Vernon Marine veteran joins lawmaker in DC after getting fired from IRS job

A Marine Corps veteran from Vernon who recently lost his government job is joining Rep. Joe Courtney in Washington D.C. on Tuesday at President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress.

Gabriel D’Alatri was a project manager at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in Hartford.

He was a probationary employee, just five days away from securing permanent employment when he received an email that he’d been fired.

“I mean, it basically just said I was fired for performance reasons, my performance wasn’t up to par, it just wasn’t meeting what the new administration was gonna do,” D’Alatri said. “It couldn’t be any more opposite. I loved it, it came easy to me. I ran all of the facilities in Connecticut for the IRS.”

The job supported him, his wife Sarah and their six-month-old. Sarah may have to return to work before they were ready.

“I wanted her to stay home, it weighs on me a lot. I made enough money that I could support us both, and she could stay home with the baby and things were good. Now, if I don’t get my job back, she’s gonna have to go back to work," D'Alatri said.

Donna Roberts, president of the Hartford chapter’s National Treasury Employees Union, said dozens of people she represents across the state were cut.

“It was basically, here’s your email, come into the office, turn in your equipment, you’re a probationary, and you’re fired, you’re out the door,” Roberts said.

“Chaos. Uncertainty. It is nerve-wracking, it is designed to create as much chaos as possible. Employees don’t know which way is up. It’s not fair. These individuals came to the federal government to serve the public, they swore an oath to the Constitution, and we’re being treated less than dirt," she continued.

Roberts said the union is doing all they can, from filing appeals and unfair labor practices, to pointing union members to attorneys who can file civil suits.

On Monday night, D’Alatri traveled to Washington D.C. with his young family in tow. He’s preparing to join Rep. Courtney at the president’s address on Tuesday.

He has a day packed with meetings, national television interviews, and said he plans to take a non-partisan approach to try to get his and other veteran’s jobs back.

“I think this is a nonpartisan issue. Veterans, we serve everybody and there’s veterans on both sides. I mean, it’s baffling to me. It hurt me so I know it definitely hurts a lot more other people,” D’Alatri said.

“I’m trying to get the wheels in motion here, trying to get veterans rehired. I’m willing to mediate between the two parties, I’ll talk to anybody. I’m not here to argue, I’m not here to talk politics, I’m here to get veterans their jobs back. That’s my mission while I’m here," he continued.