In South Plainfield, New Jersey, the agency responsible for enforcing standards for workplace safety and health has cited Sodexo for violations of nine separate safety hazards involving building cleaning and maintenance services that endangered workers and could have harmed students.

A supervisor within the South Plainfield School District alerted the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) of these dangers, all of which were classified as "serious," meaning there was a "substantial probability that death or serious injury could occur from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known."

The citations against Sodexo include:

• Improper labeling of information when using dangerous chemicals
• Unsafe storage of flammable and combustible liquids
• Exposed live parts of electronic equipment
• Failure to assure that workers' have protective equipment
• Failing to assure employees receive adequate training
• Requiring workers to operate industrial trucks without testing their ability to so do safely

Brian Barker, the whistleblower in this case, says that he called OSHA after Sodexo management ignored his repeated requests to correct the problems.

"I've been a groundskeeper for 26 years.  When I came to Sodexo I was shocked because they were not in compliance with safety regulations," said Brian, who was manager of grounds keeping for Sodexo in South Plainfield.  "Finally, I said enough is enough and called OSHA."

What happened next, though, came as a surprise. The day he notified his manager that he had contacted OSHA, Brian received his first written discipline since he began working for Sodexo last year. Then after the OSHA citation was issued, Sodexo abruptly eliminated his position - even though Brian had just earned a promotion in January. This week he filed a complaint with OSHA that Sodexo retaliated against him for reporting the hazards.

Community members, union leaders and elected officials are worried about the possible connection.

"I am concerned that Sodexo cut the position of the worker who alerted OSHA to these dangers that could have been life-threatening," said US Representative Rush Holt (NJ-12), who is a member of the House Education and Labor Committee. "It seems to me that Sodexo has failed to meet its obligation to keep New Jersey students safe." The Sodexo cleaning and maintenance workers in South Plainfield do not belong to a union.

Sodexo is one of New Jersey's largest school contractors, providing food service, grounds keeping and custodial services to 73 New Jersey school districts.