VII. WORKER TRANSITION, SAFETY AND HEALTH
BACKGROUND
In recent years, Department of Energy (DOE) policy changes have caused significant
impacts on local communities and workers, especially long-time or career employees.
Communities surrounding DOE sites are concerned about the impact on community safety
and protection from nuclear-related incidents at the aging DOE sites and the loss of
institutional knowledge experienced when workers are replaced and transferred between sites.
The guiding principle of DOE’s cleanup and closure actions at its sites throughout
the nuclear weapons complex should be to clean up the sites, protect the workers and
the public’s health and safety, and provide transition opportunities for host communities
to build diversified and sustainable local economies.
ISSUES
1. Worker Transition: After the Department’s workforce restructuring
plan began and DOE developed its privatization contracting initiative in 1996, a major
transition occurred as DOE moved from Maintenance and Operation (M&O) to Management and
Integration (M&I) contracts. The creation of these new contracts and the associated
workforce impacts (i.e., forced retirements, layoffs, and worker transitions) greatly
impacted many long-time workers’ retirement plans, worker and community morale and
economic stability. In some instances, new contracting mechanisms are not delivering
the expected results. Media coverage of exposures and other negative public perceptions
may also decrease the marketability of displaced DOE workers.
2. Safety and Health: The Department has formally recognized, after
decades of silence, that current and former workers in the nuclear weapons complex were
exposed to hazardous and radioactive materials in their job-related activities. In 2000,
Congress passed the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Act that provides for lump-sum
payments to current and former workers and their survivors who suffer from a cancer caused
by radiation, beryllium disease, or chronic silicosis. ECA applauds DOE for taking the
first step in remunerating its workers, contractors, vendors and atomic weapons employers
for the many years they were exposed to these harmful elements.
RECOMMENDATIONS
In order to protect workers' and the public's health and safety and provide
transition opportunities for host communities to build diversified and sustainable
local economies, DOE should:
1. Work with DOE to require and enforce that retirement benefits promised
under an original contract carry through to all subsequent contracts.
Protect workers’ pensions by including site-to-site-consistent pension requirements
in all Requests for Proposals.
2. Increase funding of the Worker Transition Program
(Section 3161 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 1993) and expand
the program to assist both workers and communities.
3. Support DOE-independent ombudsman programs to help
workers experiencing retribution.
4. Protect skilled worker positions to assure continued
safe handling of the many hazardous materials at the sites.
5. Successfully implement and maintain along with DOL,
the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Act of 2000.
6. Contractually guarantee long-term monitoring of former
and current workers who have experienced hazardous exposures.
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