Giant cargo on Baltimore bridge collapse silenced whistleblowers: Report

On March 26, before the sun rose over the Patapsco River, a container ship named the Dali, bound for Colombo, Sri Lanka, struck a pillar supporting the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The collision caused the 1.6-mile-long structure to collapse, sending huge swaths of it into the murky waters of the river. By nightfall, six construction workers who were in the middle of the bridge span were presumed dead.

The company that chartered the ship, Maersk Line Limited, has since been under scrutiny following the tragedy. Hours after the news broke, The Lever reported that eight months ago, the Department of Labor established the cargo giant for taking action against a seafarer who previously reported unsafe working conditions while aboard a Maersk vessel.

The seafarer was chief mate on the Safmarine Mafadi, a vessel operated by Maersk, and reported several problems on the vessel, including unrepaired leaks, alcohol not allowed on board, non-functional lifeboats and faulty emergency fire suppression equipment. He had been disciplined for not keeping a proper calendar and failing to follow orders properly, before he was eventually fired from the company. He later disputed those claims and said they were “retaliation for the alcohol report
consumption on board.”

The department found that Maersk had “a policy that requires employees to first raise their concerns [Maersk]… before reporting it to [Coast Guard] or other authorities'. Federal officials said there is “reasonable cause to believe” that the company's policy violated the 1984 Seaman's Protection Acta statute that prohibits an employer from retaliating against shipping workers who report unsafe working conditions.

The department called the policy “abhorrent to the law” and wrote in its order that it “creates a chilling effect because it discourages employees from reporting any safety concerns directly” to the US Coast Guard and other authorities.

“[Maersk’s] Vice President of Labor Relations, admits that this Reporting Policy requires seafarers to report safety concerns to the company and allow the company time to de-escalate conditions before reporting to the [Coast Guard] or other regulatory bodies,” the report said.

Maersk was ordered by federal officials to pay the employee more than $700,000 in damages and back wages and to reinstate him. The shipping conglomerate was also instructed to review its policy “not to prohibit mariners from contacting the USCG or other federal, state or local regulatory agencies before first notifying the company.”

“Federal law protects a seafarer's right to report safety concerns to federal regulatory agencies, a fact every maritime industry employer and shipowner should be aware of,” said OSHA Dallas Regional Administrator Eric S. Harbin. “Failure to recognize these rights can instill a culture of intimidation that could lead to devastating or deadly consequences.”

After the news of the bridge collapse, USA Today found that the Maersk charter vessel had been involved in at least one previous accident before it crashed on the Baltimore Bridge, and in 2016, the Dali struck a stone loading dock while leaving a port in Antwerp. The collision caused damage to the ship's stern, and an investigation determined that the ship's master and pilot were at fault, according to the release. No injuries were reported from the incident in Belgium. the ship required repair and inspection before being returned to service.