By JOHN McCALLUM
Editor
Eastern Washington University's former environmental health and safety manager is suing the university, claiming he was fired in retaliation for a report he submitted that was critical of the school's health and safety practices.
In documents filed Nov. 8 in Spokane Superior Court, Peter Batsakis alleges university officials, including his immediate supervisor, director of Human Resources Rights and Risks JoLynn Rogers, terminated his employment “without warning or any justification” because of his report listing examples of health and safety violations throughout the Cheney and Spokane Riverpoint campuses.
Batsakis was fired Jan. 9, 2007, one week after he submitted his report to Rogers and her supervisors, vice president for business and finance Mary Voves and chief financial officer Toni Habegger.
University officials denied the claim, but provided no additional information why Batsakis was let go, and believe they will show justification in court.
“We're in the process of reviewing the allegations.
We don't want to get pulled into a situation where we're trying this thing in the press,” EWU media relations and communications specialist Dave Meany said last Thursday.
“We're very confident we will prevail in this process.”
Documents show Batsakis was hired by EWU on May 2, 2006, beginning work on June 5.
His job description in the $66,000 a year at-will position required him to “conduct research and prepare reports” as well as “inspect work places for potential hazards and make recommendations to ensure a safe and healthy work environment” along with other duties.
During the summer and fall of 2006, Batsakis uncovered 87 areas where the university was allegedly not in compliance with Washington Administrative Codes for workplace health and safety requirements. Many of the violations involved equipment misuse, storage and maintenance, while others stemmed from observed workplace practices.
In a couple instances, Batsakis felt some areas may have been contaminated, such as labs in the Science Building where hazardous materials such as mercury and low-grade uranium were found to have been stored and disposed of improperly.
One case even involved high school students using science labs during summer school without department officials being aware of what they were doing.
“No oversight to ensure labs are operating safely,” Batsakis wrote. “What are they doing with hazardous waste?”
In researching and preparing his report for university officials, Batsakis' attorney Michael Hines said his client had discussions about his findings with Rogers, the substance of which may have gone higher.
“In our opinion, and our facts will show this, the people above him were not responsive,” Hines said.
“Our sense is this is not the first time this has occurred.”
In another lawsuit filed last year, former risk manager Anne Bailey claims she was fired for speaking at a Spokane County Air Pollution Control Authority August 2005 public meeting on proposed asbestos regulations.
After receiving complaints Bailey had spoken on behalf of the university, and had a conflict of interest since her husband worked as a private consultant on asbestos cleanup, Eastern terminated her contract.
Bailey's suit claims her First Amendment rights were violated because she was speaking as a private citizen. That case is still pending in Superior Court.
In his complaint, Batsakis claims his employment file shows no reprimands or negative performance evaluations.
Hines said he believes there was some degree of communication with Batsakis in the week between his report filing and termination, mainly along the lines of not taking his findings to higher officials.
“The concern was not let's address these safety issues, but rather let's contain this from a PR standpoint,” Hines said.
Meany disputed this.
“We don't take safety lightly,” he said. “Health and safety is a top priority for us.”
In his suit, Batsakis is asking for an award of damages including back and front wages, emotional distress, attorney's fees and punitive damages. A trial date is pending.
John McCallum can be reached at [email protected]
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