Payroll Glitch Affects 9,600 VA Workers as Job Cuts Loom

Approximately 9,600 employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will need to wait until April 11 to receive their overtime pay because of problems with the VA’s Time and Attendance System (VATAS). VA officials confirmed that, despite this delay, regular wages will be paid on schedule.

VA Press Secretary Peter Kasperowicz confirmed that 98% of employees are unaffected, although overtime processing has been delayed for the remaining 2% because of VATAS glitches. The software that monitors employee hours, overtime, and leave is managed from the VA’s central office in Washington, D.C.

The delay aligns with a significant reduction in the workforce. The VA intends to cut 80,000 jobs to save costs and streamline bureaucracy under an initiative supported by President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. The VA has terminated 2,400 probationary employees and extended voluntary resignations through a program called "Fork in the Road," although the total number of participants has not been revealed.

The layoffs have ignited a strong response, as Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) has declared shadow hearings to examine the firings and their effects on veterans. VA Secretary Doug Collins is set to testify before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee regarding workforce changes and the forthcoming VA budget proposal.

The ongoing job cuts, coupled with delayed payments, exacerbate an already challenging situation for VA employees, many of whom are veterans themselves.

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