Opinion ID: 463228
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Protected Action

Text: 23 KG & E contends that the protection of section 5851 does not encompass the actions, i.e., filing of internal safety complaints, taken by Wells. KG & E argues that Congress envisioned only contacts with governmental agencies to be protected. The company asserts that if the statute is read so as to include internal complaints, then a fundamental facet of the employer/employee relationship is infringed. The statute, however, does not extend its protection to those who try to abuse the protection by filing frivolous complaints. 42 U.S.C. Sec. 5851(g). 24 The Secretary of Labor, on the other hand, argues that the language and the legislative history of the ERA requires an expansive reading to facilitate the remedial purposes of the Act. Each side cites the same statutory language and the same legislative history to support its interpretation of section 5851. Although each side also relies on precedent from other circuits, the results from other courts are not in agreement about the correct construction of section 5851. The Secretary of Labor, after hearings, found that this legislation is due a broad reading; a narrow interpretation would simply frustrate its aims. 25 We must first determine the appropriate standard of review of the Secretary's statutory interpretation. The most recent pronouncements of this court hold that an agency's interpretation of its enabling statute is entitled to deference. Emery Mining Corp. v. Secretary of Labor, 744 F.2d 1411, 1415 (10th Cir.1984); Hoover and Bracken Energies v. United States Department of Interior, 723 F.2d 1488, 1489 (10th Cir.1983), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 105 S.Ct. 93, 83 L.Ed.2d 39 (1984). However, this court has not blindly adhered to this rule. Such deference may be tempered if a different construction is plainly required after an evaluation of the administrative position. Philadelphia Gear Corp. v. F.D.I.C., 751 F.2d 1131, 1135 (10th Cir.1984) cert. granted, --- U.S. ----, 106 S.Ct. 245, 88 L.Ed.2d 253 (1985); Nevada Power Co. v. Watt, 711 F.2d 913, 920 (10th Cir.1983). 26 The administrative position follows. The Secretary found that Wells engaged in a protected activity. The Secretary relied on Mackowiak v. University Nuclear Systems, 735 F.2d 1159, 1163 (9th Cir.1984), which held, inter alia ... that Sec. 5851 protects quality control inspectors from retaliation based on internal safety and quality control complaints. The Secretary found that the language of the statute was clear in extending coverage to internal activities and, in any event, that the legislative intent was unquestionable in this regard. Even though we are of the view that the Secretary has reached the correct result, the following analysis will hopefully provide guidance to the parties. 27 At the outset, we will examine the pertinent language of the statute. (See supra, pp. 1508, 1509). It is a basic tenet of statutory construction that if statutory language is clear and unambiguous on its face then it must be given its plain meaning and no resort to the underlying legislative history is appropriate. Nevada Power Company, supra, at 920. Here a disagreement has arisen over the extent of protection provided by section 5851 and the exact meaning of the language proceeding or any other action.... 28 The meaning of the provision is rendered unclear inasmuch as the statute does not include definitions of the pertinent terms. At least two reasonable interpretations of this language are possible. First, KG & E argues that proceeding should be narrowly interpreted to mean only formal legal proceedings, i.e., agency actions against an alleged violator, and any other action, is merely another way of saying proceeding. Alternatively, the Secretary argues that this language should not be taken out of context but should be read in light of the overall goal of employee protection. Further, the Secretary asserts that the filing of a complaint, will initiate a proceeding. We note that the Secretary's interpretation is consistent with the definition of complaint as found in the agency's regulations. The Secretary contends that quality control inspectors initiate a proceeding when they file internal safety reports with their superiors because each inspector is individually charged with enforcing NRC regulations and such a report is the first step in the initiation of an enforcement proceeding. As in Train v. National Resources Defense Council, 421 U.S. 60, 63, 95 S.Ct. 1470, 1474, 43 L.Ed.2d 731 (1974), this case presents an issue of statutory construction which is illuminated by the anatomy of the statute itself, by its legislative history ... and by the policy underlying the statute. 29 Section 5851 of the ERA was added to the Act in 1978. It was patterned after similar provisions in other acts. The Senate report on the ERA amendment comments that, 30 [t]his amendment is substantially identical to provisions in the Clear Air Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act. The legislative history of those acts indicated that such provisions were patterned after the National Labor Management Act and a similar provision in Public Law 91-173 (FMSA) relating to the health and safety of the Nation's coal miners. 31 S.Rep. No. 848, 95th Cong., 2nd Sess. at 29, 1978 U.S.Code Cong. & Ad.News at 7303. 32 The employee protections of the NLRA and the Federal Mining Safety Act (FMSA) have been construed often and the teachings of those cases are instructive. The cases stand for the general proposition that internal actions taken by an employee do come within the purview of employee protection as guaranteed by the respective Acts. NLRB v. Schrivener, 405 U.S. 117, 92 S.Ct. 798, 31 L.Ed.2d 79 (1972); NLRB v. Retail Employees Union, Local 876, 570 F.2d 586 (6th Cir.), cert. denied, 439 U.S. 819, 99 S.Ct. 81, 58 L.Ed.2d 109 (1978) where an employee was protected when she expressed unwillingness to her employer to testify in accordance with her employer's wishes in an NLRB hearing. The employee, however, did not actually testify; Phillips v. Interior Board of Mine Operations Appeals, 500 F.2d 772, 779 (C.A.D.C.1974) cert. denied, 420 U.S. 938, 95 S.Ct. 1149, 43 L.Ed.2d 415 (1975), where the employee notified his foreman of possible dangers in the workplace; this was held to be instituting a proceeding, entitling the employee to the Act's coverage. 33 Senate Report No. 848, U.S.Code Cong. & Admin.News 1978, p. 7303, specifically states that section 5851 was patterned after similar employee protection provisions in other acts. Even so, KG & E contends that reliance on any FMSA cases is misplaced because the employee protection provision of that Act was amended in 1977. 1 The FMSA amendment of 1977 changed the language of the provision to expressly include internal complaints: No person shall ... discriminate against ... any miner ... who has made a complaint ... including a complaint notifying the operator or the operator's agent.... 30 U.S.C. Sec. 815(c)(1). KG & E argues that inasmuch as the FMSA was amended in 1977 and the ERA was enacted in 1978 then, if the legislative draftsmen had intended to include internal complaints, they certainly knew how to say so. However, the legislative history of the FMSA amendment shows that Congress did, in fact, intend the older version of the amendment to afford protection to internal complaints and the older version of the amendment is what the ERA provision was modeled after. The committee intends to insure the continuing vitality of various judicial interpretations of Sec. 110 of the Coal Act which are consistent with the broad protections of the bill's provisions; see e.g., Phillips v. IBMA, 500 F.2d 772 [ (D.C.Cir.1974) ]; Munsey v. Morton, 507 F.2d 1202 [ (D.C.Cir.1974) ]; S.Rep. No. 181, 36, 95th Cong. 1st Sess. 1977, U.S.Code Cong. 2nd Ad.News, 3401, 3436. (emphasis added). Both the Phillips and Munsey cases unequivocably stand for the proposition that internal activities are to be protected under the original version of the FMSA. Thus, it is clear that Congress was advocating the protection of internal action and changed the statutory language not because its intent had changed, but because this intent had been incorrectly perceived by certain courts. We further observe that the legislative history of the ERA points out that Sec. 5851 is modeled after similar provisions in several other acts, not simply the FMSA. The provisions of the other acts have broad remedial purposes and have been so construed by the courts. 34 The Mackowiak court held that [these acts] share a broad, remedial purpose of protecting workers from retaliation based on their concerns for safety and quality. Mackowiak, supra at 1163. The ERA's legislative history strongly supports this interpretation. 35 Under this section, employees and union officials could help assure that employers do not violate requirements of the Atomic Energy Act. 36 Any worker who is called upon to testify or who gives information with respect to an alleged violation of the Atomic Energy Act or a related law by his employer or who files or institutes any proceeding to enforce such law against an employer may be subject to discrimination. This section would prohibit any firing or discrimination and would provide an administrative procedure under which the employee or his representative could seek redress for any violation of this prohibition. 37 S.Rep. No. 848, 95th Cong., 2nd Sess. at 29, U.S.Code Cong. & Admin.News 1978, pp. 7303, 7304. 38 The regulations promulgated by the NRC further echo the broad reading intended: Employee Protection 39 Discrimination by a Commission licensee, permitee, and applicant for a Commission license or permit, or a contractor or subcontractor of a commission licensee, permitee or applicant against an employee for engaging in certain protected activities is prohibited. Discrimination includes discharge and other actions that relate to compensation, terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. The protected activities are established in Sec. 210 of the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, as amended, and in general are related to the administration or enforcement of a requirement imposed under the Atomic Energy Commission Act or the Energy Reorganization Act. (1) the protected activities include but are not limited to: (i) providing the Commission information about possible violations of requirements imposed under either of the above statutes; (ii) requesting the Commission to institute action against his or her employer for the administration or the enforcement of these requirements; or (iii) testifying in any Commission proceeding. (2) These activities are protected even if no formal proceeding is actually initiated as a result of the employee assistance or participation. (Emphasis added). 40 10 C.F.R. Sec. 50.7 (1985). These regulations are controlling and entitled to great weight if reasonable. Donovan v. Hahner, Foreman, and Harness, Inc., 736 F.2d 1421, 1425 (10th Cir.1984). The regulations make it clear that a formal proceeding is not required in order to invoke the protection of the Act. 41 In our view, a narrow, hyper-technical reading of Sec. 5851 will do little to effect the statute's aim of protection. KG & E seems to imply that Wells would be entitled to protection only if he had personally filed a formal complaint with the NRC. However, KG & E fails to take into account the memorandum of understanding between DOL and NRC. (See supra, p. 1509). That memorandum requires DOL to forward a copy of a complaint with supporting documentation to the NRC. It would be redundant for Wells to send the NRC copies of his internal safety complaints when DOL has already provided the NRC with these reports. 42 We believe that the construction given to section 5851 by the Mackowiak court accurately reflects the intent of Congress. We recognize that a different result was reached in Brown and Root v. Donovan, 747 F.2d 1029 (5th Cir.1984). In our view, the construction of the ERA there employed is incorrect because it takes no notice of the agency regulations, tries to liken the term action as synonomous with proceeding, contends that such employment determinations are outside the competence of the Secretary of Labor because matters concerning nuclear safety are exclusively involved, and discovers nothing in the legislative history to support a broad construction of section 5851. The Brown and Root court also discounts Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc. v. Donovan, 673 F.2d 61 (2nd Cir.1982), which stands for the proposition that wholly internal complaints are protected by section 5851. Brown and Root contains the comment that both parties in Consolidated Edison did not dispute the coverage of section 5851; thus, the court concludes that the case had little precedential value because the court did not challenge the parties' interpretation of section 5851. The most recent pronouncement of the meaning of section 5851 is found in Wheeler v. Caterpillar Tractor Co., 108 Ill.2d 502, 92 Ill.Dec. 561, 485 N.E.2d 372 (1985), where the court also construed the remedial purposes of the ERA broadly in a case involving the filing of internal complaints.