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Sellafield nuclear site workers claim ‘toxic culture’ of bullying, sexual harassment and drugs could put safety at risk

Multiple sources warn poor working culture heightens risk of accidents, suicide and sabotage

Guardian, Alex Lawson and Anna Isaac 7 Dec 23

A “toxic culture” of bullying, sexual harassment and drug-taking risks compromising the safety of Europe’s most hazardous nuclear site, multiple employees at Sellafield have claimed.

More than a dozen current and former employees have alleged to the Guardian that the Cumbrian site, a vast dump for nuclear waste, has a longstanding unhealthy working culture, where staff have been bullied, harassed and belittled, with some apparently pushed to suicide.

The site’s human resources department has been accused of taking a “bully, break, bribe” approach to dealing with employees who raise concerns over their colleagues and site safety.

Whistleblowers warn that the toxic culture could have dangerous consequences for safety and security at Europe’s biggest nuclear waste dump, which hosts decades of radioactive material. The revelations have emerged as part of Nuclear Leaks, a year-long Guardian investigation into cyber hacking, radioactive contamination and toxic workplace culture at the 6 sq km (2 sq mile) site.

A whistleblower, Alison McDermott, a consultant who said she was sacked in 2018 after raising concerns over Sellafield’s culture and sexual harassment, warned that this climate heightens the risk of not just accidents and mistakes, but also terrorism and sabotage.

“Those risks are far more likely to materialise if you’re working in a highly toxic and dysfunctional culture,” she claimed.

The vast taxpayer-funded site employs 11,000 staff, who are tasked with making safe crumbling buildings containing nuclear waste. It is one of the biggest employers in the north-west, with generations of the same families working there.

The investigation into Sellafield has found:

Several suicides apparently linked to the pressures of working at the site.

A former young worker who claimed he was bullied to the point where he “just wanted to die” after he was repeatedly mocked over his sexual experience.

Workers who alleged they have either experienced or witnessed incidents of sexual assault.

Staff who allegedly regularly bring cocaine on to the site and keep samples of untainted urine in case of random drugs tests.

It is understood that several suicides have been linked to the pressures of working at the site in recent years.

Sources with knowledge of medical services at the site claimed that there have been a disproportionately high number of severe mental ill-health episodes, suicides and suicide attempts among the workforce…………………………………………

Last year, it emerged that seven workers tested positive for drugs after 741 workers were randomly tested between November 2021 and November 2022.

There are also concerns about allegations of racist, misogynistic and other troubling behaviour at Sellafield. In late 2020, a network of ethnic minority employees wrote to the company’s board, listing 27 alleged racist incidents……………………………………………………………

McDermott, an experienced HR consultant who has consulted for a range of blue-chip organisations, was brought in to identify issues with Sellafield’s culture and make recommendations. However, she alleges she was fired after telling managers that an investigation should be carried out into claims of sexual harassment and a subsequent cover-up. She is awaiting a decision on her case from the court of appeal after a lengthy legal battle with Sellafield.

McDermott said: “The gravity of the bullying and harassment and the abuse employees were being subjected to was just really shocking and off the scale and there clearly was an endemic problem with bullying and harassment at Sellafield.”

McDermott, an equality consultant, has spoken to scores of current and former employees before and after she was let go in 2018. She raised concerns over claims of sexual harassment by an employee and allegations of a subsequent cover-up at Sellafield………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….more https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/dec/06/sellafield-toxic-culture-bullying-harassment-safety

 In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. Youth suicide charity Papyrus can be contacted on 0800 068 4141 or email pat@papyrus-uk.org. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org

December 8, 2023 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | secrets,lies and civil liberties, UK