A Hanford whistleblower who turned in his own employer for allegations of fraud said the company was "lying" and "cheating" the government.
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BENTON CITY, Wash. — The Department of Justice (DOJ) has accused one of Hanford’s biggest contractors of repeatedly billing the government for work that wasn’t done in a multi-million dollar “scheme” that they said managers “actively facilitated.”
The allegations stem from the team responsible for making sure the nuclear site is prepared for a fire at the location by testing and maintaining pipes, sprinklers and alarms.
The DOJ says managers for Hanford Mission Integration Support (HMIS) were assigning just a few hours of work while instructing their employees to charge for full 10 hours days. According to a whistleblower on the fire suppression support team, for years he and his co-workers have spent time looking for things to do, reading, watching Netflix and occasionally taking naps.
“We are begging for work,” said Bradley Keever, who filed a complaint against his employer, HMIS, over the alleged timecard cheating. “I can’t believe I get paid to do this. To do nothing. I can’t believe I’m getting paid to do nothing.”
Keever still works for HMIS at Hanford. He is protected by the federal Whistleblower Protection Act which makes it unlawful for employers to retaliate against or threaten reprisal against employees for reporting evidence of wrongdoing.
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