Fluor Federal Services Company Loses Again in Court as Judge Turns Away Motions to Vacate Verdict,
Judge Awards $1.4 Million in Attorney Fees 

 

Kennewick, WA – A Superior Court judge turned away an appeal by a Hanford contractor who sought to vacate the verdict in the trial of 11 Hanford pipefitter whistleblowers who were awarded nearly $5 million in damages last September by a jury.

Jack Sheridan, counsel for the pipefitters, successfully argued to Superior Court judge Carrie Runge that Fluor’s motions to vacate the verdict and for a new trial were without merit. Judge Runge then granted Sheridan’s request that attorney fees in the case be granted in full, plus a multiplier of .5 because of the risk of bringing the case. Attorney fees were awarded at $1.4 million dollars to Sheridan and the Government Accountability Project, counsel to the pipefitters. Sheridan stated,

“The plaintiffs are very satisfied with the judge’s ruling today, which sends a message to large employers like Fluor that there is a price to be paid for retaliating against workers who raise safety and health concerns,” said Sheridan.

In September 2005, a unanimous jury found that Fluor Federal Services managers had retaliated against Hanford workers who had raised safety and health concerns, and who ultimately refused to commit what they saw as an unsafe act: the installation of an under-rated valve in a high-level waste transfer system. Additionally, those workers who vocally supported the original crew also found themselves on the layoff list.

The U.S. Department of Labor, in an early ruling in the case, found that:

“Complainants allege that, upon reinstatement, their working environment was hostile, intimidating and retaliatory. Evidence supports them …. [E]vidence of hostility is exhibited by the foremen who directed the work of the complainants. Three foremen were heard making disparaging remarks and comments about the complainants. Jokes were made that the complainants had to pay taxes on their settlement payments. One foreman was heard saying, ‘…the complainants should have stayed laid off. I’ll do anything in my power to get rid of them.’ Another foreman was so vocal in his hostility towards the complainants, they were warned by other employees to ‘watch their backs’ around him. All of the complainants worked for these foremen after their reinstatement.”

Tom Carpenter, Director of GAP’s Nuclear Oversight Program, stated, “Fluor has lost yet another round in the eight-year quest for justice by these workers. The Secretary of Energy cannot claim to be serious about supporting workers who raise concerns when it continues to tolerate the behavior of companies like Fluor – who has wasted millions in taxpayer dollars fighting a losing battle.”

Fluor Federal Services risks being ordered to reimburse all of its legal costs and remedies to the government under existing government rules and statutes. It also risks a civil penalty by the DOE Price Anderson Act enforcement office, which recently assessed a $54,000 fine against an Ohio contractor for whistleblower reprisal. A similar fine in the pipefitter case could approach $600,000.

The case revolves around the initial firing of seven pipefitters, let go after refusing to install an unsafe valve in the tank farm system that holds approximately 53 million gallons of high-level nuclear and toxic waste underground. If the valve failed, it would have risked serious injury or death for those in the vicinity, potentially spread contamination, and jeopardized the structural integrity of the storage tanks. More background regarding the pipefitter case can be found on the Hanford Pipefitters page of GAP’s old website.