Federal Daily - September 17, 2008

Army Brigade Deployment Changed to Afghanistan

The Army announced Sept. 15 that a Fort Drum, N.Y.-based brigade will deploy next year to Afghanistan instead of Iraq as earlier scheduled. The 3rd Brigade (Spartans), 10th Mountain Division, will head to Afghanistan in January following 18 months of dwell time. The unit previously was deployed as a Brigade Combat Team from February 2006-May 2007 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, the Army said, noting that battalion-level units also have been deployed in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. To see more, go to: www.army.mil/-newsreleases/2008/09/15/12451-army-brigade-deployment-changed-to-afghanistan-in-early-2009.

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EEOC Denies EPA Appeal of Discrimination Ruling

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) upheld a ruling in favor of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employee who complained that he faced discrimination at a regional EPA office, according to documents released by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). EEOC rejected a request by the agency to reconsider a Jan. 11 EEOC ruling in favor of EPA Special Agent George DeLos Santos, who works in the Criminal Investigations Division office in El Paso, Texas, according to documents PEER posted on its Web site Sept. 15. DeLos Santos alleged that from 2001 to 2004 he was subjected to an ongoing pattern of harassment, discrimination because of his Hispanic origin and a hostile work environment. At one point, his supervisor made comments accusing him of stealing license plates and reselling them for profit in Mexico, the documents said. DeLos Santos also alleged that other workers in his office made derogatory comments about female and Native American co-workers and ridiculed an African-American colleague as mentally slow. When DeLos Santos filed a complaint with EPA, it was rejected and the agency issued a finding of no discrimination. He appealed to EEOC, which upheld his complaint in January. The agency then appealed to the commission, which last month upheld the ruling in favor of DeLos Santos and ordered EPA to post a notice of its ruling in its regional office, PEER said. EPA must decide whether to implement the EEOC order or appeal it to federal court. “In many federal agencies there is a management mafia that will defend one of their own no matter how outrageous the conduct,” said PEER Senior Counsel Paula Dinerstein. To see more, go to: www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row_id=1100.

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DFAS Processes First EFT of Navy Death Benefits Payment

The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) announced that it has processed the first secure electronic funds transfer (EFT) of a Navy death gratuity benefits payment. The Navy joins the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps in offering the EFT option to family members who prefer an electronic transfer over a paper check delivered through the mail. DFAS and the Navy signed an agreement last month enabling the option payments, DFAS said. Under the newly implemented EFT process, family members can have Navy death gratuity payments sent directly to a bank account. Navy Capt. Todd Friedlander, DFAS Cleveland military pay director, said EFT allows for immediate access to the funds deposited into the designated account, eliminating the hold period required for check deposits made at some banks. To see more, go to: www.dfas.mil/news/2008pressreleases/release08080001.html.

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