Whistleblower Paid and Reinstated after OSHA Ruling
A Tennessee employee is reinstated and compensated after winning whistleblower case.
The Department of Labor ruled in favor of a Tennessee truck driver who blew the whistle on his employer for unlawful company practices.
The employee was terminated by Brush Creek-based trucking company Mark Alvis Inc. after he refused to drive a truck due to illness, fatigue, and being over on his driving hours.
After an investigation, a judge from the Department of Labor ruled that the employee should be reinstated and paid $30,000 as compensation. While making a delievery, the employee was assigned an addition delievery despite informing a dispatcher that he was ill and did not have enough hours to complete the new assignment.
Under the Surface Transportation Assistance Act, the employee’s termination was a violation of safety practices.
"OSHA will continue to ensure that America's truck drivers' right to refuse to drive when they are fatigued, ill or in violation of hours-of-service requirements is not undermined," said Cindy A. Coe, OSHA's regional administrator in Atlanta said in a statement. "OSHA is pleased to reach a settlement in this matter that includes the employee's reinstatement."
The trucking company claims that the employee was not terminated, but that he quit upon arrival back to the company site.