Oakland Accident Attorneys - Bay Area Accident Law Attorneys Based in Oakland

	PRESS RELEASE September 30, 2004 Waste Management of Alameda County Sued for Retaliating Against Mechanics Who Complained About Unsafe Trucks Alameda, California - Two garbage truck mechanics served a complaint today against their employer, Waste Management of Alameda County, alleging they were retaliated against after complaining about a pattern of safety violations by Alameda County’s largest garbage collection service. The complaint, filed by Raymond Gumbs, Jr. and Michael Amido, seeks not only damages for the retaliation they claim to have suffered after reporting the safety violations, but also a court injunction to protect the public from Waste Management continuing to send its trucks on the road in unsafe condition. In the complaint, mechanic Gumbs and former foreman Amido claim company managers instructed mechanics not to complete needed repairs on the company’s fleet of garbage repair trucks, sent trucks on the road in unsafe conditions, and falsified and destroyed repair documents in an attempt to hide these safety violations. In December 2003, Amido filed a complaint with the California Highway Patrol after the complaints of both men to the company’s internal "Integrity Hotline" resulted in retaliation against the whistleblowers rather than changes to truck repair practices. In the spring and summer of 2003, supervisors begin ordering mechanics to ignore serious mechanical problems with trucks, falsify work orders by declaring that repairs had been done when that was not the case, and release unsafe trucks on the road, according to Gumbs. Gumbs, who has worked as a mechanic for Waste Management, Inc. since 1990, complained to the company’s internal "Integrity Hotline" in June 2003, in an attempt to address what he saw as serious threats to the safety of the public and the garbage truck drivers. Approximately six months later, in November of 2003, Amido also complained to the hotline, which company materials indicate is designed to receive and respond to such complaints while protecting internal whistleblowers from retaliation. The men cite specific incidents of trucks released to the road with faulty brakes, poorly patched parts, fluid leaks and other unsafe conditions. Rather than conduct an independent investigation, the company referred the mechanics’ complaints to some of the very managers who Gumbs and Amido accused of cutting corners on safety. They contend that they have been subjected to harassment, unfair discipline, suspension, demotion, threats of termination, defamation, and even threats of physical violence because of their complaints. Within weeks of his complaint, Amido, who had been a foreman since the early 1990’s, was demoted to floor mechanic status. In response to Amido’s complaint, the CHP conducted an inspection of Waste Management’s trucks and repair records and substantiated the complaints of Gumbs and Amido, concluding that Waste Management was not properly maintaining equipment, allowing the operation of unsafe vehicles on the highway and falsifying maintenance records. However, Gumbs and Amido believe that Waste Management continues to put unsafe trucks on the roads. As a result of the level of stress both men have been under following their complaints, Gumbs and Amido have been taken off work by their doctors. Leslie Levy and Darci Burrell of the Oakland-based law firm Boxer & Gerson represent Mr. Gumbs and Mr. Amido. "What you have here," says Ms. Burrell, "are two people who care deeply about the safety of the public and the individuals who drive these trucks and who have done everything they can to prevent unsafe trucks from being on the road. Waste Management’s own company code of conduct required them to report any violations they witnessed and guaranteed that they would not be retaliated against for making such reports. Mr. Gumbs and Mr. Amido took Waste Management at its word, and in exchange they were punished." Contacts Leslie Levy Darci Burrell 510.835.8870 Lynx-Eyed Marketing Andrea Snedeker 510.919.2324 << BACK