Re: Energy Dept. Nuke Contractors Fined

[William V Lipton <liptonw@dteenergy.com>]

It is generally accepted that persistent or willful safety violations are
grounds for disciplinary actions, up to and including dismissal.  I think
that it's unusual for a union to actively condone safety violations,
especially since such individuals are a danger to others.  Problems can
arise, however, where facility management uses selective enforcement of
safety rules as a cover for another agenda.

Health physicists, and other safety professionals are sometimes caught in
the middle, since our mission is to protect workers, but we are generally
considered part of management.  I remind members of a statement in the HPS
code of ethics:  "Members shall never compromise public welfare and safety
in favor of an employer's interest."

The opinions expressed are strictly mine.
It's not about dose, it's about trust.

Bill Lipton
liptonw@dteenergy.com

Susan Gawarecki wrote:

> I think there is a range of issues between Grant Wilton's and Bill
> Lipton's statements.  Here in Oak Ridge, many workers who believe
> they've been affected by exposures at the plants say they were not
> offered PPE and were discouraged from requesting it.  This is wrong and
> when it occurs the contractor should be held accountable.  However, from
> my days as a field manager on hazardous waste sites, I've also had to
> deal with a few workers who refused to wear PPE or otherwise ignored
> safety rules that they felt were inconvenient.  I think proper
> documentation by the contractor is the only sufficient recourse in the
> latter case, if an incident occurs and it goes to litigation.
>
> An interesting story, a hazwaste contractor once tried to fire a worker
> (union member) who grossly violated safety rules on a hazardous waste
> site at a unionized manufacturing plant.  The plant workers threatened
> to strike if the hazmat worker was fired!  The violation was entry into
> a confined space (holding tank) to break the ice in order to measure a
> wastewater level.  He fell through the ice and had to be rescued.
>
> I've also been told about workers on a PCB-cleanup site who would lift
> up their respirators in order to smoke--both forbidden activities in the
> restricted area!
>
> I think that a site safety manager needs to be a strong individual who
> can both stand up to management to get what is needed to protect the
> workers and enforce rules on unwilling workers.  It's not an easy job.
>
> Any opinions expressed are my own.
>
> Regards,
> Susan Gawarecki
> --
> ==================================================
> Susan L. Gawarecki, Ph.D., Executive Director
> Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee, Inc.
> 136 S Illinois Ave, Ste 208, Oak Ridge, TN 37830
> Phone (865) 483-1333; Fax (865) 482-6572; E-mail loc@icx.net
> ==================================================
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