Boulder – A complaint accusing seven state employees of misusing up to $200,000 of their on-the-clock time has prompted the Colorado Department of Human Services to launch an independent investigation.
Wanda Leingang, who works in the Boulder office of the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, said that for the past year, fellow employees and supervisors have used work time to run personal errands, go sightseeing, take extended vacations and generally dawdle around the office.
“Everybody goes for a long lunch every now and then,” Leingang said. “I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about blatant abuse and theft of time.”
Leingang also claims the office is a hostile work environment and that she is the victim of sexual harassment and retaliation. Copies of her complaint have been sent to the governor and the attorney general, as well as federal officials.
Liz McDonough, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Department of Human Services, called the complaint “deeply disturbing.”
“Obviously, the allegations are very, very serious,” McDonough said. “So what the department is going to do, in all likelihood, is contract out the investigation so that we get an independent review of the allegations that have been made. Once we have received that, we will take appropriate action if any is warranted.”
Leingang’s boss, division director Nancy Smith, deferred all questions to McDonough.
Leingang said she fears she will be fired for filing the complaint, so she is seeking whistle-blower protection through state Rep. Jim Welker, R-Loveland, who could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Leingang said she decided to come forward because of the importance of the office’s work. The Division of Vocational Rehabilitation helps people with disabilities get jobs. Leingang, who has a vision problem, received similar assistance in another state.
Her complaint states that problems in the office have led to delayed services and repeated missed appointments with clients.
“The consumers feel defeated due to the staff’s … lack of response from their e-mails and phone calls,” the complaint says. “At least six to eight clients are fearful of talking to the Boulder supervisor and counselors or to exercise their appeal rights due to fear of retaliation and vicious behaviors of the counselors within the Boulder office.”
The complaint is not Leingang’s first. She filed a sexual-harassment claim against a supervisor last year that resulted in the supervisor being removed.
Once again, Leingang is calling for the removal of her supervisors. And once again, her complaint includes an allegation of sexual harassment – this time stemming from joke images e-mailed or printed on state equipment that contained nudity or vulgarities. One e-mail showed an obese woman’s backside painted like a jack-o’-lantern. Another, Leingang said, involved naked children.
Leingang said she has been frustrated and intimidated, so in May she began documenting infractions in her office. The handwritten documentation fills notebooks and file folders.
“They see me as a troublemaker,” she said. “But I am not going to let them intimidate me.”
Staff writer George Merritt can be reached at 720-929-0893 or gmerritt@denverpost.com.
