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Published August 25, 2023 at 10:11 a.m.
A Middlebury-based farm equipment company has been ordered to pay more than $145,000 in back wages and damages to a whistleblower who was fired after reporting the company for improperly dumping wastewater.
Champlain Valley Equipment must also rehire the employee, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration said this week in announcing the result of its probe into the firing.
In June 2022, the employee saw the company pump wastewater from its service bays onto the ground next to the Winooski River at its Berlin location, according to OSHA. The worker reported their concerns to supervisors and then to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
The company fired the employee soon after the complaint was lodged, OSHA said.
In June 2022, the employee saw the company pump wastewater from its service bays onto the ground next to the Winooski River at its Berlin location, according to OSHA. The worker reported their concerns to supervisors and then to the state Department of Environmental Conservation.
The company fired the employee soon after the complaint was lodged, OSHA said.
"After its investigation, OSHA determined that the company’s actions violated the whistleblower provisions of the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and ordered Champlain Valley Equipment to reinstate the employee to their former position," the agency said in a statement.
The company must also pay the employee, who was unnamed in the statement, a total of $145,000 in back wages and damages, plus attorneys' fees. The employee and business owner have 30 days to file objections to OSHA’s findings or request a hearing with the labor department’s Office of Administrative Law Judges.
The company must also pay the employee, who was unnamed in the statement, a total of $145,000 in back wages and damages, plus attorneys' fees. The employee and business owner have 30 days to file objections to OSHA’s findings or request a hearing with the labor department’s Office of Administrative Law Judges.
Company owner Brian Carpenter, who is also chair of the Middlebury Selectboard, said on Thursday that he disagreed with the findings and plans to appeal. Champlain Valley Equipment seeks to be an excellent steward of the environment, Carpenter said, and has invested in solar panels and equipment that captures rainwater for washing. The company recently received a permit to install a new wastewater treatment system.
Along with Middlebury and Berlin, the company has locations in St. Albans, Derby and Essex Junction.
Along with Middlebury and Berlin, the company has locations in St. Albans, Derby and Essex Junction.
“It’s really disappointing that we’re being painted as polluters, because we are absolutely not,” Carpenter said. “We work with a lot of equipment that has the potential to pollute, so we have to be careful.”
After the complaint was filed, he said, the company fixed the problem immediately. Carpenter noted that Champlain Valley Equipment was never cited for an environmental violation.
The worker, Carpenter added, was fired for reasons unrelated to the whistleblower report.
“There were other issues,” he said. “Sometimes an employee will lash out; it’s unfortunate timing.”
The worker, Carpenter added, was fired for reasons unrelated to the whistleblower report.
“There were other issues,” he said. “Sometimes an employee will lash out; it’s unfortunate timing.”
Carpenter said he was disappointed that he heard of OSHA's ruling just as the agency issued a press release about it.
“It’s been over a year since we had a hearing,” he said. “I get the results yesterday, and they issue a press release today. I’m not happy about that at all.”
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About The Author
Anne Wallace Allen
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Anne Wallace Allen covers breaking news and business stories for Seven Days. She was the editor at the Idaho Business Review and a reporter for VTDigger and the Associated Press in Montpelier.
Anne Wallace Allen covers breaking news and business stories for Seven Days. She was the editor at the Idaho Business Review and a reporter for VTDigger and the Associated Press in Montpelier.
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