Probe finds TMI guards' overtime within rules
Source: BY GARRY LENTON, The Patriot-News (PA), Thursday, July 19, 2007
Overtime hours worked by security officers at Three Mile Island for much of last year were mostly within limits imposed by federal regulators, an investigation by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission concluded.
....... The officers, who are employed by Wackenhut Nuclear Services, also said that a manpower shortage was disrupting training schedules and that fatigued staff were reluctant to report themselves unfit for duty for fear of losing their jobs.
......But the NRC, relying on an internal investigation carried out by Exelon Nuclear, the parent company of plant operator AmerGen Energy, concluded that the hours worked were allowable under agency rules. Those rules allow individuals to work up to 72 hours a week. The rule also permits plant operators to average the hours worked by several employees, allowing some, but not all, to spend longer hours on the job.
The probe found two exceptions where a security officer worked more than the allowed hours. The finding was characterized as a minor violation that didn't require an enforcement action, according to the NRC's report.
...... Though the NRC's work-hour rules were met, the agency is poised to adopt new rules that would make it harder for plant operators to work employees more than 48 hours a week. The new rules, expected to go into effect this year, would eliminate group averaging.
The change would force most plant owners to hire more officers, industry officials said.