The Department of Energy ensures the protection of workers, including DOE employees and contractors, through its safety programs.
The Boeing Company, which is the landowner of the Santa Susana Field Lab (SSFL), has a health and safety program that complies with Occupational and Safety Act (OSHA) requirements, including electrical safety, ergonomics, hazardous materials control and respiratory protections. The program includes engineering and administrative controls, written procedures and computer-based training, and is administered by health and safety professionals.
Additionally, Boeing implements DOE’s Integrated Safety Management System, which provides for the inclusion of safe work practices in the Energy Technology Engineering Center (ETEC).
Every employee is encouraged to recognize that their safety is their personal responsibility. Read the Former Worker Interview Final Report, which includes interviews with more than 100 former SSFL employees conducted by DOE in 2010 and 2011.
Worker Health Studies
The California Public Health foundation initiated a study of workers in 1993 to assess the possible health effects of exposure to radiation and chemicals.
Researchers at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Public Health, working with the California Department of Health Services and funded by DOE, conducted an epidemiologic study to determine if there is a relationship between exposure to radiation or chemicals and a particular disease. UCLA issued results of the radiation worker health study in a technical report titled UCLA Epidemiologic Study.
DOE's contractor, Boeing, prepared two summary documents to explain the results contained in the UCLA studies:
At the time the UCLA studies were released, current and former employees voiced concerns about the results. In order to address the concerns, Rocketdyne and the United Aerospace Workers (UAW), including those working on the DOE contract, initiated the follow-on Rocketdyne Worker Health Study in 1999.
The International Epidemiology Institute (IEI) Research team found no consistent or credible evidence that employment at Rocketdyne had adversely affected worker mortality. IEI summarized and released their findings in July 2005 in the Rocketdyne Worker Health Study, IEI Executive Summary.
Further detail about the follow-on Rocketdyne Worker Health Studies and the potential impacts of radiation and chemical exposures to SSFL workers can be found on the Boeing website.
Former workers may claim compensation and benefits under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA).
More information about the DOE’s safety system that ensures all work is conducted safely and with the proper controls is available on the DOE’s website.