The company that chartered the cargo ship that destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was recently sanctioned by regulators for blocking its employees from directly reporting safety concerns to the U.S. Coast Guard — in violation of a seaman whistleblower protection law, according to regulatory filings reviewed by The Lever.
Eight months before a Maersk Line Limited-chartered cargo ship crashed into the Baltimore bridge, likely killing six people and injuring others, the Labor Department sanctioned the shipping conglomerate for retaliating against an employee who reported unsafe working conditions aboard a Maersk-operated boat. In its order, the department found that Maersk had “a policy that requires employees to first report their concerns to [Maersk]… prior to reporting it to the [Coast Guard] or other authorities.”
Yeah, its givesomefucks, they are a crayon eating moron, but that’s not the point I am making, which is a bit more nuanced and has to do with the fact that at the end of the day, tax payers will make a new bridge and Maersk and a team of lawyers will appeal any and all monetary violation down the a mere fraction of the total cost the whole thing will end up costing. Indeed, court costs will be astronomical, and you bet your fucking dick hole that it won’t be the corporation paying for any of it.