DULUTH, MN. (Northern News Now) - For the second time this year, a worker connected to Lake Superior College has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the school.
The suit alleges retaliation against an employee who reported concerns about the handling of hazardous material on campus.
Vaughn Johnson, a general maintenance worker at LSC is filing this latest whistleblower suit.
Johnson claims he was reprimanded after informing school officials the ventilation systems at LSC’s downtown campus had not been maintained properly.
The ventilation system is tasked with filtering out hexavalent chromium from the school’s downtown campus. The hexavalent chromium is a by-product created during welding, which is one of the trades taught in that building.
Exposure to hexavalent chromium can cause major health problems including damage to kidneys and liver, it can also cause cancer.
According to the court filings, Johnson informed school officials the filtration system wasn’t being kept up and two employees tasked with working on it were not given proper personal protective equipment to do the job.
Johnson alleges LSC reprimanded him after he reported his concerns, citing he did not follow the proper chain of command.
His attorney Naomi Martin said providing safety for students and staff is at the heart of the lawsuit, but it’s not the only aspect.
“Along with the safety, it’s the conduct of the administrators too, to quiet those who raise concern. It is also very much part of this,”...
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