NCJ Number
95471
Date Published
1983
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This report summarizes observations made by the General Accounting Office (GAO) during its survey of appeal and grievance systems available to Federal employees.
Abstract
The survey addressed three main issues: (1) whether so many diverse appeal and complaint handling mechanisms are needed, (2) which complaint or appeals procedures work well and what changes are need to improve them, and (3) whether employees perceive they have the right to vindicate employment wrongs. No significant problems with the existing number or type of complaint mechanisms were found. However, numerous problems associated with individual systems and employee protections in general surfaced during the survey. These problems include the length of time to process appeals and grievances and the legal nature of appeal and grievance processes. These problems are systemic and operational rather than structural and cannot be resolved by consolidating systems or transferring procedures used by one system to another. A computerized literature survey did not identify any articles dealing with employees' perceptions of their appeal and grievance rights. Of the officials of the nine departments, agencies, and employee unions surveyed, all but those at the Department of Health and Human Service (DHHS) generally agreed with the study findings. DHHS officials said that further study of system consolidation is needed. Selected caseload statistics of the central personnel management agencies are included, as are related correspondence and a list of 14 GAO reports.