There is an environmental disaster unfolding around Ohio today. There are many unknowns: how much and what kind of chemicals were released; has it reached rivers, lakes, & groundwater; what are the health & safety impacts; & why isn't the US government intervening & taking this seriously. There's one thing we know - the crash & resulting catastrophic pollution was ultimately the result of corruption & agency capture.
The US Department of Labor "Whistleblower Protection Program" oversees whistleblower cases for over 20 federal statutes.
One of them is the "Federal Railroad Safety Act" or FRSA (49 U.S.C. § 20109). FRSA whistleblower protections are supposed to include "reporting hazardous safety conditions" and "refusal to authorize use of any safety-related equipment, track, or structures if those present an imminent hazardous safety condition." How many FRSA cases have been covered up by US DOL? Could any of them have prevented the disaster in Ohio?
According to the US DOL website, in FY2022, 147 FRSA whistleblower retaliation complaints were filed. Of those 147 cases, US DOL found merit in one of them (0.6%). US DOL said seven were formally settled (5%). US DOL says 103 Federal Railroad Safety Act whistleblower retaliation cases were dismissed (70%). Twenty were withdrawn from the agency (14%). Did US DOL even attempt to investigate those cases?
US DOL also oversees whistleblowers under the Toxic Substances Control Act or TSCA (15 U.S.C. §2622). US DOL does not provide metrics on individual environmental statutes (and there are many), but US DOL reports that for all six combined environmental whistleblower statutes (including TSCA), in FY2022 US DOL had 30 cases and only one was found to have merit (3%). US DOL reported three cases were formally settled (10%) & five were withdrawn (17%). US DOL reports that 17 TSCA cases were dismissed (57%).
How many of these toxic substances cases actually had merit? How many should have been properly investigated and referred to the EPA or other agencies to take action?
Further, the US Department of Labor recently intervened with railway unions, who are normally governed by the NMB under the Railway Labor Act (RLA). There was much controversy about the President & US DOL's apparent union busting in fall of 2022. In December 2022, VICE wrote an article about the US government's activism against rail workers & noted rail workers had been bargaining for improved safety measures, both for themselves and for public safety.
"For freight rail, the added concern is that workers are often handling hazardous materials, train cars full of explosive liquids, toxic substances, and chemicals that if released into the air could cause a poison cloud of terrifying consequences." (December 2022)
Could unions & whistleblowers have prevented the disasters in Ohio? We may never know, but we shouldn't have to ask. We must call for reform of the US Department of Labor & ensure they are protecting workers - which also means protecting public safety, the environment, and each other.
-Ashley