Employee Rights and Employer Responsibilities Related to Reporting Safety and Health Concerns Memorandum

The leaders of the Department of Energy's Office of Economic Impact and Diversity and the Office of Health, Safety and Security recently issued a joint Memorandum reminding Program Secretarial Officers and Field and Site Managers of existing statutory and DOE Policy requirements for robust employee concerns programs.

Over the past year, the Department of Energy (DOE) has taken several strong and highly visible measures to ensure that there is clear awareness and understanding of the regulatory requirements and management expectations that govern the implementation of the employee concerns program (ECP). DOE ECPs are in place at DOE Headquarters and at all DOE sites. The unhindered access to a credible and transparent ECP is crucial to the safe performance of work, and is an important element of DOE's integrated safety management system.

The Memo reminds DOE senior management of the importance of workers' ability to identify, raise, and report, without fear of reprisal, potential safety and health issues and hazards.

To read the complete Memorandum, click here.

Josh Silverman, has been named as a finalist for the 2013 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal

The Office of Health Safety and Security is pleased to announce one of our very own, Josh Silverman, has been named as a finalist for the 2013 Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal, a national awards program honoring the achievements of federal employees.

Each year, federal employees are recognized during Public Service Week for their significant contribution to the nation in activities related to science and environment (including biomedicine, economics, energy, information technology, meteorology, resource conservation and space).

Josh is being recognized this year for his efforts in discovering and combating a potent greenhouse effort that has the potential to release over one million tons of gas from DOE facilities.

To read more about Josh, click on the link below:

http://servicetoamericamedals.org/SAM/finalists/
sem/silverman.shtml

Acting Secretary of Energy, Daniel B. Poneman, Issues Department of Energy Operating Experience Level 1 Document, Improving Department of Energy Capabilities for Mitigating Beyond Design Basis Events

The Office of Health, Safety and Security (HSS) has issued the OE-1 2013-01: Improving Department of Energy Capabilities for Mitigating Beyond Design Basis Events.

This document provides results from the Department of Energy (DOE), including the National Nuclear Security Administration, initiatives to improve capabilities for evaluating and mitigating beyond design basis events (BDBEs) and includes direction for further actions to be taken to enhance capabilities for mitigating BDBEs at DOE sites.

This OE-1 document is being issued as part of the Department's Corporate Operating Experience Program to facilitate the sharing of lessons learned from operating experience and the prevention of adverse operating incidents.

To access all OE Documents, please go to: OE Level 1-3 Documents.

To access all OE Summaries, please go to: OE Summaries.

May is Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month

During Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month in May - and during the rest of the year - drivers of all other vehicles and all road users are reminded to safely "share the road" with motorcyclists, and to be extra alert to help keep motorcyclists safe.

Now that warmer weather is right around the corner in most of the country, motorcyclists will soon be out in force. Drivers of cars, trucks and buses are reminded to look out for and share the road with motorcycle riders, and motorcycle riders are reminded to obey traffic laws, wear DOT-compliant helmets and other protective gear, and make themselves visible by wearing bright colors and using reflective tape.

Depending on where you are riding, you may or may not be required to wear a helmet. Just remember, wearing a helmet may save your life.

To view a video on “How to Choose the Right Helmet,” click on the link below:

How to Choose the Right Helmet.

In the event that you are involved in a motorcycle accident or a citizen responder, you may find the paper on “Emergency Response & First Aid for Motorcyclists” of interest. This paper was written by Dave Jarrell, a Federal career employee assigned to the DOE, Office of the Chief Information Officer as the Chief Operating Officer. Dave is a former United States Marine and volunteer Firefighter, Fire Officer and Emergency Medical Technician and is an active member of Fire & Iron Motorcycle (National) Club. Dave’s paper is available at: Emergency Response & First Aid for Motorcyclists

For additional information on motorcycle safety, please visit the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website at: http://www.nhtsa.gov/Safety/Motorcycles

Winners of the Department of Energy's 2013 Earth Day Photo Contest were announced at the Department's Forrestal headquarters building on April 25, 2013. The theme for the 2013 Earth Day Photo Contest is "The Things We Do to Conserve and Preserve Our Precious Planet."

In only the second year of competition, 73 entries were received from DOE Federal and contractor employees. The winners were chosen by the Earth Week Planning Committee. Congratulations to the following personnel.

• Mr. Richard Debevec, from the Richland Operations Office, won the Community category with his photo titled "Crossing Bridges."
• Mr. Dennis Schroeder, from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, won the Sustainability category with his entry titled "The Land of Plenty."
• Mr. Chuckles McGregor, from the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, won the Alternative Energy Category with his photo entry titled "Windstills."
• Mr. Wade M. Sickinger, with DM Petroleum at the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, won the Conservation category with his entry called "Nesting Egret in Lafitte, Louisiana,"
• Mr. Gary S. Harman, from the Oak Ridge Office, won our fifth category Energy Efficiency with his photo appropriately titled "Energy Efficiency."

Thanks to all personnel who entered our Earth Day Photo Contest, and kudos to the winners.

Marshall Islands Special Medical Care Program Report to Congress, March 2013

The Office of Health, Safety and Security (HSS) has transmitted its annual Report to Congress titled "Marshall Islands Special Medical Care Program." One of the core missions of HSS is to conduct environmental monitoring and implement medical screening in the Marshall Islands.

The Marshall Islands Special Medical Care Program provides annual medical screening examinations and care for members of the population of the South Pacific islands of Rongelap and Utrik exposed to radiation resulting from the 1954 U.S. thermonuclear weapons test code-named "Castle Bravo." There were 253 people on Rongelap and Utrik during the test.

To read the complete report, click here.

Chief Health, Safety and Security Officer, Glenn S. Podonsky
Testimony to Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board on Safety Culture at the Pantex Plant

On Thursday, March 14 Chief Health, Safety and Security Officer, Glenn S. Podonsky provided testimony at a public meeting and hearing of the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board, concerning safety culture at the Department of Energy (DOE)'s Pantex Plant. The Office of Health, Safety and Security has recently completed a series of assessments of safety culture at DOE projects, sites and offices, including the Pantex Plant.

Mr. Podonsky stated in his prepared remarks, "As the Secretary and Deputy Secretary affirmed in their memorandum on nuclear safety and reflected in our policy DOE is committed to a strong and sustained safety culture, where all employees - from workers building and maintaining the infrastructure of our facilities to their managers, all the way up to the Secretary and everyone in between - are energetically pursuing the safe performance of work, encouraging a questioning work environment, and making sure that executing the mission safely is not just a policy statement but a value shared by all. No contractor or Federal employees should ever feel unable or unwelcome to raise safety issues."

To read Mr. Podonsky's complete written testimony click here.

Former Worker Medical Screening Program
2012 Annual Report

The Office of Health, Safety and Security (HSS) has released its Former Worker Medical Screening Program 2012 Annual Report. The Congressionally-mandated Former Worker Program (FWP) is responsible for providing medical screening exams, at no cost, to former Department of Energy (DOE) workers who may have contracted illnesses as a result of their exposure to hazardous materials in the development and maintenance of the Nation's nuclear weapons. To date, 93,684 screening and re-screening exams have been performed. In Fiscal Year 2012 alone, 4,815 initial medical exams and 3,578 re-screen exams were completed. The FWP is exceptionally important, and HSS takes great pride in our support and management of this program.

To read the complete 2012 report, click here.