Lucas Vinyard and Alejandro Amaya, who have been on paid leave for more than six years, seek decision on whether they will be fired.
“While the [Interior] Department refuses to act,” attorneys Daniel S. Crowley and Katelyn A. Clarke wrote for the officers, “the officers continue to remain on administrative leave with significant career and financial consequences, including damage to their reputation, loss of overtime pay, and the ongoing stress” caused by the unresolved employment action.
I suppose while I would enjoy a 6 year paid vacation from work, I would probably not enjoy not receiving any promotions during that time. They are federal, so they probably do get COLA increases.
Assuming conflict of interest rules/terms of the suspension allow it, I’m surprised they didn’t seek secondary employment, or even attempt to relaunch their careers at another employer or in another field and simply quit before they get fired. (They’ll probably be listed as a do not rehire, but they won’t have to tell future employers they got fired.)