Special Counsel ex rel. Judy Kachanes v. Department of Agriculture

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD SPECIAL COUNSEL DOCKET NUMBER EX REL. JUDY KACHANES, CB-1208-14-0021-U-2 Petitioner, v. DATE: September 3, 2014 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, Agency. THIS STAY ORDER IS NONPRECEDENTIAL ∗ Peta-Gay Irving Brown, Esquire, Oakland, California, for the petitioner. Britt Stuart, Washington, D.C., for the agency. BEFORE Susan Tsui Grundmann, Chairman Anne M. Wagner, Vice Chairman Mark A. Robbins, Member ORDER ON STAY TERMINATION REQUEST ¶1 Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 1214(b)(1)(D), the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) requests a termination of the initial stay of the indefinite detail, proposed removal, and constructive removal of Judy Kachanes from her position as a consumer safety inspector with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. For the ∗ A nonprecedential order is one that the Board has determined does not add significantly to the body of MSPB case law. Parties may cite nonprecedential orders, but such orders have no precedential value; the Board and administrative judges are not required to follow or distinguish them in any future decisions. In contrast, a precedential decision issued as an Opinion and Order has been identified by the Board as significantly contributing to the Board's case law. See 5 C.F.R. § 1201.117(c). 2 reasons set forth below, OSC’s request is GRANTED, and the August 20, 2014 stay is TERMINATED. ¶2 On August 20, 2014, Chairman Grundmann granted OSC’s request for a 45-day stay of the indefinite detail, proposed removal, and constructive removal of Ms. Kachanes. The Department of Agriculture was ordered to reinstate Ms. Kachanes to her position of record, with the same duties and responsibilities that she formerly had, effective August 20, 2014. On August 25, 2014, the Department of Agriculture requested modification of the stay order based in part on Ms. Kachanes’s representation that she was unable to work because of her disability. It further noted that Ms. Kachanes was receiving Social Security disability benefits and had a pending application for disability retirement through the Federal Employees’ Retirement System. ¶3 On August 27, 2014, OSC filed a motion requesting a termination without prejudice of the August 20, 2014 order granting the stay, stating that the parties desired to resolve the matter without the reinstatement of Ms. Kachanes to her former position. OSC also requested that the Department of Agriculture be released from its obligation to submit proof of Ms. Kachanes’s reinstatement pursuant to the initial stay order. Consistent with 5 U.S.C. § 1214(b)(1)(D)(ii), OSC provided Ms. Kachanes with notice and an opportunity for comments prior to requesting termination of the stay. Both Ms. Kachanes and the Department of Agriculture consented to OSC’s motion to terminate the stay. ¶4 Based on the foregoing, the August 20, 2014 stay is hereby terminated without prejudice effective the date of the issuance of this Order. Further, pursuant to the request of the parties, the Department of Agriculture is hereby 3 released from its obligation to submit proof of its compliance with the August 20, 2014 initial stay order. FOR THE BOARD: ______________________________ William D. Spencer Clerk of the Board Washington, D.C.