A federal judge has rescheduled the bench trial in the Hanford Site chemical vapors safety lawsuit for a ninth time.
Judge Thomas Rice, of U.S. District Court for Eastern Washington, most recently pushed back the trial date from Nov. 26, 2018, to Feb. 5, 2019. Deadlines in the case also have been extended by about 60 days, with the next deadline requiring plaintiffs to identify their expert witnesses by April 9, 2018.
Washington state, the watchdog group Hanford Challenge, and the Plumbers and Steamfitters Local Union 598 sued the Department of Energy and its Hanford tank farm contractor, Washington River Protection Solutions, in September 2015. They are demanding better protection from chemical vapors for workers at the site’s waste storage tank farms.
Separate lawsuits from the state government and Hanford Challenge and the union were combined in January 2016, with trial at the time scheduled for May 22, 2017.
Plaintiffs and defendants jointly requested the latest delay after telling the judge they have made significant progress in talks to settle the lawsuit, but need more time.
Most of the trial delays have been at the request of both plaintiffs and defendants after Rice ruled in November 2016 that current worker protections at the Hanford tank farms, such as supplied air respirators, and other improvements adequately protect workers until trial. But he also said “the court does not deny that vapor exposures have occurred or that employees have experienced serious vapor-related illnesses.”
Hanford Contractor to Contest $8.1M Verdict for Former Employee
Hanford Site support services contractor Mission Support Alliance (MSA) has filed notice that it will appeal an $8.1 million jury verdict for a former employee to the Washington state Court of Appeals.
Former manager Julie Atwood sued both MSA and her onetime supervisor, Steve Young, for harassment, discrimination, and wrongful discharge in 2015.
In October, a Benton County Superior Court jury awarded Atwood $2.1 million for lost wages and benefits and $6 million for emotional harm. Atwood said she resigned under pressure in 2013 after being told she was being fired.
At trial, Atwood’s attorney argued she had been cleared in two investigations of allegations that included creating a hostile work environment, abusing her relationship with an influential Department of Energy official, and time-card fraud. Atwood’s dismissal was intended to protect Young after she told investigators that Young, who also was then the mayor of nearby Kennewick, Wash., was conducting city business during hours he was being paid with taxpayer money, according to Atwood’s lawyer. Young’s attorney said he made up any work time spent on city business.
The Feb. 8 notice of appeal lists 15 court orders being challenged by the plaintiffs. They include judicial orders made as the case progressed toward trial, such as a motion requiring Mission Support Alliance to turn over documents requested by the plaintiff. They also include the jury instructions, the judgment awarded, and the award of attorney fees.
