Complaint Review: Defense Contract Management Agency

The federal Government the very people assigned to ensure equality and justice feels themselves Immune from the Americans with Disabilities Act - Public Law 101-336 (oh, and sometimes from EPA laws and regulations but we'll save that for another day). What I am trying to say when you read about that small business owner fined $30,000 for a toilet being 3/16" too high or low, a wrong wheel chair ramp; or that chain of drug stores that could not open their stores on schedule because the aisles were too narrow; does not apply to the Government.

Go ahead and say federal employees have a recourse there is the EEO, their Congressmen, the Justice department I can attest it is smoke. I worked for the above agency the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA)for 26 years and until I received an on-the-job injury never had a problem. I was an inspector traveling from company to company ensuring their material complied with contract and government requirements. This is important for latter on, I wore a suit and tie!

After being injured I was profiled unable to climb stairs or ladders. I was removed from a desk position and given a Non-Automated file clerk position. A position I where I was quickly reinjured and received a second permanent disability. I continued unsuccessfully to complain to DCMA and filed several unsuccessful EEO Complaints mentioned as documentation as collusion between Government agencies; I would claim my office were not handicap accessible and the Agency would testify they were and EEO would dismiss the case. Appeals were just as quickly disposed.

I was prevented from going outside my chain of command but upon retiring I sought the assistance of the US Access Office who evaluated my work site and found I had been correct the site was not handicap accessible. As I said this was to show the cover-up between agencies.

Allow me to list just some of the things they used to do to me when I got hurt? We were on the 4 th. floor of the Norfolk Federal Building when Timothy McVeigh blew up the Oklahoma City Building and we started having emergency evacuation drills. Since the elevators are turned off during emergencies and I could not transverse the stairs they would just leave me in the building. Since we never knew if the drills were real or not many of the employees were upset about leaving me behind. The Agency was supposed to obtain a special evacuation chair which they did after four years and the last month we were in the building.

Then there was the big luncheon when I got there I found it was down two flights of stairs. The Commander was going to pay two waiters to carry me down, for the first time in thirty years I broke into tears and a great number of employees stood up and followed me back to the office.

The agency had several parking spaces in the building one of which was handicap. Their favorite trick was to publicly announce that someone was receiving special treatment getting a personal parking space. What they did not tell them was I had to pay almost three times the amount for that space as the other employees were paying for their parking. If I had parked anywhere else I would not been able to transverse the sidewalk which were and are involved in heavy construction. The agency took away the handicap space leaving me no way to get to work until I proved they were required to have a handicap space. Even though I paid for it the first handicap employee from anywhere in the building was allowed to park there.

The worse thing occurred on the 4 th. of July in 2003. As I have explained since the agency refused to comply with federal laws and regulations the building was actually inaccessible to someone in a wheelchair. I had to have two chairs getting out of one at the door and crawling to the second chair. The 4 th. was on a Friday that year and I was off, my wife sat in my chair on the 3rd and completed her time card.

When I came in to work on the 7th I found someone had beaten my wheelchair with a hammer. This was a card secured building meaning anyone who entered the building had to use a card and could be recognized. I knew whoever did this did not do it during the business day it would have been noticed. Then I learned regular employees had to be out of the building before the last supervisor left and that their cards would not allow them back in after 1800 (6:00 pm) or on week-ends. The only people who could enter during these hours were supervisors and the Commander. The agency stopped the base MP's from investigating and refused several freedom of information requests for who was in the building over the week end.

I actually became scared and took the agency's offer to retire. I did ask and received a signed contract where the agency promised to help me obtain my $130,000 in back pay and the medical treatment which goes along with workers compensation. However as soon as I retired the agency reneged on the responsibilities. I found that there was nothing short of publicity that I could do.

I had to have permission to sue and was told that even if I did it would cost me more in legal fees than the $130,000 I was owed. As the medical bills increased I was forced in to bankruptcy losing my home and car. To compound the situation I have incurred additional four permanent injuries as a result of my original injury. By law they are suppose to be covered as well but since I cannot get the agency to comply with their requirements I am at their mercy!

But "a picture is worth a thousand words" please take a moment and view (((link reacted))) then sign the on-line petition to help other handicap and disabled veterans at ((link redacted))). Thank you

Southron_98
Hayes, Virginia
U.S.A.

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