KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In March, more than 20 employees of the Kansas City Veterans Affairs Medical Center came forward alleging racial discrimination.
Three months later, workers tell FOX4 not much has changed.
“There are six cases that are either on file, going to be on file or processing through the place to be on file,” said attorney Rebecca Randles of Randles, Mata, & Brown, LLC. “And some of the issues are blatant racism.”
Randles said more and more former and current employees are reaching out for representation.
But she said her involvement with cases against the VA date back four years.
“We would like to see structural complete change from top to bottom, make sure that the community at the VA represents the community, both of the employees and the community that they serve. Right now, it doesn’t do either,” Randles said.
Employees at the VA Hospital, who asked their identification be withheld, said they’re in a constant state of fear they may lose their jobs.
As some of the initial investigations into the Equal Employment Opportunity investigations into claims of racial discrimination wrap-up, some tell FOX4 they are being offered settlements.
Randles said settlements with EEO investigations — in attempts to resolve the situation — are common.
She said what isn’t common are some of the methods being offered.
“One can’t ever say that it’s a bad thing for that employee to take that particular settlement. But the issue is when those cases are being settled with non-monetary things like, ‘OK, we’ll give you a quality step increase, or we’ll take this out of your file, or we’ll make sure that all of the discipline is erased from your file,'” Randles said.
“Those things are very valuable to the employee, but it doesn’t necessarily do anything to fight the endemic racism that you find at the VA.”
FOX4 tried numerous times to get a response from the Kansas City VA, by phone and email.
But according to a recent Facebook post on the official Kansas City VA Medical Center page, director David Isaacks posted a lengthy message attempting to change the narrative of misconduct and tolerance at the KCVA after inappropriate comments were posted online.
“As the Director of the KCVA I would like to address the recent comments made on our social media page. The current events in the wake of the death of George Floyd have shaken our city and Nation.
“The Kansas City VA Medical Center is a part of our community, and our community is in pain. We can’t avoid today’s societal problems, nor can we ignore them. Considering the recent comments on our social media platform, I’m here to dispel this narrative, as it’s not who we are.
“We are a medical campus that does not discriminate based on race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression, age, height, weight, physical or mental ability. We carry our community’s challenges as well as your successes along with us.
“Diversity, equality, and inclusion are the very fabric of what we stand for. Racism, sexism, homophobia, or any other form of hatred will not be tolerated. Employees who violate the zero-tolerance policy will be subject to termination.
“Now, more than ever, we as a community must pull together and be there to support one another. What we do have are unwavering principles that will serve to steady us in this troubled world.
“There will be unprecedented challenges in the coming weeks, months, and years. How we respond to these challenges will define us for a generation. Our services are critical to Veterans in our care, and we continue to embrace our mission statement and VA Core Values.”
On Thursday afternoon, attorneys and representatives from the NAACP, ACLU and local pastors held a phone conference to discuss steps to move forward.
Randles said the process to have complaints fully reviewed can take months. If her clients choose, the next step would be file federal lawsuits.
“It’s a very long process. This is a marathon. It’s not a sprint. But the end result is something that’s worth working for,” Randles said.
