September 16, 2024

Department of Labor orders subsidiary of global building materials supplier to reinstate, compensate driver who raised safety concerns

W-L Construction & Paving, parent CRH, several managers retaliated illegally

STEPHENSON, VA – A federal whistleblower investigation has found a subsidiary of one of the world's largest building materials manufacturers fired a truck driver in September 2023 illegally after the employee raised concerns that the loads and routes their employer routinely assigned left them fatigued and ill, endangering themselves and others on the road.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration determined that the employee of W-L Construction & Paving Inc. - a subsidiary of CRH, a global provider of building materials solutions - first notified the company in July 2023 that their assigned work would exceed federal safety requirements for sufficient rest breaks and limits on how many hours commercial drivers are on duty. The company ignored the driver's concerns and, for two more months, continued to assign loads and routes the driver refused fearful of illness or fatigue behind the wheel.

After citing the driver for 10 attendance infractions – either for being absent or leaving early – W-L Construction's management terminated the driver. OSHA determined three of the absences were protected actions under the Surface Transportation Assistance Act.

"W-L Construction & Paving Inc. illegally retaliated against an employee who raised legitimate concerns about their ability to meet the company's demands without jeopardizing their safety or that of others," said OSHA Regional Administrator Michael J. Rivera in Philadelphia. "Our nation's supply chain and economy depend on commercial drivers operating their rigs safely to deliver their cargo. OSHA will hold employers accountable when they ignore workers' concerns about their safety and that of others. Workers should know speaking freely without fear of retaliation when safety is compromised is protected right under federal law."

After its whistleblower investigation, OSHA has ordered the employer, its management and CRH Americas to reinstate the driver and pay them $58,318.25 in back wages and interest, $115,694 in compensatory damages, $10,000 in punitive damages plus attorney's fees.

Started in 1968, W-L Construction & Paving Inc. today has more than 250 employees at 10 asphalt plants in Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee. Its parent, CRH, is a global provider of building materials solutions with about 78,000 employees at nearly 3,400 locations in 28 countries. CRH provides road paving services in the region through subsidiaries, W-L Construction & Paving and West Virginia Paving.

OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program enforces the whistleblower provisions of more than 20 whistleblower statutes which protect employees from retaliation for reporting workplace safety and health violations. For more information on whistleblower protections, visit OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program webpage.

Read the department's findings.

Editor's note: The U.S. Department of Labor does not release the names of employees involved in whistleblower complaints.

Media Contacts:

Leni Fortson, 215-861-5102, uddyback-fortson.lenore@dol.gov
Joanna Hawkins, 215-861-5101, hawkin.joanna@dol.gov

Release Number: 24-1573-PHI