Dept of Larbor orders PAR to pay $50K to whistleblower

The Portland Press Herald wrote:The U.S. Department of Labor has ordered Pan Am Railways Inc. to pay $50,000 in compensatory and punitive damages, as well as take corrective action, on behalf of an injured Waterville worker.
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The employee, who works in a rail yard in Waterville, filed an OSHA complaint on Dec. 6, 2011, claiming that the railroad had subjected him to disciplinary action earlier, including a letter of reprimand, for reporting an injury and unsafe working conditions. Shortly after the filing, Pan Am Railways held a second disciplinary hearing on Jan. 4, 2012. It alleged then that the worker made false statements to OSHA and the railroad.

OSHA found that the employee engaged in protected activity when filing the complaint, and the railroad took retaliatory action by charging him with lying and by holding the second disciplinary hearing. Such adverse action can intimidate employees from exercising their FRSA rights, even if the charge is later dropped, as it was in this case.

Bangor Daily News wrote:“Employers must understand that their employees have a legal right to file a whistleblower complaint with OSHA without fear of retaliation,” said Marthe Kent, OSHA’s New England regional administrator. “Responding to an employee’s complaint with threats of disciplinary action is not acceptable and prohibited by law.”

Pan Am Railways was also ordered to take corrective action, OSHA said. It must expunge all files and computerized data systems of disciplinary actions and references to the hearing notice and January trial. Pan Am must also post notices about its FRSA whistleblower rights at all its Maine locations and internal website.

OSHA also ordered Pan Am to pay reasonable attorney’s fees and compensate the employee for wages and benefits lost due to attending the January disciplinary hearing, according to the release.

Bangor Daily News wrote:Pan Am Executive Vice President Cynthia Scarano said on Wednesday that there were discrepancies in the employee’s report to OSHA from his hearing with the railroad company.
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Scarano said after the incident on the railroad there was a hearing conducted by the railroad and disciplinary action was taken against the employee for the incident. She declined to comment on the incident itself.

After the first hearing, the employee then filed a complaint with OSHA stating that the discipline was a retaliation against him, said Scarano. The railroad then held a second hearing.

“Upon receiving that complaint, we felt as though the two testimonies conflicted,” she said. “We had another hearing to establish the testimony, but no action was taken after that hearing. OSHA’s decision is in response to our second hearing, not our first hearing.”