Safety 6

[concerned]

I recently started work at a company that makes industrial type vehicles that use some fairly dangerous equipment. I am an electrical engineer and have found several safety issues that concern me (most not electrical). One item is they use air tanks that operate at say 100psi. These tanks are not certified (some are but they weld on them an do not recertify). One of these air tanks IS the front bumper of the vehicle. This is a problem to me but when it was brought up they said everyone does it. This is only one item of several with the potential to kill someone. They buy vehicles from the mfg's that are supposed to be receritfied by the mfg to elimnate the reliability, of course they are not. They are also supposed to be doing 'G' tests on these vehicles to make sure nothing comes loose in a crash and goes through the cab. They are not doing this either (I guess 2 people have been injured from this in the past). I do not want to be responsible for this and the fact that I know about it would bother me terribly. I have produced several memos identifying safety concerns. I was told to shred them up and delete the files. I was told we should discuss these issues first before putting them on paper. Now I am no dummy and no exactly why they don't want a paper trail. I have made several efforts to fix these safety concerns to no avail. Is there anyone I can report these concerns to while remaining anonymous besides the customers? In the meantime, I am looking for another job.

 

[Hush]

If you are a professional who has enough expertise in the area in question to be aware that there is a practice taking place that puts human life or the environment at immediate significant risk or that violates legislated requirements then you are obligated legally and ethically to try to stop the practice or report it to someone who will. I.E. by knowing about it you are already responsible for it, walking away won't solve that and won't make you feel any better when someone winds up dead.

Saying that, doing something about it and surviving with your career reasonably intact is a different story. First off, don't shred your own copies of internal memos. They are your property your only obligation to your employer is to keep them confidential, if you do shred them you could potentially be charged with conspiracy or obstruction. Second, keep a personal (and private) log of all conversations, memos, actions taken, etc. I would also find out what protection is available for you under your local labour laws. Read the act(s) or statute(s) that cover engineering in your jurisdiction (surprisingly most engineers I know never have). Some jurisdictions also have 'whistle blower' laws for people in your situation. Finally, if you think the situation merits it, get a lawyer. Most will give you a 15 to 30 minute free consultation, which should be enough to determine your next course of action.

 

[vpl]

Concerned: If you have safety concerns where you believe that someone can be hurt, you need to do something about it. Please contact OSHA. Here's a link to their web page and their emergency phone number:

http://www.osha.gov/html/Feed_Back.html#safety

(1-800-321-OSHA (6742)). They will come and investigate concerns anonomously.

As Hush suggested, keep copies of all your memos and letters, preferably NOT at work. Also keep a log of "who, when, why, what, and where"

Finally, if you suffer adverse action as a result of raising these concerns, you can file a lawsuit through the Department of Labor. You have 180 days (not quite 6 months) from the time of the adverse action to file suit.

Good luck Patricia Lougheed

 

[PSE]

Concerned,

You have received excellent advice from both Hush and VPL. If your state (assuming you are in the US) has it's own version of OSHA, you could also contact them (do this first). In many cases, their safety requirements may supersede the Federal ones.

 

[concerned]

I appreciate all of your advice. I will attempt to do something about it. Unfortunately, I am in an area of the country where there is no EE jobs but I will not let this stop me. I am starting to believe that this is an industry wide problem for any company making the type of equipment we do. To make everyone feel better, I never even thought of just walking away. I intend to force them to be concerned with safety or report them to their customer base.
HUSH: These memos are legally mine? I have not shredded them and have copied all of them to a floppy and taken them home. I am a little reluctant to make any more memos about safety concerns because they told me not too. If I do, and get fired for it, is there anything I can do?

VPL: Can OSHA do anything about the equipment safety concerns through our plant or do they have to go directly to the companies using this equipment?

I do know there are pending lawsuits, somewhere, but I have not been able to determine where or the reason. Is there someplace to look up this info?

Thank you all very, very much. I am a relatively experienced EE with a lot of experience with UL, CSA, and CE. I do know one of our pieces of equipment is being used by a company in the european union. But does this mean they have to meet CE requirements? We, nor they, are selling this equipment in Europe just using it to demonstrate their product. The company that uses this is a US based company and their people are operating the equipment. Again, thank you all.

 

[Hush]

Legally yours? I'm not sure but probably not, the info on them is property of the company, the paper or computer they were written on is property of the company. On the other hand they directly affect you so take a copy. Just don't tell anyone you have it. As to writing more memos, you don't need paper to create an evidence trail, just keep an accurate log of events and conversations. This log by the way, is definately your property.

 

[JamesBarlow]

I thought I would add my two cents on this since I come from a similar situation.

I won't go into specifics but I used to work for a company that made industrial machines. The company, when I started working for them, had been making these machines for well over 40 years. My boss had been with the company for nearly 30 of them and was well respected in the industry as an authority.

One day a code creating body (ASME) came along and decided to write a code about our machines. Nearly overnight the machines the company had been making for all these years could not be made. The safety, testing, and material requirements almost doubled the cost to make the machines. To this day I still laugh about it. There are only four companies in the world that make these types of machines, yet there were over 350 people on the code commity to write the code. I think it's safe to say that not all of them were experienced with this type of equipment.

I was fortunate that my manager was willing to work with me on this and show me that the machines were very safe, even if they were not being made exactly to code.

My point in all of this is to just make sure that you are confident in what you are doing. Make sure that your machines are unsafe before you tell people that they are. There is a huge difference between not being code compliant and not being safe. Code compliance is a legal issue that is fought with lawyers and politicians. An unsafe machine is dealt with in a very different manner.

 

[Aton]

Sorry I came into this discussion late, Concerned. Perhaps you will visit this site again. I pracitce engineering in Canada, and serve on my provincial Engineering Act Enforcement Committee of our Engineering Association. I do not know how engineers are seen legally in other countries, but here we are governed by our own Engineering Acts in each province. Recently, a case very similar to yours came across our committee for handling under our Act. The engineer in question had also written several memos to his boss about safety issues, and had also been told to shred them, and delete all e-mails, etc. (he worked for a very large and well-known international corporation). He did not shred or delete, of course, and wrote to his Engineering Association for action and support (he was also under pressure of losing his job over this). We recommended that the Executive of our Association write to his company, along with our Association lawyer, stating our strong support for this engineer's ethical actions, and strong condemnation for what the company seemed to be doing. The result was that the parent company fired those managers who were pressuring our engineer....

You are not alone in this, for many before you have faced this situation. Try to seek support. You are well within your ethical and legal rights to hold your ground. Continue to do as Hush, VPL, PSE, and JB have suggested - good advice. Good luck. Sustainable, Solar, Environmental, and Structural Engineering: Appropriate technologies for a planet in stress.

 

[vpl]

Cocnerned

Sorry to be slow in replying to you: Yes OSHA will look at both your company as well as the end users. However, I don't work for them, so you really need to talk to them. My experience is that if there is a serious safety issue, they can move pretty fast. I also agree with PSE about contacting your state officials: the more avenues the better!!

James Barlow: Although I recognize what you're trying to say, I shuddered when I read your reply. The codes and standards are there for a reason. While they may seem illogical or overly expensive, they support safe and prudent design. If you (or your company) has a problem with a standard, then you should work to get the standard changed. Not meeting a code (especially when a company states that it does) is a very serious charge - and can get you into a lot of legal hot water, especially if someone gets hurt as a result. Patricia Lougheed

 

[Eastend]

Concerned:

Regarding CE requirements, products for demonstration purposes are allowed to enter EU provided that such statement, eg, this is not in compliance with European direcitves, is shown along with the product.
I know a lot about machinery directive that has such requirement on demonstration, and I believe every EU dir. has a similar clause. I don't know which one of dir. applies to your case but you should check the applicable one first to wonder no longer on this.

Eastend

 

[PM]

Concerned (Visitor)
If I understand the salient points of your post, you indicate:[ul][li]You are an engineer (electrical). I presume you are a professional engineer or are in the process of becoming one.[/li] [li]You have safety concerns related to your employer's manufactured products.[li]You have documented your concerns to your superiors who instructed you (presumably orally) to destroy all evidence of your correspondence.[/li][li]Your superiors admonished you to " . . . discuss these [safety] issues first before putting them on paper."[/ul]Many of the preceding responses offer excellent advice, but I'm not sure they address the ethical issues of your case.
Let me try a few ideas on for size:[ol][li]Your superiors instructed you to "shred" correrspondence and "delete" files. The legal and ethical merits of such an instruction seem dubious based on the facts provided, but there are sound and lawfull justifications in some circumstances to do so. It is crucial you objectively assess the merits of your superior's instructions before you decide on a course of action. I particularly suggest that you avoid trying to 'crystal ball' your bosses' motives. Let their actions tell the tale.[/li] [li]As a PE you probably are expected to put the public welfare before all other interests, including your own and your employer's.[/li][li]Your superiors asked you to discuss your concerns before putting them on paper. This doesn't sound like they are trying to stifle discussion or debate, but seems more like they are trying to control the record. If you haven't done so, I'd suggest such a discussion to see where that heads.[/li][li]Before you abandon all hope in your employer, you might consider informing the directors of your company. It's not uncommon that they are poorly informed. Given the current corporate climate you may be considered a bit of a hero to the directors (eg. Firestone tire debacle)[/li][li]If 'whistle blowing' becomes inevitable, you should contact your local professional association as well as a lawyer (as others advised) to ensure you proceed appropriately. Such a course of action is frought with personal peril if done wrongly. The most notable ethical note I can offer however, is that you must not 'whistle blow' anonymously. To do so is considered very unethical and will destroy any credibility you have should you eventually be found out.[/li][/ol]
Regards,

 

[concerned]

First, thanks to all for the advice. I should mention that there is no board of directors in this company, as only three people own the company. One original owner that is not around much and then the other two. Perhaps I will let the original owner know about the situation as the other two definately know about the issues but I am not certain they understand the consequences of some of these concerns. It should be obvious since it is not technical in nature just common sense. I have been here for several months now and am certain that they could care less as long as the dollars are rolling in. I will continue to strive to make a safe product from my standpoint (electrical) and raise concerns over other issues I see as not safe. Fortunately, I do not have my PE license yet but can take it any time (need to study up a bit, hehe), so I do not have to sign off on anything. Besides, I feel comfortable with electrical circuits I have designed just worry about the existing products that I have not had time to review the schematics of yet. Again, thank you.