U.S. Department of Labor
Veterans' Preference Advisor
You indicated that:
- An agency failed to grant you Veterans' Preference in initial employment.
You appear to have a valid basis for filing a complaint.
Before filing a complaint, however, you should discuss your concerns with your supervisor and/or the Federal agency personnel office that took the action. Anyone you choose, including an official of a veterans' service organization, may help you at any time. If you are unable to resolve the matter with the agency, you should:
- Contact your local State Employment Service office and speak to a Veterans' Employment Representative or a Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program Specialist. They will make sure your information is complete and forward your complaint to the DOL State representative for the Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS); or
- File a written complaint directly with a DOL Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) Office. Please review the instructions on how to file a complaint form. You will find a link to the form on the instructions page.
NOTE: In an extremely rare circumstance, a person may wish to file complaints under both the USERRA and Veterans’ Preference (VP) statutes. If you think that this situation applies to you, you must submit a separate complaint form for each statute allegedly violated (i.e., one for USERRA and one for VP). When this situation occurs, VETS will open two separate cases for investigation.
COMPLAINT RESOLUTION PROCEDURE
After the Department of Labor (DOL), Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) accepts your complaint, a VETS representative will work with the agency to resolve the complaint in a timely manner. If your case cannot be resolved within 60 days, on the 61st day you may close your case with VETS and appeal to the Merit System Protection Board (MSPB). However, with the concurrence of the claimant and the VETS investigator, the case may remain open longer than 60 days. When you are notified that VETS has closed your case, you have 15 days to forward an appeal to the MSPB. If the MSPB has not issued a decision within 120 days, you may seek judicial redress in the U. S. District Court.
