, and announced that he was going jogging to de-stress. No, he did not record his absence or other like absences. Further, I never observed him using his office computer during my 3-month tenure there.
Soon after his arrival, Jerome Calhoun called me into his office to take dictation in response to a sexual harassment matter which had followed him from one of the New York medical centers. All of the criteria listed on the document, I think, were listed in an A, B, C type of format, and each was emphatically denied by Mr. Calhoun.
When I had taken the dictation, I was told to typewrite the response, make no record of the female's name, and keep no copy of that document. I was then told to give the document back to him for mailing.
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As time went by, I could see a change in me from a woman who used to come to work thankful that she had reached the grade of GS–8, a grade at which she would one day retire; a woman who had excelled in facets of her personal life as wife and mother; a woman who had successfully worked with medical professionals, Air Force colonels, congressional liaisons, and foreign military officers for more than 20 years; to a woman who had become a timid, nervous wreck as a result of the harassing, hostile and intimidating work environment created by Mr. Calhoun; a woman who began to dread reporting to work because that office had become a living hell; a woman who suffered loss of appetite, insomnia, sought medical treatment for stress related chest pain and shortness of breath, and would mentally replay the day's events.
After admitting to myself that all those years of devoted work for the Federal Government was not something I could just throw away, I requested an option to transfer to another job, which meant an obvious downgrade as I was the highest ranking secretary in the medical center.
The decision was not made on a whim. It was a matter of survival: mine. I had often discussed the work environment with my husband and daughters, and each supported me in my decision to transfer.
When I approached Mr. Calhoun requesting a transfer, he acted surprised. He agreed to my request for a transfer only if I signed an agreement to accept the position at a lower grade and pay level, and that I was not coerced in doing so. This resulted in a pay reduction of greater than $3,000 per year.
I ask you members of this committee: do not the above statements qualify as coercion, intimidation, harassment, hostile working environment, and abuse of power?
Incidentally, I was still within my 90-day period as this had hung over my head like a dark cloud. I should never have had to endure the pressure of sitting on the fence with my career at stake.
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Members of this committee, I implore you to thoroughly investigate such atrocities that these other witnesses and I endured at the Fayetteville VAMC. Investigate from the top level of the Department of Affairs down.
Investigate why the Jerome Calhouns in this administration are punished by merely transferring them from one facility to another. Mr. Calhoun was not punished. He was removed from SES status, but he is still drawing a $106,000-plus annual salary and living in the State of Florida, where he had always intended to retire.
Did the Department of Veterans Affairs officials really punish him or merely slap the faces of his subordinates? I would like to see this problem rectified and you, members of this committee, are the ones to do it.
Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Barefoot appears on p. 178.]
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you, Ms. Barefoot.
Ms. Moore-Russell.
STATEMENT OF DORIS A. MOORE-RUSSELL, M.S.W., DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS EMPLOYEE
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. I am a service connected veteran, and I receive all of my care at the VA Medical Center. I am also a psychiatric social worker that specializes in PTSD, combat and sexual assault PTSD, and other mental health issues.
I am alleging that I was subjected to undue stress in a hostile environment because I did not welcome any sexual advances from the previous Director, Mr. Jerome Calhoun. I was forced to leave my position for 1 year, taking leave without pay, from August 1, 1995, to July 31, 1996. I experienced malicious retaliation as a direct result of Mr. Calhoun's actions. He used insulting, abusive and intimidating language toward me in the presence of others. I was consistently harassed and subjected to racial and gender remarks.
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I met Mr. Calhoun for the first time on May 9 at 10:15. I met with him to discuss the Women Veterans Program, which was my collateral duty. Mr. Calhoun, at that time, seemed very supportive. I thought I had developed a rapport with him. My next personnel contact with him was on June 8th of 1994. I was admitted to the VA Hospital because I was having a lot of medical difficulties.
Mr. Calhoun called me at home. He was at an EEOC conference in Orlando, FL. He wanted to see how I was doing. I felt that was odd because I had never had my supervisors call me at home, let alone the Director.
I had served on several committees that Mr. Calhoun chaired or visited and witnessed him making demeaning remarks to many employees. I began to feel uncomfortable with his abusive behavior.
I was requested on July 28 to come to his office. He wanted to see how things were going. During that meeting I told him I wanted to apply for the SWALT Program (Social Work Administration Leadership Training Program). He said, ''Consider it done.''
I am not going to read all of my testimony because you do have a copy. I'm going to skip around and try to finish this up within the allotted time.
There were several times when I met with Mr. Calhoun and we discussed a lot of things that concerned me, the Women Veterans Program, the overwhelming amount of responsibility that I was completing due to my other duties.
When an announcement came in for the Regional Veterans Women Coordinator position, I met with Mr. Calhoun that afternoon about 4 p.m. to tell him that I wanted to apply for that position. During our conversation, I informed him that I was given the Women Veterans Coordinator position as a reprisal from the previous administration. He told me he was aware of the situation, and he specifically added to me, ''Doris, you were 'F'ed' by the previous administration. At least if I would have 'F'ed' you, you would have got something out of it.''
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I was very shocked to hear Mr. Calhoun say that. I was very shocked and agitated. I didn't know who I could turn to in order to discuss what Mr. Calhoun said. I felt no one would believe me.
During this period of Mr. Calhoun's tenure, there was a lot of people that were afraid of him. He had a lot of people that were his supporters. I began to question myself. The things that he had accommodated me with, for example, he had given me in one of our meetings a cabinet from his executive suite. He also gave me as the Women Veterans Coordinator and two of our other Women Veterans Advisory Team members a trip to San Diego, CA, to attend a Women Veterans Committee conference that was not sponsored by the VA.
Previously he had written me several appreciation memos and letters of recommendation. I have a copy of all the memos and letters of recommendation. I felt I had his support and backing. I began to feel hurt and confused.
During the second week of December 1994, the medical center gave a Christmas party at the Pope Air Force Base Officers Club. I arrived late. I was greeted by Mr. Calhoun. He gave me a hug. His hand slid down to my chest, and he squeezed my breast with both of his hands. I pulled back in shock.
He had a smirk on his face and said, ''Merry Christmas, Doris.'' I wanted to slap his face, but instead I mumbled something. I rushed to the bathroom. I felt sick, and the rest of my night was ruined. I kept wondering who could I tell. Who would believe me?
The next morning I did tell the Assistant Chief of Social Work, Mr. Canteen. He asked me what I was going to do, I told him I did not know. Later that day Mr. Calhoun requested me to meet with him. I was hesitant. I was frightened because I was afraid that Mr. Canteen told Mr. Calhoun what I had said.
But instead he did not talk about the incident at the Christmas party. He spoke about my health issues, job stress, and my filing for workmen's compensation. You see, I filed for workmen's compensation because I was having too many medical difficulties. I could not afford to pay for my treatment on the outside.
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He became very angry, and stated, ''You shouldn't have said what I said about Mr. Arnold. That was between you and I.'' He was very belittling. He asked me to leave his office.
My worst fear happened. I received a memo from Mr. Calhoun on January 19 detailing me from my position as the Coordinator of the Aftercare/Outpatient Program, effective the 5th. I was confused and upset. I could not understand why he wanted to take my job. I tried to meet with him. He was demeaning, and what he was saying did not make sense.
He kept saying, ''If you would have been nice, Doris, this wouldn't have happened to you,'' or something to that effect, ''and now,'' he said, ''I don't give a damn about you.''
I was very baffled and angry. I filed a grievance against Mr. Calhoun on the 2nd of February 1995. I wanted to know specifically why he was detailing me.
Mr. Calhoun met with me a week later with my supervisor, Ms. King, and the Chief of Personnel. I asked the union president to attend with me, Mr. Paul Reid. That was a very heated meeting. During that meeting Mr. Calhoun gave me my job back.
However, I was continually harassed. I had to sign in every morning on the computer. I was being harassed also by my supervisor because she was a lieutenant of Mr. Calhoun.
I wanted to know why I was being treated that way. I asked Mr. Calhoun if I could meet with him again. He told me that if it was of a personal nature, he would have to have a witness, and if it was about work, I needed to see my supervisor.
Finally he did allow me to come in and talk with him. He jumped on me about being late. He called me personally at 8 a.m. to set up an appointment. I was not in my office. I called him back at 8:01.
I told him I wanted to make peace. He did not let me finish my statement. He asked me, ''Well, what else?'' I discussed having to pull weekend calls without compensation, also signing in on the E-mail every morning, and also my supervisor briefed and assigned duties to my supervisees without discussing the issues with me.
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He acknowledged that all of the above concerns were valid. He said he would speak to my supervisor. He asked me did I understand why he had a witness in his office, the EEO manager, Eugene Paul. I answered no. He stated, ''Because the last time we talked, you misrepresented what I said to you about Mr. Arnold to worker's compensation as if I supported you.''
I told him I did not mind Mr. Paul being there.
When I met with my supervisor that afternoon at 1 o'clock, I told her, ''I no longer had to sign in because I just spoke with Mr. Calhoun.'' I was assuming that my supervisor had met with Mr. Calhoun. They typically meet at least three and four times daily.
She became upset and ran out of the office. She left me with Mr. Canteen, another supervisor. When she returned a second later; she brought the EEO manager, Mr. Eugene Paul. Mr. Canteen asked if he should leave. She nodded.
Mr. Paul proceeded to demean me. He stated, he could understand why I had to sign in. I informed him that the regulation read that you call in if you did not plan to come to work. He stated, ''That's your interpretation.'' I asked him what was his.
Mr. Paul became very upset and ran out of Ms. King's office. He returned a few seconds later with Mr. Calhoun. I thought this was strange because all of this happened within a matter of seconds. I felt as if the three of them were conniving to further cause me harm.
Mr. Calhoun came in. He stood in front of the door. Eugene Paul also stood in front of the door. My supervisor was sitting behind her desk. I was sitting opposite of her. Mr. Calhoun kept screaming and pointing his finger in my face. He used insensitive and demeaning terms. I lost track of what he was saying. I was trying to keep my emotions intact.
I tried to say something, and he told me, ''Shut the fuck up.'' I became speechless. I just felt so hurt, trapped and I just could not understand why they were harassing me.
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Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Moore-Russell, if you need a moment, please take one.
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. I could not understand why this was happening. I looked at my supervisor for support. She did not say anything. I felt trapped and threaten. Mr. Calhoun and Mr. Paul were blocking the doorway. So I could not leave. I felt intimidated and helpless. Finally Mr. Calhoun realized that he had lost control with me. He and Mr. Paul left.
I asked my supervisor Ms. King could I leave her office. She nodded. A staff social worker, Dick Droney, asked me, ''What's wrong?'' He added, ''You seem upset,'' ''Who was Mr. Calhoun screaming at?'' He further stated, ''I heard him say, 'Shut the fuck up.''' I told Mr. Droney Mr. Calhoun was yelling at me.
Later that afternoon I had three patients scheduled in my clinic. I was too upset, tearful and shaky to see my patients. Did Mr. Calhoun's, Mr. Paul's or Ms. King's behaviors exhibit concern for patient care at the VA?
I had to ask my staff to see my patients. I left and went to see my psychiatrist, Dr. Cusi.
Mr. Calhoun had made explicit and implicit sexual comments to me on several occasions. He created a hostile working environment for me because I would not meet his conditions. By touching my breast, I feel that he has sexually assaulted me, and my rejection of his sexual advances was used to ridicule and belittle me. He has ruined my life. I had to leave my job for 1 year without pay. I was denied worker's compensation. I was also denied a medical retirement. I applied for medical retirement through OPM. I was denied the above options due to deceptive information provided by the Director and my supervisor, Ms. King.
I received no support from anyone at that particular time because I was the first one that was subject to his harassment. On behalf of my other African American co-workers and supervisors at the VA Medical Center, we want to let the committee know that we were informed that we could not file an EEO complaint against Mr. Calhoun because he is of the same race. We were told that there was nothing that we could do, and they all want you to know that they complained initially about his abusive behavior and nothing was done. No one would listen.
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I also wrote Mr. Calhoun's supervisor, Dr. Moravec, as he asked me. I sent the letter to Mississippi. Their written response to me was neither supportive or encouraging.
I also called the Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, during the time I was on leave without pay to inquire about assistance. However, I got the run-around. Every telephone number that I called referred me to another office. All the numbers called were recorded on my telephone bill. Exact dates can be produced. The VA furlough went into effect allowing me no other attempts.
So now I implore you to continue to look into this situation because it is definitely unfair, and no one should be treated the way myself treated and the other ladies of this panel were treated.
Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Moore-Russel appears on p. 183.]
Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Moore-Russell, thank you very much for your testimony.
I thank all of you ladies. We unfortunately have a vote on. Excuse me one moment.
Hopefully it will not be long, although it is a procedural type of vote that could take a little time. We hope that will not happen. I would ask the panel to remain because we will have questions when we get back, and at this time I will recess until we— —
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Chairman.
Mr. EVERETT. Yes.
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Mr. CLYBURN. Just before we adjourn, I neglected when I made my statement to ask unanimous consent for a statement from Eva Clayton, who represents this area here in this body. She has a statement she would like entered into the record, and I ask unanimous consent that this be entered into the record. As I speak, Eva Clayton is entering this room.
Mr. EVERETT. Without objection, our colleague Ms. Clayton's statement will be included in the record, and we welcome her to these hearings.
[The statement of Hon. Eva M. Clayton appears on p. 188.]
Mr. EVERETT. We will recess though for the vote, and we will be back here in just a few minutes.
[Recess.]
Mr. EVERETT. We will reconvene the hearing, and I apologize for the delay. I can tell you that the floor schedule at best today is unpredictable, but we will try to move as quickly as we can.
I am going to enter into a round of questioning now, and we are going to ask all members to adhere to the 5-minute rule. If there is need for a second round, we would be more than happy to do that.
I will begin the questioning, and I would like for each of you on the panel to respond to this. Would each member of the panel respond to this question?
Do you have trust and confidence in the EEO process at Fayetteville? Why or why not?
And if you could, we have your written testimony. Please keep your responses as brief as possible. We will start with Ms. Force.
Ms. FORCE. Thank you.
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No, I cannot say that I have confidence in the EEO process at Fayetteville. I made my initial complaint to the EEO not manager, but the EEO counselor in July, the end of July.
In December we still had not received any kind of response. At that time I did not feel as though I could go to the Fayetteville VA. So I had given instructions that my attorney would be handling my case.
In December she sent another letter that I have a copy of here to the Secretary of the VA and the Associate Director of EEO, saying that we seem to be having problems with lost paper work, because as I understand, mine was not the only paper work that was lost, and to my knowledge, there has been no answer to that letter either.
So my confidence, I was not there during all of the meetings that they have had with the EEO investigators. I was already gone, but I had no confidence in the EEO manager because the day that I requested the meeting with Jerome Calhoun to ask why I was being removed from my position since I had never been given any kind of counseling or nothing had been said to me about poor performance, they were in the process of processing our award for achieving our maximum goal for the first time. We were one of 15 facilities recognized for consistently increasing collections by double digits.
Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Force, excuse me, but rather than go into detail, if you would just make your answer brief. I am sorry. I apologize for not having the time, but we simply do not have it.
Ms. FORCE. The EEO manager was in that meeting, and never at any time made any comments in my defense. He was very obviously there for Jerome Calhoun and not there for me.
Mr. EVERETT. Just briefly, did your program receive a national ranking from the MCCR Program in terms of his collection?
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Ms. FORCE. Yes, sir.
Mr. EVERETT. And it was one of the top ten in the Nation?
Ms. FORCE. Well, no, it was not one of the top ten in the Nation. We had consistently increased our collections by double digits.
Mr. EVERETT. I remember your testimony. Thank you very much. Ms. Caruana.
Ms. CARUANA. I have no confidence with the EEO process at Fayetteville. I believe the manager to be biased. Mr. Calhoun was in his office for hours at a time during proceedings. I believe that he knew what the witnesses said before he even got into the actual investigation, so that he was able to respond to any questions he may be asked.
During my investigation, the EEO investigator told me off the record that she had never heard stories like those of my witnesses. She said she was appalled, and I really thought I was going to win my case.
He made a statement. He called together all black supervisors and managers and said, ''We all have to stick together,'' and more or less said, ''If you think I'm kidding, you saw what I did to my secretary that I spent 10 years with. She got to be too white and I had to remove her, and if you don't think I'll do it to you, you're wrong.''
I have three black witnesses that testified that to this fact, and the results of my EEO: she did not find in my favor. She found that he treated everybody the same way. Therefore, I did not have a case.
Mr. EVERETT. In other words, he was abusive of everybody. So you do not have a case.
Ms. CARUANA. That is right. So you can abuse anybody, and because you treat everybody this way, it is fine. So why have a system?
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you very much. Ms. Moore-Russell.
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Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Mr. Chairman and committee, I do not have any faith in the EEO process. The EEO manager from Fayetteville VA Medical Center, Eugene Paul, was in the room when Mr. Calhoun proceeded to demean me and belittle me
Also it has been noted by many of my African American colleagues, that as soon as a person filed an EEO complaint, my supervisor who, Ms. King, is informed of it.
I filed an EEO complaint on September 6, 1996, after I returned to work. Since then that complaint has been said to be lost. They have no recollection of it.
Now in order to file a complaint, you have to have a counselor. In other words, where is the EEO counselor's copy of my complaint.
Mr. EVERETT. You were not advised you needed one?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. No, sir.
Mr. EVERETT. Ms. Barefoot.
Thank you, Ms. Moore-Russell.
Ms. BAREFOOT. I am afraid I have to reflect the same statements in that I have no confidence in the EEO in Fayetteville. Mr. Calhoun, as I observed, to be on a power trip. So what was the point? Here I am one secretary against a medical center Director. There would be no need to do it. It would not go anywhere. Those were my feelings.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you. Ms. Dawkins.
Ms. DAWKINS. I have never filed a grievance or a complaint.
Mr. EVERETT. I am sorry. Would you pull that mic up? I apologize, but if you would pull it closer.
Ms. DAWKINS. Thank you.
I have never filed a grievance or complaint in all the years of federal employment, and at the Fayetteville VA I definitely would not have. I honestly believe, well, I honestly know for a fact that after working hours, because I had to work so late, that the investigators came to the office. They did not bother to close the door. They did not care that I heard them. They would laugh and discuss the cases with Mr. Calhoun. They would laugh about the complainants behind their back.
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I really wanted to go and tell the people, ''You poor saps. You're filing all these things. Nothing's going to happen,'' but I could not.
I never spoke about Mr. Jerome Calhoun until after I was placed on medical leave by my doctor. I was loyal to him and to his position until my doctor took me out and convinced me to speak up. It took a husband and a doctor to do it.
I wanted to leave. I honestly believe in the VA system that the EEO managers should not be at the local stations and the Director be their supervisor. I find that a big conflict of interest because how are you going to go against someone that is writing your appraisal at the end of the year, determines whether you get another promotion? I did not even go against him, and I am normally a very aggressive, normal woman.
But his intimidation and his grip was so fierce that I found myself scared to death and did nothing, and I am ashamed of what I became. I am literally ashamed of the woman that I became after working with him for 8 months.
My children are not proud of me. I would not stand up. Dr. Gross was the only one. I would not do anything because I said, ''What's the use? They're going to laugh. They're going to say, 'These stupid women here.'''
He laughed at everybody there. I can assure you that if I knew where Mr. Calhoun was right now, somewhere in Florida I assume, that he is looking at this on CNN and laughing.
''You can say all you want, you hillbillies and you hicks.'' That is what he called us. ''I've still got mine.'' He does not care, and I think until the VA realizes that EEO managers cannot come under the supervision of a Medical Center Director or an Associate Director or a Chief of Staff, who have the right to write their appraisals; until they move it out of the local hospital, then I do not think the EEO system is worth anything.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you very much.
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I will now turn to our ranking member, Mr. Clyburn for any questions he may have.
Mr. CLYBURN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I suspect that most of my questions, of course, will probably be reserved for managers here. I am a bit disturbed though that all of you seem not to have any confidence in the EEO process.
It seems to me, unless something has changed, that there was a very simple procedure to move outside of the in-house EEO process to a process outside of the agency. None of you made the attempt to go outside of the internal process to the external process?
Yes, ma'am.
Ms. DAWKINS. When I was placed on medical leave, the only vehicle I could determine that I could document what had happened to me was to file OWCP. It was the only place that I could think of in the government that I could— —
Mr. CLYBURN. Can you tell me what the OWCP is?
Ms. DAWKINS. OWCP, Occupational Workman's Compensation.
I filed it there and put all of the attachments, my chronological attachment of what he had done only to me, not other things I had seen him doing because to me a grievance in the EEO was worthless.
Mr. CLYBURN. Well, I understand that, but we only have 5 minutes here. Nobody else attempted to go outside the process?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Okay. Mr. Clyburn, I was informed that as being an African American and Mr. Calhoun an African American, I could not file an EEO complaint, but, yes, I did make an attempt to go outside for help. I wrote his supervisor a letter, Dr. Moravec. He was not helpful.
Mr. CLYBURN. For sexual harassment?
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Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. For sexual harassment or anything else.
Mr. CLYBURN. Who informed you of that?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. We were informed by some of the counselors, and I do not know all of the names, but I was informed by some of the counselors and the EEO manager, Mr. Paul.
I did go outside of the system. I wrote a letter to Mr. Calhoun's supervisor, Dr. Moravec at the regional office.
Mr. CLYBURN. That is still within the system. Outside of the system, outside of the agency to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and there is a process now by which federal employees can go to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, but none of you made an attempt to do that?
Ms. CARUANA. I do not think any of us knew about it.
Mr. CLYBURN. Well, I think that is why I want to talk to some management people because I do not understand why you would not know what the procedures are to file these kinds of complaints.
Ms. FORCE. I was instructed that you had to go through that process at the hospital, and if you did not get any results, then you could go to this outside process.
Mr. CLYBURN. Absolutely correct, and you all said you did not get any results. If you do not have faith in this process, you still have got to go through it.
You know, I can understand your feeling that someone who is being supervised by the perpetrator will not be forthcoming. I can understand that, but when you go through that process and you are not satisfied with it, there is a step that takes you outside of the system, but you are telling me that none of you made any attempt to go outside of the system, outside of your agency, I should say. I am sorry.
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Ms. FORCE. I was instructed that you had to have 180 days, and it has not been 180 days since my attorney's letter went to Washington.
Mr. CLYBURN. The 180 days is from the infraction. You have to have 180 days from the time it happened to you, unless, as all of you testified, it is an ongoing process. If it is a continuing process, 180 days do not matter because your 180 days could be from the first time. It could be 180 hours from the last time it happened, and from what you all are telling me, this is a continuous thing.
Ms. CARUANA. I filed my EEO case, and I am waiting for a court date, which my attorney told me it will probably be around Christmas time. It seems like it takes forever and a day.
Mr. CLYBURN. I know of a case right now in the VA that is 11 years old. That is not unusual.
Ms. CARUANA. So I am just waiting for the next step.
Mr. CLYBURN. Right.
Ms. BAREFOOT. I would just like to say this. I have been retired now a little over 2 years, took an early out, but I think it is interesting that we spent all of those hours in sexual harassment training, but we have not had the proper EEO procedure training. I think that is something that should be looked into.
Mr. CLYBURN. You said you have not had that?
Ms. BAREFOOT. I do not recall attending it. I do not recall it being available to me, but we did spend a number of hours in sexual harassment training.
Ms. CARUANA. We have to attend 4-hour mandatory sexual harassment classes. It seems like we should not have to go to those. Every year we have to attend.
Mr. CLYBURN. Well, why shouldn't you have to go to them? I mean that is why they are there, so that you would know how to step outside of the process.
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Ms. CARUANA. Well, we have been sexually harassed, and the perpetrator got away with it. So why do we have to continue to go to these classes?
Mr. CLYBURN. Well, Ms. Caruana, I do not think anyone has gotten away with anything yet. We are all still around. He is still around. Just because someone was transferred from one station to another does not mean they have gotten away with anything yet.
I mean, how long has the Texaco case been going on? They may have thought they had gotten away, but they have suddenly found out they did not get away, and we can still remedy this. So just because it did not happen at the time you wanted it to happen does not mean he got away.
Maybe we will have another round of questions, but let me say this. My interest in these is really to find the facts. For instance, we are here to discuss sexual harassment, and at least two of you have got some real good, emotional cases for bad management, but there is a big difference between bad management and sexual harassment, and what we want to do is really differentiate between those two things.
Now, I can understand when people tell you that you have a problem, but it may not be a sexual harassment problem or may not be a discrimination problem. I came face to face with that very early in my career when a lady came to me, and I asked her. I said, ''Well, tell me. Are there any white employees in your section?''
She said, ''Yes, he treats us all like dogs.''
I said, ''Well, where is the discrimination?''
And there is a difference, and so just because it is bad and it is bad management really does not mean it is illegal discrimination because it has got to be based on race or gender or age or religion, and that is where we have the difference here.
So what we want to do in this committee is really zero in on exactly what the illegal behavior is, based upon what our Constitution and what our laws are. So I am really interested in trying to find out why you all did not see fit to go outside of the agency, and I really want to know the answer to that because that to me is what the real problem is here.
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Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Well, Mr. Clyburn, when I returned to work in September, I was told at that time that, yes, you can file an EEO complaint, and that is when I filed, on September 6, but I also obtained an attorney and once you obtain an attorney, you no longer take the active process of seeing your EEO complaint through. You turn that over to your attorney.
Mr. CLYBURN. So you do have an attorney?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Yes, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. Who has filed paper work for you?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Yes, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. So your process is ongoing?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. According to her, when I met with her on Saturday before coming here. The EEO manager, Mr. Paul, at the VA hospital told her that they cannot find my complaint. This is what my attorney said they told her. That is what she told us on Saturday when we met with her, and this is the EEO that I filed. It is my copy. This is the copy that was given to them.
Mr. CLYBURN. And so the VA people told your attorney that they have lost the complaint?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. That is correct, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. That your attorney filed on your behalf?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. That is correct, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. Did somebody else say something was lost, too?
Ms. FORCE. Yes.
Mr. CLYBURN. So you filed a complaint by an attorney?
Ms. FORCE. Yes, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. And it was lost?
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Ms. FORCE. Yes, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Chairman, I hope that person is on the witness list who lost all of these things.
Mr. EVERETT. Is the individual on the witness list or by name can you tell us who told your attorney?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Well, sir, the only thing I know is that Eugene Paul is our EEO manager. So any correspondence would come from his office with the endorsement of the Director. My attorney received a correspondence, and she probably could tell you exactly who she spoke with, but they do not discuss these issues with me anymore.
Ms. FORCE. Mine would have also gone through Mr. Paul.
Mr. CLYBURN. Yours went through Mr. Paul also?
Ms. FORCE. Yes, sir.
Mr. CLYBURN. And Mr. Paul is not on the witness list.
Mr. EVERETT. No, he is not. We can arrange that though.
Mr. CLYBURN. I think so. We need to.
Thank you.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you, Mr. Clyburn.
Mr. Buyer.
Mr. BUYER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I was being a very good listener to the Ranking Member, and I think in his experience he also uses the word ''illegal.'' I do not know if you are referring specifically to allegations in order to prove sexual harassment as a violation under the Civil Rights Act, but what I definitely have heard from testimony was some evidence of abusive behavior that should never be tolerated by any of the employees in the VA or anywhere.
The one thing that I am curious about is from some of the newspaper articles and some of your testimony, we have a Director here who was boastful about his relationship with Jesse Brown. I would like the witnesses to share with the committee about the relationship between the Director and the Secretary of the VA based on your knowledge.
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Go right down the row. Ms. Force.
Ms. FORCE. I did not have any direct knowledge of Mr. Calhoun's relationship with the Secretary of the VA. I have been told that he was a secretarial appointment, but I never had any direct knowledge of any kind of relationship.
Mr. BUYER. Ma'am?
Ms. CARUANA. I do not know of any relationship with Secretary Brown. I had heard stories that prior to his appointment at Fayetteville, Mr. Calhoun had gone to see Jesse Brown, and that is how he got that appointment, but it could just be a rumor. I do not know of any relationship that he had with him.
Mr. BUYER. All right. Ms. Moore.
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. I can say the same thing they are saying. I have no direct knowledge, just rumors.
Mr. BUYER. Ms. Barefoot.
Ms. BAREFOOT. I have been away from the VA now for a good while and from that front office since 1994. However, I think I recall seeing an autographed photo of Jesse Brown in Mr. Calhoun's office; is that correct?
Okay. I recall making the comment about Mr. Brown's photo in Mr. Calhoun's office, and to that Mr. Calhoun said, ''Jesse Brown and I are just like this,'' and held his two fingers together.
Mr. BUYER. Ms. Dawkins.
Ms. DAWKINS. I, too, recall the photos, and he did not do this to me, but he said, ''We're tight,'' and he also alluded to the fact that he was tight with Senator Helms, which shocked me because I thought, gosh, I voted for him every time. I might not ought to say that here, and I just could not believe that the Senator would support someone of Mr. Calhoun's character, and then I remembered that he had two sides to his character. He had the charm side, and he had the other side, and I just assumed that the Senator did not see it.
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But he had two photos, one with Senator Helms and then another photo with the Secretary, and they were on view, and he did allude to them at different times. He would say, ''They are my friends.''
And, you know, it is intimidating when you are a GS–8 secretary. You just sit there and think, well, nobody would believe anything I ever said.
I would like to clarify one thing that one of you two said. Okay? I will not take but a minute.
Mr. BUYER. All right.
Ms. DAWKINS. I am not that long-winded.
Mr. BUYER. I only have 5 minutes to ask my questions.
Ms. DAWKINS. Okay.
Mr. BUYER. If at the end of my questions you time it just right—
Ms. DAWKINS. I can butt in.
Mr. BUYER. I think members of Congress would cringe if there was any implication with regard to relationships for photos that we have had taken with individuals in the past. (Laughter.)
I do not want that to be a new standard.
One thing I would like you to do, Ms. Dawkins, for the record, you were very hesitant to speak publicly about remarks that were made about your body. If you would please provide that to the committee in writing, I would appreciate that.
One other question I have. Someone brought up something about the New York Medical Center and a sexual harassment complaint, and they had to do some typing on that. Which one was it?
Will you tell the committee, this New York Medical Center, this was also part of the VA system?
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Ms. BAREFOOT. Yes.
Mr. BUYER. And was there a pending sexual harassment complaint against— —
Ms. BAREFOOT. That is what is so difficult for me to remember exactly. I do not recall the person's name, but I do recall, as I stated, that it appeared to be like three items perhaps that this person from one of the two hospitals, and I do not recall which hospital, had against Mr. Calhoun's behavior, and all that he dictated to me were the responses to those, I think, three allegations.
But as I said, my instructions were to typewrite those, make no record of it, make no photocopy of it, give it back to him for mailing. So I am sorry I am not more helpful, but it is 3 years.
Mr. BUYER. That is all right.
Ms. Dawkins, you can time this. Go ahead.
Ms. DAWKINS. Okay. The orange button is already on.
I did not ever in any statement to the Office of the Inspector General when I was interviewed in my home while I was on medical leave, I never said Mr. Jerome Calhoun sexually harassed me. He made an inappropriate remark about my body.
I do not mind stating it if somebody wants to hear it, but I did not want to put it in writing now, and I do not mind putting it in writing. Now I never, never inferred; I have never filed; I have not contacted a lawyer because I do not believe that I was sexually harassed. However, I was abused as a human being. It was a hostile environment for our employees and patients.
Mr. BUYER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you.
Mr. Buyer, for the record, the incident you referred to about prior sexual harassment, we have asked the VA for any documentation they can find on that, and, again, they seem to have no record of it, but they are looking for it. Mr. Snyder.
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Mr. SNYDER. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Ms. Force, if I understood your statement, you had said that one of the staff members had explained the settlement between Mr. Calhoun and the VA to you and that once you had that explanation you felt better about it.
Ms. FORCE. Yes.
Mr. SNYDER. Could you briefly state, please, how your attitude about the settlement changed after getting the explanation? What was it about the explanation that was new information for you?
Ms. FORCE. Well, I do not think that it was my attitude toward the settlement. Maybe I misrepresented what I was thinking. Just the fact that someone had taken the time to explain why they did the things that they did.
You know, the only thing I had read was the IG report and the statements that were in the Florida and Fayetteville newspapers, which from those accountings was presented as though he was rewarded with where he wanted to be in Florida.
Mr. SNYDER. And what is your understanding now that why what was done was done?
Ms. FORCE. It was explained to me that all of the attorneys that reviewed the sexual harassment case felt that it was a strong case, but when it went before Personnel, they were afraid; some of them were afraid that it was not strong enough because the Merit Promotion Standards Board had overturned another case from another agency that was even stronger than this case. They wanted Jerome Calhoun removed as Director, and they did not want to take a chance that he would just be given a suspension and go back as Director.
Mr. SNYDER. So the fear was— —
Ms. FORCE. Made this deal.
Mr. SNYDER. I have got you. So if they had run with your complaint and lost, he would have still been Director of the VA. Okay.
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Ms. FORCE. And everybody would have lost.
Mr. SNYDER. And, Ms. Caruana—am I saying your name right?
Ms. CARUANA. Caruana.
Mr. SNYDER. Caruana. Did I understand you in your testimony to say you had worked for Mr. Calhoun for several years, like 8 or 9 years? 9 years?
Ms. CARUANA. Nine years.
Mr. SNYDER. Was there a difference in his management style for those first 9 years versus the period of time that we are talking about now?
And I guess what I am getting to: should the VA have been on notice during that period of time that perhaps this is not a fellow that ought to be promoted up through the system?
Ms. CARUANA. I will explain this as best I can. When I worked for him in Buffalo, he was the Associate Director. He had a supervisor physically over him.
When he went to Fayetteville, he was the Director. He did not have anybody physically over him right there in the same building. His supervisor initially was in Jackson, MS.
So, therefore, he had all of this power. This was his kingdom now.
Mr. SNYDER. So were you surprised to see— —
Ms. CARUANA. Yes.
Mr. SNYDER (continuing). Mr. Calhoun acting the way he did in his new kingdom?
Ms. CARUANA. I mean, you know, he got a little crazy in Buffalo at times.
Mr. SNYDER. But nothing that you apparently were fearful of because you made the move to come to work for him.
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Ms. CARUANA. I did not see that side of him.
Mr. SNYDER. I understand.
Ms. CARUANA. And with the directorship, like I said, came this power and I think that that is what happened. It just went to his head.
Mr. SNYDER. Yes. Mr. Chairman, I think those are all of the questions that I have at this time.
Thank you.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you, Mr. Snyder.
The chair recognizes our Ranking Member, Mr. Evans.
Mr. EVANS. Mr. Chairman, I apologize for my absence, but I really appreciate this panel's testimony. You have been on for quite some time, so I will try to keep it short.
Can each you describe to the members of the subcommittee what you knew about the complaint process, the EEO process, during the time that you were exposed to Mr. Calhoun's conduct?
And have you or any other employees that you know ever participated in sexual harassment sensitivity training within the VA?
Ms. FORCE. I do not know about sexual harassment sensitivity training. We have had 4 hours of mandatory sexual harassment training, and we were in the process of doing that when Jerome Calhoun was appointed to the Fayetteville VA.
I was so afraid of what would happen to me when I was actually at the Fayetteville VA that I never seriously considered going through the EEO process. I knew Eugene Paul was Mr. Calhoun's right-hand man. You could not do much with EEO unless you went through that office, even if you went to the counselors, as far as I knew. Everywhere I went people said, ''Don't even attempt it. You know, it's ridiculous. Don't even think about doing it.''
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So until I got away and realized that I was still a victim and the victimization was not going to end until I took some steps and I obtained an attorney also, and the attorney made the initiative to contact the EEO because I was still too fearful to do anything at that point in time.
Mr. EVANS. All right.
Ms. CARUANA. I was petrified to file an EEO complaint. I knew that once I did it, it was going to be over for me.
I went to see an attorney. We all have the same attorney, and I told her about what I was experiencing, and she told me that I should file an EEO complaint, but I waited a few months to do so because I just knew that he was going to go off and become a lunatic, and I was petrified.
I came down here to work with this man, and I did not know what he was going to do. So I went ahead and filed the complaint, and I am waiting to go on to the next step. They did not find in my favor, and we all have to attend 4 hours of mandatory sexual harassment training each year.
Mr. EVANS. All right. Ms. Moore.
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. First of all, I am part of management. I am a supervisory social worker, and, yes, I have had some training on the EEO process, but, no, I did not file an EEO complaint earlier because I was told that I could not because of our ethnicity.
But once I returned to the VA, yes, I did file an EEO complaint.
One of the things I have to tell you is that I was very embarrassed and ashamed by the fact that I had to undergo such an ordeal with Mr. Calhoun because I am a clinician, and like I said, I counsel people who have to go through sexual assault and sexual trauma, but for me to have to go through the same thing myself and being a manager that supervised others and deal with patients on a regular basis, it was very embarrassing, and so, no, I did not pursue it through the proper channels.
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Mr. EVANS. Can I ask you a direct question about what you do? You are a veteran, too; is that correct?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. Yes, I am.
Mr. EVANS. So just what do you think is the likelihood if we have people such as Mr. Calhoun within the VA that women veterans returning from the Persian Gulf or from other duty assignments, coming back and making claims of sexual harassment while they were in the military; what kind of faith or credibility would they have within the VA if we have these kinds of problems among the people that are supposed to be treating veterans?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. They will not have a lot of faith in the VA. At our Fayetteville VA in reference to sexual harassment, one of the things that happened since I have returned to work is that I am not allowed to assist with women veterans who are experiencing sexual trauma because I was told that my training as a sexual trauma therapist is outdated.
It does not make sense. I have a Master's degree in social work, but because of the hostile environment, I am not allowed to utilize my skills as a sexual trauma counselor. A lot of the women veterans that I had seen previously asked that I continue to counsel with them, but I am not allowed to do so.
Mr. EVANS. If your training is outdated, what year did you get your Master's in social work?
Ms. MOORE-RUSSELL. 1986.
Mr. EVANS. 1986. I am running out of time. I am sorry, but I would like to maybe explore that with you. It just seems to me that it would be very difficult for us to get women veterans to come into the VA if, in fact, the VA is having widespread problems with sexual harassment itself.
So I maybe could talk to you before you leave. I would like to.
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I would just like to ask the last two if they could make their comments brief about the previous question.
Mr. EVERETT. Absolutely.
Ms. BAREFOOT. I do not recall the EEO training of the proper procedure to do things, but I will have to say that I was absolutely scared to death of this man and fully aware that he was the Director. He made that perfectly clear.
Because of my retirement, my early retirement, I did speak with the same lawyer that these ladies have talked about, and she said because I was retired I had to go through this in a different manner, and she referred to it as an Office of Special Counsel, and to day nothing has been done for me.
Mr. EVANS. Okay. Ms. Dawkins.
Ms. DAWKINS. I have attended the mandatory sexual harassment training. In the last year I have worked in the Director's office, and there was not time to attend other training that is mandated, but I have never attended any EEO.
I am going to say something that you might not like to hear. I thought it was all for the counselors and supervisors, and I am a 26 year-plus federal employee, and I did not know that EEO training was offered to someone who was not a supervisor.
Mr. EVANS. Okay. Thank you.
I assume that none of you were contacted or consulted by the VA when they were deciding what action to take against Mr. Calhoun.
[Chorus of nays.]
Mr. EVANS. Okay. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your indulgence.
Mr. EVERETT. Thank you, Lane.
The chair now recognizes Mr. Bilirakis.
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Mr. BILIRAKIS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, I want to truly commend you for giving the oath to these witnesses because, you know, some of these things that we have heard from them, they knew that they were under oath, and they are certainly all very responsible people with a great deal of experience and education, and I think it is even more impacting, their testimony, as a result of that.
And insofar as EEO is concerned, the process, Mr. Clyburn spent a lot of time on that. He obviously knows more about that process than any of us do, I think, and obviously more than any of the witnesses, and I just wonder. We are talking about what is it, the fox counseling the henhouse or whatever the proper term there is?
We make the laws, and maybe with Mr. Clyburn's help we can take a look at that area. Putting ourselves in the shoes of these witnesses, as well as others who are not here, they would be scared to death. I think even I would be scared to death to bring a complaint when I know darn well that my boss or bosses are part of the counseling system and that all of those counselors work conceivably for the person who they are complaining against.
So there is really something wrong there, and I think, Mr. Clyburn, you certainly would recognize that, and I think we ought to work on it.
Mr. EVERETT. Would the gentleman yield?
Mr. BILIRAKIS. By all means.
Mr. EVERETT. There is not only that situation of them counseling, as you put it, the fox counseling the henhouse. There is sworn testimony that they laughed and joked about this.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Yes, that certainly is true, and again, under oath. That is sworn testimony.
Ms. Caruana, regarding the dream that the gentleman had and the question that it could be worth your while if you actually did sleep with him, did you tell the IG about that?
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Ms. CARUANA. Yes, I did.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. You did, and the IG found against you, did he?
Ms. CARUANA. The IG found that I may have been a biased witness because he had told them that I was just making my complaint as retaliatory because I was reassigned.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. As retaliatory.
Ms. CARUANA. And I was upset that the IG did not find in my favor because there were no witnesses. I said to them afterwards that I do not think too many people are sexually harassed in front of anybody.
What he said to everybody was there were no witnesses.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Yes.
Ms. CARUANA. But I do not think too many people are going to say that somebody said or did this, knowing that they have got to go through all of this.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Who is Susan Odom, Ms. Caruana, and what happened to her?
Ms. CARUANA. Susan Odom was the Associate Director's secretary in the Director's office when I was there. She has since resigned.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. And that is it?
Ms. CARUANA. I believe she is living in Florida.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Where in Florida? Do you know?
Ms. CARUANA. I do not know. I originally heard she was in Jacksonville, and then I have heard she is in the West Palm Beach area.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Okay. Do you have any personal knowledge of anything that might have happened to her or involved her that might be pertinent to this hearing?
Ms. CARUANA. Yes, sir.
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Mr. BILIRAKIS. Share that with us.
Ms. CARUANA. After I was in the office for about a month, it became clear to me that there was something going on between Mr. Calhoun and Susan Odom. I was not allowed to take a lunch. I had to be at my desk all the time. I was not allowed to take leave when he was not there, yet Susan was allowed to leave the office every day, go and pick up his cleaning, go to his post office box and get his mail, and pick up lunch for him.
There were several incidents that happened, and I went into Mr. Calhoun's office, and I said, ''Something has got to be done. What's going on with you and Susan has to stop. You've worked 25 years to get where you are, and you're going to lose it all, and I don't think she's worth it.''
And said to me, ''You've come to the brilliant deduction that I'm 'F-ing' her. So what?''
As a friend, I was concerned. I just said, ''You've brought this into the office, and it is disrupting the office, and the entire medical center.''
And after that he seemed to make my life more miserable. I guess that was none of my business, and I should have not said anything.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. So you were basically concerned about him?
Ms. CARUANA. Yes.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. When you made these comments?
Ms. CARUANA. Yes, I was. After that, she eventually got a promotion, and then she resigned, I believe, 2 days before the announcement was made that he was being reassigned to Florida.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. All right. Let me ask very quickly here. I know that Ms. Barefoot is no longer a VA employee. She took retirement a couple of years ago. Have any of you experienced any type of retaliatory action since you agreement to testify before this subcommittee?
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Ms. Force? Very quickly, if you would all maybe respond.
Ms. FORCE. No, sir.
Mr. EVERETT. No. Ms. Caruana.
Ms. CARUANA. No, I am just looked at like I am from another planet, but I cannot consider that retaliatory.
Mr. BILIRAKIS. Ms. Moore-Russell.