BP America Inc. (“BP”), the American arm of the energy giant responsible for the devastating 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, was sued on January 20, 2012 for whistleblower retaliation.  August Walter’s complaint against BP alleges that the company violated the Louisiana Environmental Whistleblower Statute when it fired him for making repeated complaints [...]

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (“MSHA”) of the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a press release last week stating that an administrative  law judge with the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (“MSHRC”) has ordered Cordero Mining LLC of Gillette, Wyo., to pay a $40,000 civil penalty as well as reinstate [...]

USA Today ran an article Wednesday concerning the ongoing safety problems at the nuclear waste treatment facility in Hanford, Washington.  Much of the article focused on unsolved technical difficulties with “pulse jet mixers,” devices used to keep the nuclear waste moving to prevent clogging.  We have written about this facility before due to multiple incidences [...]

In decision issued on December 19, 2011, U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) Russell D. Pulver found that So. Cal Precision Aircraft Inc. (“SCPA”) violated the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (“AIR21”) when it terminated an inspector two days after he filed a complaint with [...]

The Fifth Circuit earlier this month ruled in favor of a whistleblower under the Federal False Claims Act (“FCA”), reversing a district court dismissal of the whistleblower’s retaliation complaint as untimely.  In the case of Riddle v. Dyncorp International Inc., et al., the Fifth Circuit ruled on January 5, 2012, that the district court erred [...]

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) of the Department of Labor (“DOL”) reported today that it has ordered AirTran Airways to reinstate a pilot who was fired after he reported multiple mechanical issues that implicated aircraft safety.  OSHA also awarded the pilot more than $1 million in back wages, interest, and compensatory damages after [...]

Last week the Ethics Resource Center (“ERC”) released the results of the National Business Ethics Survey that it conducted in September 2011.  According to the ERC study, the percentage of employees who witnessed misconduct at work fell last year to a new low of 45 percent, and the percentage of employees who reported the misconduct [...]

The Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) for the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Metro (“Metro”) reported that Metro terminated a whistleblower who raised concerns about nepotism and wasteful spending at Metro, reported the Washington Times.  The Times reported that Sara P. Wilson, then assistant general manager in Metro’s communications department, hired Marc M. Caposino, with [...]

Mike Klink cried foul on the controversial Keystone XL pipeline project, and is now without a job.  The Winnipeg Free Press reported on January 3 that Klink, formerly an engineer for Bechtel Corp., a construction company that was contracted by TransCanada to work on the first phase of the Keystone pipeline, raised a series of [...]