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GLENDALE, Ky. (WDRB) — Construction workers building a $6 billion battery factory in Kentucky to power Ford Motor Co.’s electric vehicles are losing their jobs, according to a private environmental analysis obtained. by WDRB News and interviews with workers revealed significant levels of mold exposure inside.
Electricians and other contractors at the Blue Oval SK site in Glendale say some workers are sick with respiratory problems and headaches, and that the contractor managing the project is concerned about the problem. said that it was not adequately addressed.
“Hundreds of workers across all industries have been severely impacted,” said electrical engineer James Dugan. He is an electrician and had been working for the subcontractor for about two months before being laid off on Friday, he said.
According to a report dated Dec. 14, 2023, a copy of which was obtained by WDRB, an environmental contractor in Kentucky found mold in the air and on wooden crates containing equipment shipped from South Korea to the Blue Oval site. The mold was sometimes present in “high concentrations.” news.
The environmental contractor recommended that a “mold protocol” be put in place “as soon as possible” to “protect workers,” the report said. But Dugan and other officials who spoke to WDRB News said little is being done.
Asked about the mold issue, a Blue Oval SK spokesperson said only that they were aware of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation at the site.
“Please also note that construction workers on site are not employees of BlueOval SK,” BlueOval’s Mallory Cook said in an email, declining further comment.
BlueOval SK, a joint venture between Ford and its South Korean technology partner SK On, is building two battery factories at its Kentucky factory to meet the automaker’s ambitions to become a leader in electric vehicle production. The company is building a third battery factory in Stanton, Tennessee.
The largest economic development project in Kentucky history is also likely to be the busiest construction site in the state, with many union workers receiving stipends worth up to $200 a day on top of their paychecks. I work 10 to 12 hours a day, 6 to 7 days a week. wages and overtime pay.
Electrician James Dugan recently worked for a subcontractor on the BlueOval SK project in Glendale, Kentucky. February 1, 2024. (WDRB photo)
Many of the tradespeople, like Dugan, a traveling electrician, are only in Kentucky temporarily for BlueOval work.
BlueOval SK did not say which construction contractor was responsible for the mold issue.
The project’s prime contractors, Southfield, Michigan-based Burton Marlowe and Kentucky-based Gray Construction, did not respond to inquiries Thursday.
The Kentucky Labor Cabinet, which handles OSHA issues in the state, has withheld all records requested by WDRB News related to recent workplace safety complaints at Blue Oval SK, saying it cannot compromise an ongoing investigation. A cabinet spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
Although not always harmful, mold exposure can cause “symptoms such as stuffy nose, wheezing, red or itchy eyes and skin,” and “severe reactions” such as fever and shortness of breath, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It is said that it may cause. control and prevention.
In addition to Dugan, WDRB News spoke to four electricians who work at the BlueOval site. Others requested anonymity to protect their jobs.
Workers say the mold is primarily found on wooden crates containing factory equipment transported to the Blue Oval site and on the shipping containers that house those crates.
This is supported by a 46-page “Limited Mold Sample Analysis and Report” on the BlueOval site conducted by Kentucky Environmental Testing & Consulting on behalf of Louisville-based Abel Construction Company.
The Dec. 14, 2023 report found varying concentrations of mold in all nine samples taken.
The report states that upon inspection of the wooden boxes, high concentrations of mold were detected in the air inside the wooden boxes.
“This may help explain why workers and safety officials around the factory have expressed concerns about a strong musty odor emanating from the crates as they are opened,” the report said. Says.
The environmental company also inspected empty shipping containers. When the containers were opened, they smelled so moldy that there was a clear sign that the wooden crates being transported in these containers had experienced high levels of moisture within the crates before leaving the Korean shipping port. It was very intense.”
Two other empty containers had “the same odor of the same intensity,” the report said.
“It’s like going into a basement or something. It’s just awful,” Dugan said of the smell. “You’ll get knocked down when opening crates or containers, or even entering doors on some floors.”
Abel Construction Co., which commissioned the environmental analysis, did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.
There’s no sign that the mold issues are slowing progress on the Blue Oval project, a cornerstone of Ford’s EV strategy.
Citing uncertainty about demand for electric vehicles, Ford has indefinitely postponed the start of production at one of its two Kentucky plants. But at the first factory, workers are busy trying to keep the facility on schedule for next year’s battery production.
The battery factories are supported by $9.2 billion in low-interest loans from the U.S. Department of Energy and $250 million in grants from Kentucky taxpayers.
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