News and events in Oak Ridge, Tennessee
Friday was the last day for many employees at security company WSI Oak Ridge, which lost its contracts to protect federal facilities after the July 28 security breach at the Y-12 National Security Complex.
After 13 years of protecting federal facilities, WSI Oak Ridge has left the Secret City.
Friday was the last day for many employees at WSI, and the contract ended Sunday, spokeswoman Courtney Henry said.
Formerly known as Wackenhut Services Inc., the company once provided up to 1,000 security police officers and support staff at federal facilities that included East Tennessee Technology Park, the Joe L. Evins Federal Building, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Y-12 National Security Complex.
But WSI lost its contract to guard Y-12, a National Nuclear Security Administration site, after the July 28 security breach, and it did not win a separate contract to protect local U.S. Department of Energy sites, including ETTP, ORNL, the Federal Building, and the rest of the Oak Ridge Reservation. That contract was awarded to National Strategic Protective Services LLC, or NSPS. [Read more...]
To the Oak Ridge Community:
As WSI Oak Ridge completes its transition to the new security contractor for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Protective Force contract, I wanted to take this opportunity to say farewell.
We have provided protective nuclear security services to DOE and the National Nuclear Security Administration in the valley for the past 13 years, and are proud that our employees have answered our nation’s call to duty in an exceptionally worthy manner. The WSI Oak Ridge Protective Force has led the DOE Security Complex in professionalism, mission performance, and innovation. [Read more...]
Although it is losing its contract to guard the Y-12 National Security Complex, WSI Oak Ridge on Monday said it will work with B&W Y-12 to help with the transition of the plant’s protective force during the next few weeks.
B&W Y-12 announced Friday that it would end the contract with WSI. That announcement came two months after an unprecedented security breach at Y-12, and it occurred on the same day that the National Nuclear Security Administration recommended a contract termination.
B&W Y-12, which manages and operates the plant for the National Nuclear Security Administration, will now be responsible for security.
The transition of the site’s protective functions started Monday, and a WSI press release suggested it could last several weeks.
“WSI Oak Ridge will continue to assist however necessary, for as long as necessary, to ensure a safe and secure transition,” the release said. “Both parties have agreed that in the interest of Y-12, we will work together to secure opportunities for support personnel.”
The 811-acre Y-12 plant, which manufactures parts for every weapon in the nation’s nuclear arsenal, has about 500 guards. Also known as Wackenhut Services and G4S Government Solutions, WSI has guarded the site since 2000.
“WSI has enjoyed supporting NNSA, B&W, and the Oak Ridge community at large over our past decade of protective force support to the Y-12 National Security Complex,” the release said.
In its press release Friday, B&W Y-12 said active Y-12 security police officers and other active union WSI Oak Ridge employees at Y-12 and the Central Training Facility in Oak Ridge will be offered employment with B&W Y-12 at their current wages and benefits. Collective bargaining agreements with union employees will be honored.
Note: This story was updated at 10:48 a.m. Oct. 1.
WSI Oak Ridge, the company that has guarded the Y-12 National Security Complex for about a dozen years, will lose its contract, B&W Y-12 announced Friday evening.
The announcement came two months after an unprecedented security breach. It occurred on the same day that the National Nuclear Security Administration recommended a contract termination.
“B&W Y-12 fully supports NNSA’s recommendation in this matter and will work diligently to further enhance the security at Y-12 and make the transition for former WSI Oak Ridge employees as seamless as possible,” said B&W Y-12 President and General Manager Chuck Spencer. “We recognize that our focus on safety and security at Y-12 cannot be compromised, and we remain committed to continuing to drive improvements in both areas.”
B&W Y-12, which manages and operates the plant for the NNSA, will now be responsible for Y-12 security, a press release said. The transition will start Monday.
Y-12 manufactures parts for every weapon in the nation’s nuclear arsenal, and B&W Y-12 said it wants the transition to be orderly, ensuring that “safe and secure operations remain the highest priority.”
A company press release said active Y-12 security police officers and other active union WSI Oak Ridge employees at Y-12 and the Central Training Facility in Oak Ridge will be offered employment with B&W Y-12 at their current wages and benefits. Collective bargaining agreements with union employees will be honored.
B&W Y-12 will also conduct an evaluation and hiring process for non-union WSI Oak Ridge employees who supervise and support Y-12 guards, the release said.
It said WSI Oak Ridge employees at Y-12 and the Central Training Facility should continue reporting to work as scheduled.
There are about 500 guards at Y-12. WSI, also known as Wackenhut Services and G4S Government Solutions, has provided security services there since 2000.
WSI became a subcontractor to B&W Y-12 after the July 28 security breach. Before that highly publicized intrusion, which has brought the plant much unwanted attention and punctured its aura of invincibility, WSI had operated under a separate contract with the NNSA.
Officials said the subcontractor status would result in a “single-point accountability for security.”
During the security breach, three anti-nuclear weapons activists sneaked into the plant, cut through fences with bolt cutters, and spray-painted slogans and splashed human blood on the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility, where bomb-grade uranium is stored.
A variety of concerns have been raised since then, including by members of Congress, who focused on the actions of the guards and contractors, and security cameras that didn’t work.
On Friday, NNSA Public Affairs Director Josh McConaha did not say what evidence was used to recommend a WSI contract termination.
The B&W Y-12 press release said the company began making changes quickly after the July 28 intrusion to prevent any future occurrences.
“These actions included the removal and replacement of key leadership personnel, restoration of critical security system elements to service, and refining and recalibrating of alarm system components to enhance reliability,” it said. “Through multiple corrective measures, daily site-wide alarms have been significantly reduced, and protective force alarm responses have improved.”
Federal officials have recommended ending a contract with a security company two months after three protesters reached the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex. (Photo courtesy of NNSA/B&W Y-12)
Note: This story was last updated at 10:41 a.m. Oct. 1.
Two months after an unprecedented security breach, federal officials have recommended ending a contract with guard company WSI Oak Ridge at the Y-12 National Security Complex.
In a brief letter Friday, the National Nuclear Security Administration said it has had “grave concerns” about the ability of WSI Oak Ridge and managing contractor B&W Y-12 to “effectively perform physical security functions at Y-12″ after the July 28 intrusion by three anti-nuclear weapons activists.
Federal officials said B&W Y-12 should assume direct responsibility for protective force operations as early as it can. B&W Y-12 manages and operates Y-12 for the NNSA, a separate U.S. Department of Energy agency, and the company will decide whether to end the WSI contract.
“They will have to figure out what that transition looks like,” NNSA Public Affairs Director Josh McConaha said.
B&W Y-12 officials were not able to immediately respond to the NNSA recommendation on Friday afternoon.
WSI Oak Ridge, also known as Wackenhut Services and G4S Government Solutions, now provides about 500 security guards at Y-12. The company has been the security contractor at the plant, which makes parts for every weapon in the nation’s nuclear arsenal, since 2000.
While recommending a contract termination for WSI, the NNSA has given B&W Y-12 a one-month contract extension. The B&W contract had been set to expire Sunday.
On Aug. 10, B&W Y-12 was notified that it could lose its contract. That “show cause” notice gave the contractor 30 days to explain why its contract should not be terminated.
“While we recognize that both B&W Y-12 and WSI-OR have undertaken corrective actions, neither these actions nor the response to the show cause notice are enough, at this point, to fully resolve the issues,” Jill Y. Albaugh, NNSA Production Office contracting officer, said in the Friday letter.
Although B&W Y-12’s response to the show cause was not deemed sufficient, McConaha said discussions continue between federal officials and that contractor.
“It was clear that we did not need to wait for that process to wrap up regarding WSI,” he said, although he didn’t give more information.
Contractor WSI Oak Ridge, which could lose its contract, has provided security personnel at the Y-12 National Security Complex since 2000, and there are now about 500 guards at the 811-acre plant.
Albaugh made the recommendation to end the WSI contract in the Friday letter, which was written to B&W Y-12 President and General Manager Charles G. Spencer. She said it would assure the best performance of physical security operations and help transition to a new consolidated management contract at Y-12 and the Pantex Plant near Amarillo, Texas.
“This decision comes after the top leadership of WSI at Y-12 were removed and are no longer welcome at DOE sites,” an NNSA statement said. “The officers associated with the incident were fired, demoted, or suspended without pay. Additionally, three federal officials with security oversight responsibilities were reassigned.”
On Aug. 31, B&W Y-12 notified WSI that its contract could be terminated “for default” if the company didn’t take action to address security concerns, including the July security breach and an incident on Aug. 29, when a federal inspector allegedly found papers in a patrol vehicle that weren’t supposed to be shared. The papers included answers to a test scheduled to be given to guards as part of an investigation after the security breach and a copy of a test designed to quiz a random sample of a few dozen guards on policies and procedures.
WSI later announced that it had investigated the incident and found that its employees hadn’t intended to do anything wrong.
On Friday, WSI Oak Ridge Public Affairs Manager Courtney Henry said the company hadn’t received official notification of the NNSA and DOE recommendation to terminate its contract.
Federal officials have repeated an August statement by Energy Secretary Steven Chu that the Y-12 security breach was completely unacceptable.
“The security of our nation’s nuclear material is the department’s most important responsibility, and we have no tolerance for federal or contractor personnel who cannot or will not do their jobs,” the NNSA statement said.
It said NNSA and DOE have taken strong and decisive action to fix the problems that led to the security breach and are reviewing security operations at all levels from contractors to federal management to the security model itself.
“The final review in that series will begin shortly when the secretary asks observers outside the department to analyze the current model for protection of nuclear materials and explore additional options for protecting these sites,” the statement said.
One review by the DOE Office of Health, Safety, and Security has been completed. The classified report was delivered to Chu this week. It reinforced the seriousness of the incident, and it will help improve security at Y-12 and across the department, the NNSA statement said.
McConaha said there is no timeline for determining whether to end the B&W Y-12 contract. However, there is an early November goal to announce an award that would combine the management and operations contracts at Y-12 and Pantex.
McConaha said he couldn’t confirm details on the bidders.
During the July 28 security breach, three activists allegedly sneaked into Y-12 before dawn, cut through fences with bolt cutters, evaded guards, and spray-painted slogans and splashed human blood on the Highly Enriched Uranium Materials Facility, where bomb-grade uranium is stored. It’s the nation’s primary storehouse for enriched uranium.
The three protesters—Greg Boertje-Obed, Megan Rice, and Michael R. Walli—face a Feb. 26, 2013, trial in U.S. District in Knoxville on federal charges of property destruction, property depredation, and trespassing.
The intrusion has led to a string of staff changes in federal and contractor work forces, a series of investigations, a reassignment of the protective forces contract from NNSA to B&W Y-12, a temporary halt in nuclear operations, and congressional hearings.
Mike Turner
The chair of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Strategic Forces has introduced legislation that would put the military in charge of security of nuclear weapons and special nuclear materials at certain federal sites, including the Y-12 National Security Complex.
The legislation is in response to the unprecedented July 28 security breach at Y-12, according to a press release from U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, an Ohio Republican.
Security at Y-12, including security systems and personnel, has been provided by contractors B&W Y-12 and WSI Oak Ridge.
Note: This story was updated at 9:58 a.m. Sept. 19.
WSI Oak Ridge workers did not intend to do anything wrong when test questions associated with a federal inspection were distributed to employees in August, the company said in a statement Tuesday.
The test questions and other information were allegedly found in a patrol vehicle on Aug. 29. They were part of a federal investigation after the July 28 security breach at the Y-12 National Security Complex, and they were not supposed to be shared, a U.S. Department of Energy official said earlier this month.
In its statement Tuesday, WSI Oak Ridge said its investigation, which used independent legal counsel, found that the distribution of the papers was not meant to help employees that could have been tested.
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