By ELIZABETH WARMERDAM
Courthouse News Service
LOS
ANGELES (CN) - Curtiss-Wright fired a longtime machine operator for
refusing to lie about its practice of falsifying safety tests for
commercial and military aircraft parts, the former employee claims in
court.
Martin Caraballo sued Metal Improvement Company (MIC) and its parent company, Curtiss-Wright Corporation, in Federal Court.
Caraballo
claims he was fired after he told an MIC attorney that if he were
asked, he would tell the truth in a whistleblower lawsuit about the
company's practice and encouragement of skirting required safety tests
for commercial and military aircraft parts.
Caraballo worked for the defendants for 35 years, he says in his wrongful-termination lawsuit.
MIC's
primary business is "shot peening" parts, which "involves shooting
round metal balls at a designated part to reduce imperfections in the
part and strengthen the metal of the part so that it does not fail under
stress. In order to achieve this process, MIC's customers designate the
type of shot that is to be used on a particular part, and the desired
intensity at which the shot must strike the metal surface of the part. A
customers' designation of the shot and intensity is called a
specification," Caraballo says in the complaint.
Customers can
designate certain parts as "Frozen Planning," which means "the type of
shot and the intensity called for in the specification must be followed.
In addition, many of the Frozen Planning specifications further
designate a part as 'Flight Safety' and/or 'War Critical.' Flight Safety
means the particular part is critical to the flight safety of the
aircraft where it will ultimately be installed. War Critical means the
aircraft has been designated by the government to be used in war,"
according to the complaint.
MIC uses an "Almen Test Strip" to
provide its customers with confirmation that the proper shot and
intensity were used. Federal Aviation Administration inspectors employed
by MIC are supposed to be physically present during the shot peening
process to determine that it is done correctly, Caraballo says in the
complaint.
Caraballo's claims that he and other machine operators
were told to fake compliance with customers' specifications by bending
test strips instead of putting the strips through the proper process.
Documents were falsified to suggest that inspectors had overseen the
process, Caraballo claims.
"Management at MIC made clear that
superficially appearing to demonstrate compliance was more important
than actual compliance," Caraballo says in the complaint.
Caraballo
claims that on July 9, 2012, a manager told him that his deposition had
been requested for former employee Anthony Jackson's wrongful
termination-whistleblower lawsuit. Caraballo was told to meet with MIC's
attorney, Johnnie James, before being deposed, he says.
"One of
the main issues of the Jackson whistleblower lawsuit was Jackson's claim
that MIC employees wrongfully bent Test Strips to make it appear a part
had been processed in accordance with the specifications," Caraballo
says in the complaint. "Mr. James asked plaintiff if he bent Test
Strips. Plaintiff acknowledged that yes, he and virtually every machine
operator at MIC had been required by MIC to bend Test Strips.
"Mr.
James asked plaintiff other questions about bending the Test Strips and
stated that it would not be good for MIC if plaintiff testified at the
upcoming deposition that Test Strips were bent. Mr. James indicated that
plaintiff should reconsider what he was saying and testify differently.
Plaintiff stated that he would testify truthfully, and if asked, admit
that he and other MIC machine operators were required to bend Test
Strips to make it appear they had accomplished the shot-peening process
and met the specified intensity.
"After telling Mr. James that he
would testify truthfully, plaintiff was told that he was suspended
pending further investigation."
Less than two weeks later, in a
meeting with several MIC managers, Caraballo claims he was asked again
how he would testify in the lawsuit.
"He was instructed by MIC's
management to reconsider his intended testimony. When plaintiff stated
that he would not lie, but would testify honestly and if asked would
admit that he and other employees, including management employees, had
been required to bend Test Strips to falsify compliance, he was informed
by MIC's management that his employment was terminated," according to
the complaint.
Caraballo wants his job back, and punitive damages for wrongful firing and pain and suffering.
He is represented by Jonathan D. Miller with Nye, Peabody, Stirling, Hale & Miller, of Santa Barbara.
Source: http://www.courthousenews.com/2013/07/26/59721.htm