Federal Reports

We evaluated Nuclear Oversight to determine if the work environment was conducive to raising concerns without fear of retaliation. We found the work environment within Nuclear Oversight is not always conducive to raising concerns without fear of retaliation. Specifically, while all Nuclear Oversight employees indicated that they would report nuclear safety or quality problems and concerns, some expressed fear of retaliation for raising issues. We also found some aspects of the work environment within Nuclear Oversight have improved or stayed about the same, while others have declined since our previous evaluation. TVA has also taken steps to address employee concerns regarding how the use of rotational positions might negatively affect the independent performance of nuclear oversight roles. However, some employees continued to express concerns regarding rotational positions.

U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General Investigations Report Volume XVII: June 1 - July 31, 2018.

Due to concerns with the high number of hearing loss claims filed by employees, we performed an evaluation of the actions taken to minimize TVA’s financial exposure for hearing loss claims. We determined some Hearing Conservation Program requirements were not met, including: (1) personal noise monitoring and noise surveys in nuclear and (2) annual audiograms and training. Additionally, we identified opportunities for improvement related to (1) hearing loss claims documentation provided to DOL, (2) management statements provided to DOL, and (3) documentation of disciplinary actions for hearing protection violations. In addition, we determined that TVA did not verify the accuracy of the amounts billed by DOL.

District managers may suspend the operations of any post office, classified station, or branch under its jurisdiction for the following reasons: a natural disaster; termination of a lease or rental agreement; lack of qualified personnel to operate the office; irreparable damage when no suitable alternate quarters are available in the community; severe damage to, or destruction of an office; challenge to the sanctity of the mail; and lack of adequate measures to safeguard the office or its revenue. Our objective was to assess whether emergency suspensions of Postal Service facilities in the Eastern Area are executed in compliance with policies and procedures, including actions taken to reopen or discontinue facilities.