An investigation by the Department of Energy’s inspector general did not find any evidence that workers at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Tennessee are asked or encouraged to ignore safety rules. Nor did investigators find that the site contractor – Consolidated Nuclear Security, which took over management on July 1, 2014 – made employees reluctant to report injuries for fear of retaliation.
The IG looked at worker safety and health issues at Y-12 after receiving a complaint that supervisors or managers sometimes encouraged workers to ignore safety regulations “or even commit acts known to be in violations of standard protocols.” The complaint also suggested that “non-reporting of injuries at Y-12” was a common practice.
Investigators, however, did not find anything to support these allegations.
“We were unable to substantiate the allegations. Nothing came to our attention to indicate Y-12’s safety and health programs do not provide reasonable assurance that concerns will be reported and addressed as required,” according to the report released in late December. “We noted that Y-12 has multiple mechanisms available for employees to report safety concerns, including line management, the Employee Concerns Program, onsite union representatives, and onsite facility representatives. In addition, we were informed by employees that they are able to call a safety pause if they have concerns about an activity and feel free to do so without reprisal. Employees also informed us that they generally feel free to report injuries without reprisal.”
The report says investigators talked to federal and contractor employees at the Oak Ridge facility and management officials, “including the complainant.”
The IG also reviewed the contractor assurance system’s quarterly reports and other reports, including those from the occurrence reporting system.
“From these, we selected a judgmental sample of incidents to examine further,” the report says. “One examination of these incidents included reviewing documentation and corrective actions taken.” The IG also noted that the Y-12 worker safety and health program includes language that encourages employees to “maintain a questioning attitude and raise safety concerns” to their supervisor or other management at the plant.
Because of the generally positive findings, the IG made no recommendations.
