Dr. Tommie “Toni” Savage
Dr. Tommie “Toni” Savage worked as a highly respected contracting officer with the Army Corps of Engineers in the Huntsville, Alabama Support Center. In her career, Savage received many accolades for her integrity and outstanding performances on the job. In 2006, Savage reported on a pattern and practice of illegal contracting activity resulting in millions of dollars of contracting fraud in the Army’s “Ranges Program.”
Savage’s disclosure of fraud prompted heavy retaliation as she was removed from her position, denied performance awards, subjected to harmful gossip, faced hostility by the Huntsville Command, and endured insensitive and racist statements. The hostility in her work environment culminated in documented psychological injury to Savage, causing her to be unable to return to work and, as a result, be terminated in 2009.
NWC supported Dr. Savage in her fight for justice. Over the course of her whistleblower retaliation case, missing internal reports resurfaced, and the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) concluded that the creation of a hostile work environment alone is a sufficient basis to invoke protection under the Whistleblower Protection Act. In 2017, Dr. Savage spoke at NWC’s National Whistleblower Appreciation Day celebration to discuss her whistleblowing and the retaliation she faced.
