BEL MOONEY: My toxic boss has made my life a misery. These are the insidious tactics all employees should be aware of - and how to beat them
I'm being bullied at work by someone senior to me and it's making me so unhappy. The job I loved has become something I dread each day and it's getting worse.
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Daily Mail
14 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Safety fears at Florida nuclear plant as bombshell report says 'staff too scared to speak out about dangers'
Alarming new revelations from a federal inspection report have exposed a deep-rooted culture of fear at one of Florida 's nuclear power plants where employees say they are too terrified to report safety hazards, even anonymously. The disturbing findings, obtained by The Tampa Bay Times, center on the St. Lucie nuclear plant, operated by Florida Power & Light, the state's largest utility firm. According to federal investigators, staff at the plant described a workplace where retaliation for raising concerns was so pervasive that workers avoided official complaint channels altogether, fearing they'd be traced and punished. The report, quietly completed last fall, detailed a disturbing portrait of suppression, intimidation, and operational neglect at the aging facility, located on a barrier island just north of West Palm Beach. It means there has been silence among workers inside one of Florida's most critical energy facilities, even as mechanical failures and shutdowns mount. 'Senior management's reactions to individuals raising nuclear safety concerns could be perceived as retaliation,' the inspection report states. The report follows a record-breaking surge in anonymous complaints from the plant, which outpaced all other nuclear facilities in the US last year, raising fresh concerns about operational integrity of the complex on Florida's east coast. The timing couldn't be more controversial as Florida Power & Light is currently seeking approval for what watchdogs call the largest electric rate hike in US history - a nearly $10 billion increase over four years. After interviewing more than 75 workers, federal inspectors concluded that a pervasive fear of retaliation has silenced employees and put public safety in jeopardy. 'Senior management's reactions to individuals raising nuclear safety concerns could be perceived as retaliation,' the report states. At the heart of the crisis is a breakdown in trust between workers and leadership. According to the inspection, employees were so spooked by prior incidents of retaliation that they avoided even anonymous reporting systems, fearing their IP addresses might be traced. Instead, many turned to union representatives - or just stayed silent. Whistleblower complaints have exploded. In 2024, the St. Lucie plant logged 20 anonymous allegations, the most of any of the nation's 54 nuclear facilities, and five times the number it received just a year prior. 'Without [a healthy safety culture], it's a toxic environment that contributes to potential for a more serious event to occur,' warned Edwin Lyman, director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists. Federal regulators confirmed they launched the inspection specifically because of the spike in these complaints. Despite the alarming findings, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued no formal violations, allowing FPL to claim the issue is under control. A spokesperson for the utility, Ellen Meyers, insisted that the nuclear fleet remains 'safe, reliable and emissions-free'. She added that the plants, including Turkey Point near Miami, hold the NRC's top 'green' rating - but experts have called that label misleading. 'There has been grade inflation,' Lyman said. 'Green findings are less meaningful when inspectors are discouraged from escalating serious concerns.' Lyman, a physicist and director of nuclear power safety at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said he found the issues uncovered at the plant to be troubling. 'The reason why these inspections were initiated in the first place is the recognition of how important good safety culture is,' he said in an interview with the Tampa Bay Times. 'Without that, it's a toxic environment that contributes to potential for a more serious event to occur.' The problems at St. Lucie are neither isolated nor new. Records show years of safety violations, internal scandals, and worsening shutdowns at both of Florida's active nuclear plants, St. Lucie and Turkey Point. In 2019, federal regulators fined FPL $150,000 after employees at Turkey Point falsified safety records and failed to notify supervisors of serious errors during maintenance. In 2017, a contract worker at St. Lucie was terminated after raising radiation concerns - another incident that triggered a federal penalty. An internal review by Florida regulators later revealed that FPL's own executives admitted their nuclear operations were in crisis. One plant manager even concluded St. Lucie had 'the worst operational focus in the industry.' Since then, the company cut a quarter of its nuclear workforce, according to testimony from utility consultant Richard Polich, who warned that fewer staff, coupled with a fear-driven culture, heightens the risk of costly or dangerous mistakes. 'Mistakes can occur, tasks may not be performed in accordance with company procedures, and projects are rushed... leading to avoidable outages and imprudent fuel costs,' Polich told regulators. FPL dismissed Polich's warnings as 'conjecture', but state investigators are once again raising red flags. After a brief period of improvement, plant shutdowns at St. Lucie and Turkey Point spiked again last year. A new review from the state Public Service Commission suggested that the same dysfunction regulators identified in past audits has returned. 'Issues related to Florida Power & Light's philosophy with regard to receiving concerns … may have come up again,' wrote Commission attorney Suzanne Brownless in a 2024 filing. The situation has attracted scrutiny from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers in Tallahassee. 'A 'chilled work environment' where employees fear speaking up about safety concerns is not just a red flag - it's a siren,' said Rep. Anna Eskamani (D-Orlando). 'This points to a systemic failure in oversight and serious public safety concerns.' Sen. Don Gaetz (R-Niceville), a long-time FPL critic, added that the state utility commission 'should consider these issues' in any rate hike decision. According to testimony from Polich, each nuclear shutdown can cost ratepayers over $1 million in replacement power. In a 2023 settlement, FPL agreed to refund $5 million to customers after regulators determined multiple shutdowns from 2020–2022 were avoidable. But with a new $10 billion rate hike request pending, watchdogs say the company's nuclear operations deserve a full airing. 'This is not about isolated incidents,' Eskamani said. 'This is about public accountability.' So far, FPL has insisted that it is not seeking reimbursement for any nuclear outages as part of its current rate case, but internal documents are now subject to subpoena by the state's public advocate, meaning more damaging revelations could emerge in the months ahead.
Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Aussie worker is SACKED after calling his non-binary colleague 'he' instead of 'they'
A worker has been fired from his high-paying job after he referred to his non-binary colleague as 'he' instead of 'they'. The Perth man, 63, claimed wrongful dismissal and the case went to the Fair Work Commission, following an incident in February in which he introduced his younger co-worker at a leadership training course. It's understood the legal dispute began when the non-binary employee told their older male colleague they wanted to be referred to as 'they', and the pronoun would be written on their name badge. After the Perth man called his colleague 'he', another colleague corrected him. The 63-year-old then apologised to his younger co-worker — a biological male who identified neither as a man nor a woman. Following the exchange, relations between the colleagues remained cordial throughout the training day, The West Australian reported. The Perth man was later told by his manager that a formal complaint had been made and he was required to submit a written apology. He refused and it's understood he said no one could be ordered to call a colleague 'they'. The 63-year-old later told a Fair Work hearing that if one person had the right to use a particular pronoun, then another person had the right not to. His decision not to apologise led to further backlash from his younger co-workers, who had sided with their non-binary colleague. In March, the company launched an investigation, culminating in the Perth man's contract being terminated. He claimed his dismissal was unlawful, sought legal advice, and shared his intention to take the matter to Federal Court. The case went to the Fair Work Commission and the man was told he risked being subjected to social backlash if the matter was heard in open court. He subsequently reached a confidential settlement with his former employer. The identities of the 63-year-old man and the non-binary employee, and the name of their employer, are not publicly available information, however details of the case were leaked when lawyers discussed the implications of the case. Lawyers have said there did not appear to be a legal right for someone to be called 'they' or 'them' within the workplace, and it was up to individual companies to dictate pronoun convention. It is understood that the company who employed the 63-year-old and his non-binary colleague did not have a pronoun policy. The case is unusual because motivations were not linked with religion. The Perth man's refusal to submit a written apology was not connected to faith, but to a belief he was being forced into accepting a position on gender politics.
Daily Mail
19 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher seen on rare public outing with their kids after brushing off marriage rift rumors
Mila Kunis and her husband Ashton Kutcher were spotted on a rare public outing with their kids on Friday afternoon. Kutcher, 47 — who was seen wearing a wrist guard in June — appeared to have recovered from his injury as he and Kunis, 41, enjoyed each others company while doing some shopping at the Beverly Glen Center in the Bel Air area of Los Angeles. Kutcher looked relaxed in a yellow Iowa Hawkeyes T-shirt with a pair of straight leg jeans and charcoal toned sneakers. Meanwhile, Kunis showcased her toned legs in a pair of denim cutoff shorts with a gray T-shirt as they browsed several stores. The Family Guy voice actress wore little to no makeup behind her wide framed sunglasses. The two That '70s Show alums were joined by their two children: Wyatt, 10, and Dimitri, eight. Wyatt looked relaxed in a white T-shirt, light blue jeans and white Crocs while her younger brother Dimitri showed his own team spirit wearing a green and gray sports jersey over black joggers and Crocs. The doting parents are adamant about keeping their young kids out of the limelight. 'We don't share any photos of our kids publicly because we feel that being public is a personal choice,' Kutcher shared on the Thrive Global Podcast with iHeartRadio in 2017. 'My wife and I have chosen a career where we're in the public light, but my kids have not, so I think they have the right to choose that,' he explained. The couple seemed to have survived the backlash they received when they wrote letters of support for their former That '70s show co-star Danny Masterson ahead of his 30-year sentence for rape in September 2023. The pressure lead to some speculation that their marriage was in trouble, especially after the arrest of Kutcher's once close friend Sean 'Diddy' Combs on federal sex trafficking indictment one year later. Combs and Kutcher were pals in the early 2000s via Kutcher's MTV show Punk'd which began in 2003. 'I've got a lot I can't tell,' Kutcher admitted during a 2019 Hot Ones interview when asked about Combs' infamous gatherings. Weeks after the arrest, an insider claimed to Daily Mail that Kutcher deeply regrets his past friendship with Combs. Kunis showcased her toned legs in a pair of denim cutoff shorts with a gray T-shirt. Her long, dark hair was piled high on her head in a bun. Daughter Wyatt looked relaxed in a white T-shirt with purple trim, light blue jeans 'Ashton absolutely regrets his friendship with Diddy considering what has happened,' the source revealed at the time. 'He feels lied to, betrayed, taken for granted, and manipulated.' The rapper was convicted in July on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for arranging for girlfriends and male sex workers to travel to engage in sexual encounters that he filmed. Each carries a maximum 10 year sentence. According to CBS News, prosecutors expect him to serve four-to-five years behind bars. The defense is hoping for a more lenient sentence of 21 to 27 months. The Bad Boy Records founder will remain behind bars until his October 3 sentencing.
