Skip to content
Politics
Link copied to clipboard

VA: Phila. director deserves pay cut, reprimand

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on Tuesday said it had reprimanded the director of its Philadelphia benefits office and proposed cutting her pay by 10 percent to punish her for arranging her own transfer to the job in 2014.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on Tuesday said it had reprimanded the director of its Philadelphia benefits office and proposed cutting her pay by 10 percent to punish her for arranging her own transfer to the job in 2014.

The proposed penalties against Diana Rubens were among several disciplinary actions the VA announced, stemming from internal investigations.

Rubens took over the Philadelphia office in 2014 but was removed after allegations surfaced that she improperly forced the previous director out so she could take his job, which would place her closer to family.

After investigating, VA officials concluded Rubens had acted with poor judgment but said she had not intentionally gamed the system. They proposed slashing her pay by nearly a third and reassigning her to its Houston office.

Rubens denied any wrongdoing and appealed.

In February, her demotion was overturned by an administrative judge, who called the punishment excessive, in part because the agency had not punished another official involved in the transfer.

The VA on Tuesday said it had proposed a 15-day suspension for that executive, Danny Pummill, the acting undersecretary for benefits.

Rubens and her attorney did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

tnadolny@phillynews.com 215-854-2730 TriciaNadolny