Bodine v. United States

14 Cl. Ct. 661, 1988 U.S. Claims LEXIS 71, 1988 WL 39082
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedApril 27, 1988
DocketNo. 417-87C
StatusPublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 14 Cl. Ct. 661 (Bodine v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Bodine v. United States, 14 Cl. Ct. 661, 1988 U.S. Claims LEXIS 71, 1988 WL 39082 (cc 1988).

Opinion

ORDER

ANDEWELT, Judge.

In this civilian pay case, plaintiff, Donald Bodine, appearing pro se, seeks reinstatement and back pay as a result of the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) termination of his employment as an air traffic controller. Plaintiff was removed from his position on August 25, 1981, for having participated in an illegal strike by the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) against the Government of the United States. Plaintiff alleges that the termination of his employment by the FAA and the upholding of that action by the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) violated a series of statutory, regulatory, and Constitutional provisions, including 5 U.S.C. § 8101 et seq. (1982) (popularly known as the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA)).

The case is presently before the Court on defendant’s motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. For the reasons set forth herein, defendant’s motion is granted and the complaint shall be dismissed.

Facts1

On July 15, 1981, plaintiff sustained an injury to his left shoulder while performing his duties as an air traffic controller. He never returned to work. On July 18, 1981, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 8118 (the “continuation of pay” provision of FECA, discussed infra), plaintiff filed a Form CA-1, “Federal Employee’s Notice of Traumatic Injury and Claim for Continuation of Pay/Com[662]*662pensation,” with the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs of the Department of Labor (OWCP).2 On or about July 23, 1981, pursuant to OWCP Regulation 10.203, 20 C.P.R. § 10.203, the FAA controverted plaintiff’s claim for continuation of pay by completing the indicated portion on the Form CA-1.

On August 3, 1981, PATCO went on strike. The FAA scheduled plaintiff to work during the strike, but he failed to report for duty. On August 13, 1981, the FAA sent plaintiff a letter notifying him of proposed action to remove him from his position for (1) unauthorized absence and (2) participation in a strike against the Government of the United States in violation of 5 U.S.C. § 7311 and 18 U.S.C. § 1918. Plaintiff was removed from his position on August 25, 1981, less than 45 days after he filed his claim for continuation of pay.

Plaintiff then challenged the actions of the FAA on two fronts, pursuing his claim for continuation of pay before the OWCP, and appealing the removal action to the MSPB. As to plaintiff’s claim for continuation of pay, on September 30, 1981, the OWCP made the following determination:

The facts of the injury and employment support the employee’s contention that he/she was a Federal employee who sustained a traumatic disabling injury in the performance of duty. You should, therefore, continue his/her pay for the period of disability 7/16/81 through 7/22/81.

Contending that he was entitled to pay for periods beyond July 22, 1981, plaintiff sought review of the OWCP finding within the Department of Labor, but, at each stage, the original finding was upheld. Pursuant to the OWCP finding, the FAA continued plaintiffs pay only through July 22, 1981.

Plaintiff’s appeal of the removal action to the MSPB was also unsuccessful. After conducting an evidentiary hearing, the MSPB upheld the removal action and found, inter alia, that plaintiff had participated in the PATCO strike in violation of the criminal statutes cited by the FAA in its notice of proposed removal action. Bo-dine v. Dep’t of Transp., FAA, No. NY075281 F082, slip op. (MSPB Dec. 3, 1982), appeal dismissed, 16 M.S.P.R. 711 (1983) (copy attached in Appendix). In its opinion, the MSPB stated:

Despite a plethora of argument over the techical [sic] requirements for continuation of pay, including [plaintiff’s] charges of conspiracy, perjury, and other alleged government procedural misconduct directed at him, what emerged from the evidence was not a scintilla of proof that [plaintiff] was, in fact, in any way or for any reason physically disabled on August 5, 1981.

Slip op. at 3.

Plaintiff did not appeal the MSPB’s decision to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Nearly four years after that decision, on July 13, 1987, plaintiff filed suit in this Court. In his complaint, plaintiff contends that his removal from the FAA and the MSPB’s handling of his appeal involved violations of (1) the “continuation of pay” provisions of FECA, 5 U.S.C. § 8118, and the related OWCP Regulations, 20 C.F.R. § 10.200 et seq.; (2) article III, section 2, clause 3, and the first and fifth amendments to the Constitution; and (3) the Back Pay Act, 5 U.S.C. § 5596 (1982).3 Defendant moved to dismiss the complaint for lack of jurisdiction on September 11, 1987.4

Discussion

Plaintiff contends .that his removal within 45 days of the filing of his claim for [663]*663continuation of pay was inconsistent with the controlling provisions in FECA and, in addition, that the MSPB’s review of his removal was flawed in numerous respects.5 For the reasons explained below, however, this Court does not have jurisdiction to entertain plaintiff’s suit. Pursuant to the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (CSRA), Pub.L. 95-454, 92 Stat. 1111 et seq., (codified as amended in various sections of 5 U.S.C. (1982 & Supp. IV)), the proper forum for judicial review of the FAA’s removal action and the MSPB’s affirmance thereof is the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

In United States v. Fausto, — U.S. -, 108 S.Ct. 668, 98 L.Ed.2d 830 (1988), the Supreme Court stated that, when enacting the CSRA, Congress intended to provide “an integrated scheme of administrative and judicial review [of adverse personnel actions taken against federal employees], designed to balance the legitimate interests of the various categories of federal employees with the needs of sound and efficient administration.” Id. 108 S.Ct. at 672. That integrated scheme permitted plaintiff to contest his removal by the FAA before the MSPB pursuant to 5 U.S.C. § 7702, which he did, and to appeal any adverse MSPB decision to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which he failed to do. The CSRA gives the Federal Circuit exclusive jurisdiction in this regard and does not envision any review by the Claims Court. See 5 U.S.C. § 7703 (b)(1).6

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Bluebook (online)
14 Cl. Ct. 661, 1988 U.S. Claims LEXIS 71, 1988 WL 39082, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/bodine-v-united-states-cc-1988.