In this age of Facebook and MySpace, some employers are requiring workers to sign agreements that they won’t speak out against the company in public. Does that stifle employee concerns about workplace safety?
“Silence clause aims to keep Turkey Point workers quiet” claims a recent headline in the Miami Herald about a nuclear power plant in Florida.
A former employee, Thomas Saporito claims that a clause in bonus agreements has caused workers to be afraid to make complaints about safety. Saporito has sued Florida Power & Light, the plant’s owner, numerous times claiming he was fired because of his persistent complaints about safety. FPL has repeatedly won in court.
The newspaper obtained one bonus agreement that contained this language: “The employee shall not, at any time in the future and in any way … make any statements that may be derogatory or detrimental to the company’s good name.”
An FPL spokesman says the utility encourages anyone working at one of its nuclear power plants to identify safety concerns without fearing reprisal.
What do you think? Could such language contained in a contract discourage employees from speaking up about safety? Let us know in the Comments Box below.
