After the next major DOE snafu, for which the taxpayers will foot the
bill, will you still be saying it's a media conspiracy?
RadSafe
Folks --
I would like to tell you, my fellow
rad protection professionals, of my experiences as a Department of Energy
radiation protection whistleblower and to ask for your support in getting
DOE to do more than mouth platitudes in regard to protecting whistleblowers.
I was retaliated against for years because of my unwillingness to allow
things to be swept under the rug and I was eventually laid off because
of my disclosures. Because of the way DOE structures its legal system for
whistleblowers, I had no recourse as far as the safety issues are concerned;
I could only "sue" on the grounds of retaliation. I had a hearing before
a DOE administrative law judge last August and in December he found against
me. However, as explained below, this finding did not mean that my concerns
were found to be unjustified or that I was not retaliated against, but
only that the judge was persuaded that ORNL would have laid me off regardless
of the validity of my concerns or the reality of my having made disclosures.
(If this sounds like Alice in Wonderland to you, join the club.) My lawyer
has just filed my appeal.
I have shifted from the legal arena
to a "hearts and minds" campaign to communicate to DOE workers, my community,
and most of all my fellow professionals what happened in my case and to
demonstrate that DOE is not serious about safety and its whistleblower
protection system is completely ineffective. So I would appreciate it if
those of you who work in the DOE world would express concern to the local
and Washington DOE people you know about my case and ask them to communicate
their interest to their superiors as well. I would appreciate it if all
of you, including those who don't work in the DOE world, would express
interest in other ways, such as by postings on RadSafe and letters to your
congressmen.
I think the issues that my case raises
are important for those in our profession to consider. This is particularly
true since DOE is both regulator and promoter of its activities and since
they have made a commitment to protect safety whistleblowers. Whistleblower
Joe Carson, who works for DOE itself, has called upon his professional
society (engineers) to step up to the plate and support its members who
make reasoned, documented disclosures regarding safety and are retaliated
against for doing so. I would ask my professional societies, the Health
Physics Society and the American Nuclear Society, to do that too.
I asked the local chapter of the Health
Physics Society if I might give a talk about my experiences, including
both the safety issues and the legal aspects. The president told me that
the board is mulling it over, but at present they feel that the subject
is "not of professional interest to the chapter" (!). He gave me to understand
that they all felt that the subject was controversial and stated that even
if I mentioned no names, there was the possibility of "slandering" someone
who was recognizable by his title or position description. I realize that
they don’t want to offend DOE or the ORNL contractor, UT-Battelle, but
this seems overly deferential to me.
I have demonstrably fallen on my sword
to uphold the integrity of the safety program at ORNL -- to ensure that
laws were followed, that regulatory commitments were met, and that people
were protected in consistent ways. I have clearly suffered for it. My last
salary at ORNL was about $76,000/year, on a par with what others of my
experience and education earn, per the most recent CHP salary survey. After
being laid off, I was unemployed for 11 months, during which time I did
temporary clerical work, tutored, and subbed at a college for an adjunct
professor. During this time, I had three professional interviews in the
first two months and only one (a non-DOE job) after that -- I believe that
word got around and I was blacklisted from DOE work. Finally I got a job
in the University of Tennessee Radiological Safety Department as a "radiological
safety technologist"; this is a professional position requiring a degree
and several years of experience, yet it is non-exempt and pays only $28,000/year
due to the university's financial difficulties. (The only other professional
of the total 4.5 people on staff is the RSO.) My husband was laid off from
his non-DOE job of 11 years last June and only this week got a two-month
contract job. We are trying to stay in this area another 18 months in order
to allow our daughter, a junior, to graduate with her high school class.
We are slowly drawing down our savings to supplement my income.
I summarize below the highlights of
what happened when I worked at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. I add a few
items on philosophical issues further down. I hope that you will all be
minded to read to the end, so that you will have an understanding of what
occurred and not dismiss this matter out of hand as a case of a "picky"
person who didn't have a sense of proportion -- I believe that "the devil
is in the details". Please note that nearly everything I say below was
either supported by testimony during a retaliation hearing before a DOE
judge or was in my complaint to DOE and was not refuted by my former employer.
I have extensive documentation of virtually all of it, especially the technical
issues (nearly all of which DOE professed no interest in seeing).
Should you wish to talk with me or
ask questions about this, please send me an E-mail message at janet.westbrook@home.com.
I would be happy to speak with any of you by phone -- just drop me a note
and we can arrange it. I plan to write a book about my experiences and
post it on a Web site. I hope you will all read it and discuss the issues
I raise.
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