A Consolidated Nuclear Security employee who in June hung a noose at a construction site at the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tenn., was fired from their job, according to a statement a building trades union posted online Friday.
The North America’s Building Trades Unions had offered a $200,000 reward for information leading to the positive identification of the culprit of the act, which is commonly understood as a racist threat against black people. A union spokesperson did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Friday.
“We completed an extensive and thorough investigation, and identified the source of the noose found at Y-12. We are committed to providing employees with a work environment that is free of harassment, intimidation, retaliation, and discrimination,” a Consolidated Nuclear Security spokesperson wrote in an email. “This incident blatantly violated our policies and work rules, and we responded accordingly by taking the appropriate action. We appreciate the assistance of the North American Building Trades Unions and Knoxville Building Construction Trades in sharing information they determined to be credible from their reward tip line, and value their shared commitment to harassment-free workplaces.”
The head of the NNSA’s defense nuclear nonproliferation office visited the Savannah River Site’s K-Area Complex, from which the agency plans to operate its Surplus Plutonium Disposition program, the agency tweeted this week.
Corey Hinderstein, the deputy administrator for defense nuclear nonproliferation, visited the staging area a few months after the NNSA, in its fiscal year 2023 budget request, acknowledged the program was facing delays. The agency had planned to begin immobilizing surplus plutonium inside of concrete-like grout around 2028.
Mallory Stewart, a former think-tanker and Sandia National Laboratories employee, was this week sworn in as assistant secretary for arms control, verification and compliance, the Department of State announced.
Stewart, who has served at State before, will be responsible among other things for ensuring that the last remaining nuclear arms treaty between the United States and Russia, New START, functions as intended. President Joe Biden announced in 2021 that he would nominate Stewart for the job. Amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent strain on diplomatic ties, Stewart has refused to say that the U.S. would unilaterally abide by the treaty’s nuclear-arms limits after its 2026 expiration.
