You’re probably familiar with CrossFit—you know, that fitness thing that one Paleo friend of yours is always posting about (#WOD #PR #fitnessgoals, etc.)
As it turns out, if your friend also happens to be a Border Patrol agent, the U.S. government might have paid them overtime to work as CrossFit instructors.
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According to an Inspector General report analyzed by the Washington Free Beacon, six Border Patrol sectors paid overtime to agents working as CrossFit instructors. They also paid for things like “gym maintenance” and “class preparation.” Two other sectors included CrossFit in their fitness programs, but were not giving overtime for instruction.
Needless to say, the IG did not consider this a proper use of overtime, concluding that “CrossFit duties were not so compelling” as to qualify for overtime.
They reviewed 1,447 hours of overtime from the six offending sectors, 606 (42 percent) of which “were clearly related to CrossFit activities.” These CrossFitters received 15 percent overtime, in addition to their salary.
The IG looked into all of this after a whistleblower report from California’s El Centro Sector Headquarters. When the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) saw the initial whistleblower account, they determined that “there is a substantial likelihood that the information the whistleblower provided to OSC discloses a violation of law, rule, or regulation, gross mismanagement, and a gross waste of funds.”
El Centro was notified of the investigation last year, at which time they suspended the overtime. At the time, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that investigations into several other agencies were ongoing.
