What the IG can do for you

  • Published
  • By Senior Master Sgt. Dean Mitchell
  • 354th Fighter Wing Inspector General Office
EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, Alaska --  Do you know what the Inspector General office can do for you? The IG office is one of several grievance channels and there are four types of complaints for which the IG is uniquely responsible for: reprisal, restriction, improper mental health referrals, and fraud, waste, and abuse. The IG is also the focal point for all Congressional Inquiries.

With both reprisal and restriction complaints you first must understand the term "protected communication" is? A protected communication is any communication to the IG or a member of congress, anyone in the chain of command, and certain other DOD agencies, such as MEO or Family Advocacy regarding real or perceived violations of a standard.

In Layman's terms, an Air Force member can contact any agency available to them to resolve issues and no one may restrict or take action against them for doing so.

Reprisal is taking, or threatening to take, an unfavorable personnel action or withholding, or threatening to withhold, a favorable personnel action on a military member for making, or preparing to make a protected communication. Some examples of unfavorable personnel action could be, but are not limited to: change in duty assignment, Letters of admonishment/reprimand or assigning duties not commensurate to the member's rank. An important point to remember is that the unfavorable action must occur after the protected communication.

Restriction is to place boundaries or barriers upon military members that reduce protected communications. An example of this is being told you are not allowed to go see the IG or contact a member of congress, or you feel you might get into trouble for contacting the IG or a member of congress. What would NOT be restriction is requiring task accomplishment or task completion prior to initiating such contact in order to avoid mission impact.

Both reprisal and restriction complaints are serious allegations which if substantiated can significantly damage, or end, an Air Force member's career.

The important thing to know about improper mental health referrals is that, outside the medical community, only a commander can refer someone to mental health. When a member is referred to mental health he/she has to be advised of his/her rights.

Ultimately only a mental health professional can recommend discharge from service to a commander due to a mental health condition that prevents or interferes with an Airman from performing assigned duties.

Fraud, waste, and abuse are alleged reports of waste of Air Force resources. Some examples of this are fraudulent travel vouchers, misuse of government credit card, or using government vehicles for personal use. All Air Force members have a responsibility to report alleged cases of fraud, waste, and abuse.

Additionally, the IG receives downward directed notification of all congressional inquiries submitted by assigned personnel. A congressional inquiry is when an Air Force member contacts a member of congress to get assistance in resolving their issue. Upon receipt of notification, the IG staffs the inquiry to the appropriate group or tenant unit for a response. Once a response has been written and approved by the wing commander it is sent back to the member of congress that generated the inquiry.

Now that you have a better understanding on what the IG does, here are a few tips to help Air Force supervisors:

Enforce standards the same way every time. Selective accountability does not promote a productive work environment. Ensure failure to meet the standards is documented consistently and fairly.

Ensure Air Force resources are used for their intended purposes.

Foster a work environment that will give Air Force members the belief that they can go to any agency to resolve issues.

Encourage members to use, but not limit them to the unit's first sergeant and chain of command to resolve issues.

Ensure mental health referrals are done for the right reasons, and in accordance with proper procedures.

Take the time to help subordinates to resolve issues and follow up with them or the agencies utilized to ensure the member's issues were handled.

In the end the IG will accept all complaints Air Force members may have in effort to resolve issues. Complainants might get the answer they want, but they will always get the answer that's "RIGHT".