By Alex Christodoulides
The whistle-blower was an employee of Second Housing Co. Inc., an on-site management company at 161-29 Harry Van Arsdale Ave., in Fresh Meadows. The worker went to the Labor Dept. after he was ordered to clean up an insecticide spill in the co-op's basement despite his lack of training in handling hazardous materials and the absence of protective equipment. But upon requesting both, repeatedly, the employee was fired, the federal agency said.When the Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated the worker's allegations, the agency found that Second Housing had fired the employee in retaliation for raising legitimate safety concerns, the Labor Dept. said. The agency did not name the employee.After a civil suit in Brooklyn's U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, US District Judge Eric Vitalino signed a consent judgement Jan. 24 with Second Housing, which is to pay the former employee's back wages, plus interest, and inform its workers of their whistle-blower rights under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. If the complex does not pay, the court is to appoint a receiver with power to liquidate the company's assets to ensure compliance with the monetary terms of the judgement, the Labor Dept. said.Second Housing agreed to the judgement, which also prohibits the company from discharging or discriminating against any employee who files a complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, without admitting or denying the charges, the Labor Dept. said.”All employees have the right to safe and healthful working conditions without fear of retaliation or termination,” said Louis Ricca Jr., OSHA's acting regional administrator in New York. “When that right is denied, the Labor Dept. will not hesitate to take appropriate and effective legal steps to ensure its restoration.”Reach reporter Alex Christodoulides by e-mail at achristodoulides@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 155.
