The Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tenn., recently received recertification as a Star-level participant in the Department of Energy Voluntary Protection Program, marking more than a decade in the safety program.
The Department of Energy created the program to recognize occupational safety and health protection at its various campuses. Since it began the program has demonstrated cooperation among government, industry, and personnel to improve worker safety and health, Y-12 site manager Consolidated Nuclear Security (CNS) said in a statement.
Participating sites have seen improved labor-management relations, reduced workplace injuries and illnesses, increased employee involvement, improved morale, reduced absenteeism, and public recognition, CNS said.
The program has three levels of participation: Star, Merit, and Demonstration. The Star level is the highest level and recognizes “outstanding levels of employee safety and health.”
Maintaining this level of participation requires periodic reviews. After a review in 2023, Y-12 was notified in December that it was approved for continued participation at the Star level. This approval recognizes that Y-12 has met the requirements for outstanding safety and health programs. Y-12 first achieved Star status in 2012.
Y-12’s mission is to maintain a safe and effective U.S. nuclear weapons deterrent, reduce global threats, and provide fuel for naval nuclear reactors.
Y-12 and the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas, which are both managed and operated by CNS, achieved a combined 13 million hours worked by employees without a lost-time injury in fiscal year 2023, a record for CNS, the company said.
“Safety is essential in everything we do at Y-12,” Y-12 Site Manager Gene Sievers said. “Programs like VPP help us focus on safe behaviors and expectations, and it’s a point of pride for us that we’ve participated at the Star level since 2012.”
