§2736f Efforts to improve retention and prevent retaliation

Summary

Create one central place to report discrimination and harassment within one year after December 22, 2023. That office must do a first review and let people file more than one claim from the same complaint if needed. Within 180 days after December 22, 2023, and every year after that, the Secretary must run an employee satisfaction survey. The survey must allow written comments and ask about things like work-life balance, pay and benefits, career growth, honesty and fairness in evaluations and promotions, communication, leadership, culture, complaint processes, accessibility and accommodations, getting to work, IT systems, how well employees know the Department’s mission, whether their work fits the mission, feeling able to make improvements, and any harassment, discrimination, retaliation, or other reasons people leave. Also within 180 days, the Secretary must start a confidential exit survey and interview process for employees who leave. Exit surveys must be anonymous, ask why people left (including caregiving, spouse/partner job limits, or mistreatment), ask about job experience and suggestions, and may ask the new employer’s name and industry. The Secretary must analyze the anonymous survey results and do a separate 180-day survey for Locally Employed Staff. Key findings must be shared with staff and sent to Congress within 60 days after each survey ends. If someone has accused their supervisor of harassment or discrimination and that supervisor normally rates the employee, a different manager must handle the employee’s review (effective 90 days after December 22, 2023). Any employee accused of such conduct must get written guidance called a “retaliation hold” describing actions that would be treated as retaliation; the accused person’s immediate supervisor also gets that guidance.