OSHA orders building material supplier to reinstate warning truck driver

A federal investigation into the announcement found that a Virginia subsidiary of one of the world’s largest construction materials makers illegally fired a truck driver in September 2023 after the employee raised safety concerns.

The driver raised concerns that the loads and routes their employer routinely assigned left drivers tired and sick, putting themselves and others on the road at risk, according to the Safety Administration and Occupational Health (OSHA) of the Department of Labor.

OSHA determined that the employee of WL Construction & Paving Inc. — a subsidiary of CRH, a global provider of construction materials solutions — first notified the company in July 2023 that the assigned work would exceed federal safety requirements for sufficient rest breaks and limits on how many hours commercial drivers are of work.

OSHA said the company ignored the driver’s concerns and, for another two months, continued to assign loads and routes that the driver refused out of fear of illness or fatigue at the wheel. Then, after citing the driver for 10 attendance violations — either for being absent or leaving early — WL Construction management terminated the driver. OSHA determined that three of the absences were protected actions under the Surface Transportation Assistance Act.

“WL Construction & Paving Inc. unlawfully retaliated against an employee who raised legitimate concerns about his ability to meet company requirements without endangering their safety or the safety of others,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Michael J. Rivera.

OSHA ordered the employer, its management and CRH Americas to reinstate the driver and pay $58,318.25 in back wages and interest, $115,694 in compensatory damages, $10,000 in punitive damages plus attorney’s fees.

WL Construction & Paving Inc. employs more than 250 people at 10 asphalt plants in Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee. Parent, CRH, is a global provider of building materials solutions with approximately 78,000 employees at nearly 3,400 locations in 28 countries. CRH provides road paving services in the region through subsidiaries, WL Construction & Paving and West Virginia Paving.

OSHA’s whistleblower protection program enforces whistleblower provisions in more than 20 statutes that protect employees from retaliation for reporting workplace safety and health violations.

Source: OSHA

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Auto Workers Compensation Auto Personal