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" I previously made a comment on a connected letter. I have more to say, after reading the latest comments from others. Certain people wonder why anyone would want to go public & make the VA look bad, with all of this. They wonder how we can expect our veteran's to come to our VA, after reading all of these letter's and comments. Well...which is better? Keep lying about all that goes on...so that they receive a false sense of security? Or, tell the truth, which will show that we only want things to be good for them at our VA. Those of us that have been "wronged", by the Tomah VA Mgt., would not have worked there as long as we had, or have, if we did not care for our Veteran's!! Oh yes...it really would be nice if more people were not afraid to attach their names to their comments. Could it be that they are afraid of "retaliation"? Believe me...I know for a fact, that it "does" happen there. Rita. "

" while im not in housekeeping, i must agree with 'am housekeeping", the supervison in housekeeping is very poor and just plain bad overall, their inept, rude, and hostile, just overall very bad, something needs to be done throughout the VA with its bad supervison "

" A supervisor should attain certain qualities at a minimum or not be in that position. At the V.A. in Tomah there are some positions that definitely could be better filled. These people in these positions should be replaced immediately as they are clods! "

" We, being union-bargaining employees at the Tomah V.A., are truly lucky and blessed to have Lin E. as our Union Vice President. She has put up with Upper Managements' unfair, unreasonable, and sleazy tactics by fighting for us with her heart and soul. When management plays their little games of playing dirty and trying to flood her with requests and negotiations all at once, (that management had put on hold earlier, and all of a sudden acts like now it's a priority!), Lin continues to fight for justice and the truth. Thank you Lin for your hard work and countless hours of defending the working people! "

" i have to agree with response, the 2 people who wrote after me, are the ones who kissed up for the better jobs and the year end performance bounses, i just tell it like it is and oh well, and theres lots of others out there that agree, the VA is a lousy place to work, "

" I am an employee at the VA and HAVE worked in the private sector. The one thing that I can say is that I and my work at that nursing home was APPRECIATED. At the VA, management does not show appreciation to their nursing staff especially the nursing assistants. We hear it from the veterans we care for and that is why many of us are still here.
I personally think that you individuals that think the VA is so wonderful to work for are either management or someone who has decided to sell their soul to them for a better job. I never have been a butt-kisser, and if that is the only way to move up-I guess I will be at the bottom of the pile for a long time, but that doesn't mean I can't and won't fight for better working conditions. "

" HMM. Let me see "another employee".... What is this people who express satisfaction and pride in thier work instead of complaining, advance in their careers, and get more opportunities. What a concept! Those employees who complain and grumble are not rewarded, I wonder if there is a lesson in your story? I suspect agencies other than the VA operate in a similar manner. "

" If it's so bad go into the private sector, such as nursing home care. Yikes! These poor companies are trying to make a profit (which I, personally, find disgusting)! And talk about understaffed, a whole other issue. You should have to work in one of these facilities before you get to work for the VA so you know how good you've got it here!

We should be proud to work for the greatest employer in the WORLD. I've always felt I could voice my concerns without being retaliated against because that is the environment promoted at Tomah VA. Remember what your mother told you: "It's not what you say but how you say it!"

If you think you have it bad here, you should try working for the State of Wisconsin. Talk about a lot of PO'd people! The Fed's are doing it right, bottom line.

It's my understanding that Disney World is actually the greatest employer in the world. I suppose if we were worked there, we'd find fault with it.

Wake up people! We do a damn good job taking care of the Veterans. And it shows in just about all the pencil pushing and bean counting that goes on around there (that's where I think the gross-misuse of funds is--different subject all together).

We have plenty of funding. We just can't be wasteful. Be proud, be conservative, do your job and do it well. You will find personal satisfaction with this attitude. And when you encounter those with their heads up their butts, you can laugh it off knowing you did your best. You can beat them. You don't have to join them. "

" ive been reading the comments on here and must agree the Tomah VA pretty much sucks, the people who talk about how wonderful it is to work here are the ones who always get the better jobs and year end bonuses, while the ones who actually do the work in the trenches get nothing year after year, so wheres the equal treatment, just once id love to see a job awraded fairly, but that hasent happened in over a 100yrs, i know people are not going to like this but its a fact the Tomah Va is the most unfair place to work there is "

" And the saga continues with some pretty bitter sounding people. So you've been wronged by your employer and you think that by going to this public forum, that its going to help your situation?

All its going to do is make the VA look bad to the people and veterans that read this.
You give your employer a bad rap in the eyes of the public. Is that what you want? A good employee should be helping their employer look good, should be trying to do as much as they can to make the company run as good as it can --- but with people so angry and bitter that is hard to make happen.

Airing your employers dirty laundry publicly is just WRONG. There are internal means in place numbers and addresses of people to contact locally and nationally--if you think you have been wronged or if you dont agree with what is being done. This is how these matters should be handled.

Lets stop all this and get back to making the VA the wonderful place it is. We cant have a ranking of #10 in the nation without doing many things right. Tomah VA does many things right, it is looked at as a model of best practice in several areas. Lett toot our horn of the good things that we do for our very deserving veterans. "

" I just have to comment on "Another Proud Employee" Just how deep in the sand is your head stuck, how dark are those rose colored glasses that you're currently wearing?

I believe that the majority of the employees are proud of what they do and are proud to serve those who currently serve or have served.

And of course there are those who only care about getting paid every two weeks. You know, the ones who take extended lunches, or take several lunches, come in late most days, don't do their share of the work, call in sick, take numerous smoke breaks (we don't want to violate their desires of killing themselves), stir up trouble amongst the rest of the departments thru gossip or untruths. I guess I could go on.

You said that your mad about how some (actually the majority) of employees are not satisfied with the current regime of clueless management. These employees go public because no one up top listens or addresses the issues or problems that are going on. No one listens inside the walls of that hospital or they won't do anything about it. Thats why you go public.

If you had better management that would listen and deal with issues, be proactive in stopping some of these hostile work environments, then you would have a better staff that could provide a better service to our Veterans without the constant distractions of managements inability to manage.

Those of you who are not cowards and voice what is wrong with the bad conditions in which you work, be proud that you have the guts to voice your opinion. But with your complaints have a solution for these problems.

Hopefully some of you will voice your opinions during the town hall meetings. You know, to the ones who sit up front and pat themselves on the back for being inept

Those who are clueless, continue to be proud of those rose colored glasses. Your checks in the bank. "

" I think we all can assume that those posts are from the director. If you're so proud to work for the VA, why not post your name with the blog? I think there's more than just a "few" people upset with the VA. Do you get out and talk with the employees? It seems to be across every service line. "

" Sounds like managment that doesn't do direct patient care. Veteran's notice things and we hear things. I hope that Tom is contacting a lawyer so that he does not lose his retirement. "

" I am another employee who is PROUD to work at the Tomah VA. I am proud of our mission - what a noble cause to care for our nation's veterans!

I am proud of our employees and believe that the vast majority of our employees are GOOD people who work very hard - and very willingly - to provide wonderful care to our veterans. We hear from families of veterans and from veterans themselves who are extremely happy with the care they receive. We are repeatedly told what a caring, friendly atmosphere exists at our hospital.

I am proud of the work that is done in my department and am happy that I can help contribute to the well-being of our patients. I see dedicated employees going 'above and beyond' all the time to meet the needs of the patients - not because someone yelled at them to do something, but because they WANT to help the veterans.

It makes me sad (and mad!) that some people go public with their complaints. What do our veterans think of us?? If a veteran needed care and had read some of these comments, do you think he'd want to come to our VA? How can we hope to recruit caring and quality employees to our hospital when such slanted and vicious comments are made? It's too bad that a few unhappy people are painting such an ugly and unfair picture of our facility.

As one writer said, there are two sides to every story. Management can't explain their actions fully because to do so would mean that they would have to list specific allegations against employees. This is something they cannot (and will not) do. I do know that federal employees can't just be fired out of the blue - there are warnings and opportunities given to employees to improve/change their behavior.

Not only are we lucky to work for the VA and take care of our nation's veterans, but we are very lucky to have the benefits and job protections that we do have. I don't worry about losing my job. I know I will never go to work and "find out" that I am fired, because I do the work I am supposed to, work well with others, and abide by the rules.

I'm proud to serve those who served and I am proud to work at the Tomah VA. "

" I am a proud employee of the VA and am tired of seeing these negative comments put out against my employer. I would be one of the first to say that things are not perfect at the VA, but at what company are they? Any business that employs people, has the same problems that the VA has. And they deal with them the best they can. I have heard about many incidents in my career at the VA - disciplinary actions for many different things. It is surprising how many stories come from each incident. There are always two sides to the story and I have never heard both of them, only the talk from one person handed on and on. The story gets added to and subtracted from so what ever I hear is probably the furthest thing from the truth. Do I feel sorry for anyone that is fired? Yes, to a point. But I also know that to fire someone is not easy to do--there are many steps along the way--the employee gets warnings and several chances to change their ways and if they don't--management must enforce the rules and do what they have to.
Rules need to be followed in every part of our life. There is protocol that has to be gone by in a job as in driving on the road, or proper behavior in society. If the rules/protocol were not followed there would be total bedlam. That is very true in a workplace. I have seen employees stretch the guidelines over and over and then they get mad when a new guideline comes out to cover what they are taking advantage of.
I'm not saying that management is perfect and never steps out of line, but they have their hands tied too and have pressures on them to keep things done certain ways. They don't deal with only one unit or area, they have the whole hospital to keep up with and that is a lot of people.
The bottom line - things aren't always as they seem. You hear the employee side, have you heard the management side? Until you do it is hard to judge who is right and who is wrong. We will never hear the management side because that is personal, they are prohibited from giving out information. They have their reasons for their action and until I am in that position to know why they made that decision, I move on and continue to do my job to the best of my ability. That's what we all should do. We were hired to work for an employer to the best of our ability. If you don't agree and can't put up with their rules and regulations, then move on. There is a work world outside of the VA and you may find it more to your liking, but I know you will always run into many of the same problems at other companies and you just may say, Hey, it really wasn't so bad at the Tomah VA! "

" I've also heard people say "if you don't like it, quit". What kind of rationale is that?? Wouldn't it make more sense to say "if you don't like it, fix it"? I think the problem IS that all the good people are quitting because they can't make the changes, and can't work at a place as horrible as the Tomah VA. All the people who should quit don't because they don't care, and only come for the paycheck. Clean house!! And instead of hiring 80 new people, hire people who actually work! Fire 3 bad people and hire 1 that will actually get the job done and not waste hours of their workday!!! That's where the changes need to be. "

" I absolutely agree with you. And I am looking forward to our Town Hall meeting at the end of this month to see the results of the latest Employee Survey. It doesn't sound good! And from the reactions on these articles, I can see why! I also agree with the individual from recreation. If you try to make changes and give suggestions, you're deemed "not a team player" and blacklisted. Given that you're 1/6 employed down there, I hope you don't get fired! We talk about making changes, but how do we do it? "

" My post from July 8th which begins, "Employees are at the VA to provide......", should read from a "25 Year Employee" and not "Year Employee." "

" Could someone please inform me why an RN who works on 408B during PM's is allowed to arrive to work late on a daily basis and management is aware of this? I wish I could come to work when I felt like it. Especially when this has been going on for years!?! "

" While employed at the Tomah V.A., I have seen some of the most blatant abuse of government. Upper management has its' own sense of infallability and omnipotence. When some people obtain a position of authority, it goes to their head. Even when they are completely wrong about an issue concerning employees, they continually violate set rules between labor and management and treat employees unfairly. I have never seen such a bunch of incompetent, lazy, egotistical, unethical people in management. Unfortunately this has a negative effect that ultimately trickles down to the Veterans and their care. In my experience while employed at the Tomah V.A., I have numerous times picked up the slack for other staff. Yet even though my supervisor acknowledged this and my consistent hard work, I was given average evaluations. Yet still, other employees who were poor workers but spent time "charming" the boss were given promotions and preferential treatment. So in other words punish the good workers and reward the bad!! What's the incentive to work hard??? Punishment!!! There have been false allegations of wrong doing fabricated against me more than once by "pet" employees, only to find after a thorough investigation the charges were false. And this was after countless hours of hard work by the Union Vice President to represent, investigate and defend me! Needless wasted hours that could have been avoided if management had given me a chance to state what had really transpired. In other words, "Guilty until proven Innocent!" I have experienced management that does not defend its' employees by allowing staff to harass, intimidate, and verbally abuse them multiple times. Only to find the perpetrator is actually guilty of patient abuse and is trying to cover it up by using another employee as a scapegoat to divert attention away from themselves. When promotion is present for a job, and a qualified employee applys, if they have been "BLACKLISTED" by management they have no chance to get hired and further their career. Even if they are a good worker. The only chance one in this position would have to further their career is if they are "butt-kissers" to management and/or are in the political circle of upper management. I have seen numerous times where employees were promoted to a higher job unfairly because they are related to another employee at the Tomah V.A., who is in a high status position. Unfair, unethical, bias, dishonest practices, all by upper management that is discouraging and unfair to those who are trying to advance their own career. This is Management? Sounds more like Mismanagement!! When I started employment at the Tomah V.A., I was taught in orientation of how employees are to give and receive respect and treat each other with dignity. In my experiences working at the V.A. nothing could be further from thr truth! "

" Reading about Tom Johnson's situation comes as no suprise to me how management treats its' employees. Tom was a hard worker, a good guy, and cares about the veterans. When certain people receive a little bit of authority, it goes to their head and they abuse it. I, as a veteran and an employee at the Tomah V.A. have seen the blatant abuse of power by management and some of these people should have been terminated a long time ago. Shame on you! "

" Management and supervisors are clustered together in little ivory towers far from the employees. Most have no idea of what our jobs entail, let alone having actually done them. They only time we see them is when they swoop in with some new edict that makes no sense about how we are to do our jobs, or to criticize. Evrything is about the "numbers"- if it doesn't go on a spreadsheet or powerpoint it's irelevant.
Employee morale is at an all time low. The Employee Satisfaction Survey was completed in the spring of 2007- management has yet to institute any changes.

We are proud to serve our veterans, management makes it hard to do it in the way it should be done "

" As much as I am concerned about the employee morale and welfare at the VAMC, I am more concerned about the overall care of the veterans. I believe that the VA has been top-heavy for years and years. I also believe that many employees (at all levels) have put their own selfishness before the needs of the veteran/patient. Too many stories have been shared of employees pushing through veterans at the canteen to get the best purchase before others. That's pathetic. Perhaps the canteen should be for patients only? Perhaps the same should be true of each and every service at the VA. Furthermore, why is it that employees don't punch timecards? Some supervisors have looked the other way while staff is off on personal time (oil changes, doctor appts.) while being paid by our tax dollars. There is no excuse for such behavior -- those employees need to be, and should be, fired on the spot. Deceit and theft are not acceptable -- even in the Federal government. And you know if it's happening in Tomah, it's happening everywhere. I think this is where privatization of VA's first came into concept! "

" Nursing is not the only department taking the hits.

I've been at the VA for 17 year's, but you may say I've been there all of my life as I'm the 3rd generation in our family to work at this facility. Yep I've seen changes!

I've been in different departments ove rthe 17 years and currently working in recreation. Department hit you bet! Our department is on the line with the JHACO people for not having enough activities for the veterans during the day, evening, weekends, and Holidays. Well how far do you think 6 people can offer all of that? Then they want more! Activities mean equipment well they keep taking storage space away so where do you store games, coolers for trips, grills, extra boomboxes, art supplies, paper products, coffee pots, roasters, etc. you get theh picture? Then you have a great activity center going with a pool table, electric train in progress of growing, area to do crafts, play Bingo, whatever and management comes in and takes it away. No more pool table access for 210 long term veterans, who knows for sure where the train went after thousands of volunteer dollars went into it and to do what with the space? The were 2 rooms built in, rather small ones at that, for therapy session rooms leaving a large over crowded room with tables and chairs squashed in to a smaller area to have larger activities like Bingo, yes the vetrans like their Bingo, that is open to all veterans when they are at VA. No warning to the recreation staff that this was going to happen either until after the fact. When you add the wheelchairs of the long term care veterans that call this facility home to this room is a DANGER to them and we can't stop this. Since the opening of this new area there has actually been less veterans using it and they have NOT been showing up for these new groups that have been formed. Even the staff that are supposed to be holding the groups have stopped showing up because the veterans aren't. What a waste of space that was being used daily before by 20 to 60 or more veterans a day! I put my 2 cents in when I found about this change and now I have a letter in my file as a displinary action. If you stop and ask a veteran at the VA who does things for them, you'll get your answer and they'll tack on if you can find her. Hey want another thing? Recreation works on volunteered donations, we don't even have a budget to work with, so all activities and supplies are provoded by YOU!

I'll agree that management is trying to expand our department a bit with 4 new postitions, WOW! That makes 10 people to do activities with 250 veterans 16 hours of the day, 365 days of the year including trips off station for activites, week long camping trips - with staff getting 8 hours pay and 4 hours comptime with the responsibility of the group of veterans health and personal care for 24/5 while we are gone, activites that are offered on the units plus whole facility activities (free choice activities) where any veteran can attend. If my calculations are correct, not granting over time mind you, we would need 15 staff to cover the hours needed for on station activites they, the management, want. This isn't to mention the paperwork that needs to be done, the hours planning of some activities takes, EDUCATION - we get lists every month it seems of something we need to do or is over due, and then we are questioned why are the veterans not doing an activity or the veterans saying they are tired of watching TV.
Yep we need a house cleaning from the front office down. Since S. Johnson has left there isn't anyone talking to the people doing the job anymore. If it isn't a safety risk or some glorifying remodeling job that makes management look good to the public, it isn't happening. We need a director! Maybe if the acting director wasn't turned down for the job when he interviewed maybe his attitude would be different also. VA has saved the director's wages for this fiscal year, so where does that money go? Bonuses for the acting personal?

WE need change!

WE need support!

WE need working conditions to get better as this VA is on it's way out if not and then there will be even more homeless veterans out there. More veterans further away from their families when they should be closer to them.

Tom was great to work with as I was in nursing for several years. I don't I ever heard him say no to a veteran no matter what he was doing. He put the veterans first before the paperwork, cleaning, education, bull?/!!. The vets miss him. "

" Employees are at the VA to provide the best possible care to the Veterans. Wonderful care IS being provided but higher-ups are making it very difficult. On my building, it is a dictatorial, hostile working environment which in turn affects the care that is given to the Veterans. Staff are there to provide medical and psychiatric care and should be allowed to do so without constant concern and worry from management. Employees that provide direct patient care are the core of the VA. We are all caring and compassionate workers but in such a hostile environment, energy is completely drained and the main focus is how to avoid repercussions from management. It seems common sense and a team approach are not taken into consideration when providing care. I also take offense to the statement, "There are the transfer forms or else quit if you have problems." I enjoy working with the Veteran population and have alot of years invested at the VA. The employees that provide direct patient care should be able to voice their opinions and concerns and not just be labeled "disgruntled employees". The environment we work in affects the care we provide and we are only asking that we be able to do our jobs and be shown respect so we in turn can focus on the Veterans. "

" Thanks for putting that so forward. Thank you to all the wonderful workers who keep the place going inspite of working conditions. "

" As a veteran, I am concerned with what I understand to be open hostility to the workers that provide me and millions like me with our health care.

I recently ran into some of these employees, who have either been the victim of a hostile work environment by their employer, or were the union representatives trying to help the employees.

These folks were in Washington DC trying to convince Congress to provide adequate funding for the VA system. I didn't see any management people from the VA there. JUST WORKERS AND VETERANS.

Fighting to get thier employer more funding to KEEP AMERICA'S PROMISE TO ITS VETERANS. Working for others in spite of the attacks being waged against them by the VA.

To all the VA workers - THANK YOU. "

" I work at the VA, and we've been talking about these postings. I've heard from VA employees and other people in the community on this topic, and I've heard many of them say "Well that's the government." Why is that the government? I think it's a sad day when we make excuses for our government. I think working for the government should be one of the best jobs, and not because you have no fear of getting fired, but because people have integrity for the work that they do. I've heard of horrible experiences for the Veterans trying to get appointments even. Something needs to changed, not only for the employees, but how we handle the Vets also. "

" Thank you Tom, for being brave enough to post something against the VA. As witnessed to the other article that was posted, people are not happy with the way things are at the VA. Something needs to change. "

" You are not alone and we are going to support's you all the way. I think the Tomah VA needs a good house cleaning of it's management and lets get back to the point where everyone can work together and give the best care possible to our well deserving veterans. Its called TEAMWORK, which means the management works WITH the entire staff and not just set in their chairs and blast out orders. Management would receive a lot more cooperation from their peers under them if they would just bring their heads out of their _ _ _ "s and treat us like human beings and not slaves. I sometimes think they need a wheel barrow to carry their heads around in because they have gotten so big. AN INVESTIGATION OF THE MANAGEMENT NEEDS TO BE DEALT WITH AND IT WILL BE. "

" As a past employee and veteran I have first hand knowledge of how veteran employee's are treated, even when you return from a combat zone. They say they put veteran's first but not if you are a veteran and an employee. I was harrassed till I quit. "