Despite Years of Effort to Improve Safety Culture, New Assessment Finds Little Progress Made
Mike Nartker
WC Monitor
6/27/2014
Employees at the Department of Energy’s Office of River Protection do not appear to be fully on board with Manager Kevin Smith’s new, more collaborative approach to managing Bechtel National at the Hanford Waste Treatment Plant, according to the results of a new study DOE released this week. Employees at ORP have questioned whether the new approach has resulted in reduced independence and oversight, and continue to express concerns that they cannot openly challenge management decisions, according to study, which presents the results of a follow-on assessment of the safety culture of both the federal and contractor organizations at the Hanford vit plant performed by the then-DOE Office of Health, Safety and Security. HSS initially performed a safety culture review at the project in 2011. “There is a perception within ORP that the roles, responsibilities, authorities and accountabilities for ORP with respect to the WTP Project are not clearly established,” the new study says. “There is also a perception that support and oversight functions are not independent. The philosophy of the new senior management team to be more collaborative in their relationship with the contractor has created some confusion, and the perception of the loss of independence by many in ORP with respect to its role on the project.”
After taking over as ORP Manager in early 2013, Smith implemented a new approach to DOE’s relationship with Bechtel National intended to encourage the contractor to do more to self-identify performance issues at the WTP before the Department takes action. In remarks to WC Monitor earlier this year, Smith said he believed the new approach is reaping dividends. “It has had every bit of the effect that we intended it to have,” Smith said on the sidelines of this year’s Waste Management conference in Phoenix, Ariz. “If I have a facility rep … out and they find something the same time their BNI colleague does, it is an arm wrestling match for the BNI person to report it because they want the credit,” Smith said. Notably, though, ORP provided Bechtel National with only about 48 percent of the available fee for the contractor’s last evaluation period—covering the second half of 2013—marking Bechtel National’s lowest fee evaluation to date.
Even so, the study released this week notes several instances where ORP employees have questioned the new management approach. All of the employees at ORP were invited to participate in the assessment, and the DOE response rate was 65.5 percent. “Many ORP interviewees expressed concern that with the new philosophy of being part of the team (ORP and BNI), there will not be enough oversight of the contractor. Some interviewees assigned to conduct safety system oversight have not been able to do what they perceive their job to be, especially in LAW [the WTP’s Low Activity Waste Facility] and BOP [balance of plant facilities],” the study says. The assessment also found that, “Many interviewees indicated their frustration with what they perceive to be the increased inappropriate downgrading or elimination of assessment findings by ORP management.”
Only One-Third of DOE Employees Feel They Can Question Management
The assessment also identified a number of concerns over whether ORP employees feel they can raise concerns without fear. “The stated philosophy of ORP senior management—wanting more transparency with the contractor—is not perceived to exist within ORP’s own organization,” the study says. Only 30 percent of all ORP survey respondents “feel they can openly challenge decisions made by management,” the study says, adding that only 65 percent of managers who responded to the survey feel “positively” about being able to openly challenge management decisions. In addition, some interviewees “indicated that they perceived a chilled environment at ORP and they did not believe that ECP [Employee Concern Program] concerns and DPO [Differing Professional Opinion] issues were always addressed or resolved in a timely manner,” the study says, adding that some interviewees “described being told by supervision not to write a DPO because it would be a career limiting decision.”
The study goes on to say, “Interviewees confirmed the survey data results that there is a need within ORP for management to proactively demonstrate they want concerns raises. Interviewees believe that management needs to set clear expectations around respect for dissent and individual opinions and to demonstrate their commitment by modeling the expected behaviors.”
DOE ‘Is a Big Part of the Problem,’ Senator Says
Questions over whether DOE employees feel comfortable raising concerns caught the attention this week of Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). “This survey shows that a shockingly high number of DOE’s own employees working on the Waste Treatment Plant at Hanford–70 percent—feel unable to freely speak out about safety problems there, despite repeated promises to improve its safety culture. In fact, there has been no improvement over the past two years,” Wyden said. “I have warned that allowing retaliation against whistleblowers would make employees less likely to come forward with legitimate health and safety concerns, and this report unfortunately confirms those fears. That so many DOE employees expressed this concern says to me that the Energy Department itself is a big part of the problem. DOE headquarters must take immediate steps to truly assure all project employees that they will not be punished for raising legitimate safety concerns.”
DOE is reviewing the follow-on assessment’s findings, a Department spokesperson said late this week. “The Office of River Protection is committed to providing rigorous oversight on all of our contracts, while also working collaboratively to resolve issues and manage expectations to ensure safe delivery of quality facilities and services,” the spokesperson said in a written response. “Over the past 18 months, we have worked to ensure our contractors are transparent in their activities and are increasing self-identification of issues. Additionally, we are working to improve timely communication with the WTP contractor to resolve various concerns, and develop and define a sustainable path to project completion. We strongly encourage employees to raise concerns to management directly, or through the various programs available to them. Our employees are key in this communication and oversight effort, and we appreciate and value their input.”
‘Lack of Significant Measureable Change in Employee Perceptions’
The study notes the efforts both DOE and Bechtel National have taken in recent years to address safety culture concerns at the Hanford vit plant, such as organizational changes, increased training and improved means for employees to report concerns. While saying such efforts are important, the study notes, however, that “the lack of significant measurable change in employee perceptions indicates they are insufficient to internalize the beliefs and values necessary to effectively change culture and therefore behavior.” It adds, “The lack of significant measurable changes in behavior indicates that the basic assumptions of those working on the Project have not yet been changed. The foundation of some of those assumptions may not be in the control of those managing the Project (e.g. political, funding, external stakeholder interests), but many of the assumptions related to safety and safety culture can still be improved.”
The assessment also found growing frustration among both federal and contractor employees at the WTP—a project for which a completion date has not been set as efforts are underway to finally resolve long-standing technical issues and other concerns that have challenged progress. “While perceptions and behaviors have not changed much in the two years since the last assessment across the WTP Project, the level of frustration in those below the management level has increased. Almost all those working on the Project, both Federal and contractor, want this project to succeed, and the lack of progress has been demoralizing. This frustration has implications for future performance,” the study says.
Study Finds ‘Confusion of Priorities’ Within Bechtel National
Within Bechtel National, employees have expressed that the number of initiatives the contractor has launched in an effort to improve safety culture “has resulted in a general sense of confusion of priorities,” the study says. “In addition, much of the organization continues to work in ‘silos’ and does not coordinate its work well. The combination of these concerns makes the effectiveness of many of these initiatives uncertain,” the study says. For BNI, a 30 percent random sample was invited to participate in the assessment, and the contractor’s response rate was approximately 64.1 percent.
The follow-on assessment also found concerns among Bechtel National employees on the topic of accountability. “Interviewees expressed a lot of variability about whether to report something or not. While some interviewees believed that individuals should report problems and described concern about getting into more trouble if it was not reported and later discovered … others did not believe it would result in discipline,” the study says. “Some interviewees indicated that they are afraid to make a move and make a mistake because they are usually blamed and reprimanded; others indicated a lot of subterfuge in trying to stay below the threshold and not having to report any issues.” The study also notes, “Many interviewees expressed concern about their performance ratings if they reported a mistake.”
In a statement this week, Bechtel National spokeswoman Suzanne Heaston said, “Bechtel National is committed to continuous strengthening of our nuclear safety and quality culture at WTP. This assessment acknowledges the success of actions we have taken, many of them based on best practices and offers insight on how we can make the culture even stronger. We welcome recommendations that will help us build upon our solid foundation of a strong nuclear safety and quality culture, which is critical to our overall mission of successfully treating the toxic waste stored at the Hanford site.”
