Thousands of Hanford workers told to stay home for a 4th week because of coronavirus

Hanford nuclear reservation workers were told Thursday that most of them should stay home for a fourth week because of the new coronavirus pandemic.

But contractors are making plans for how the eventual ramp up of work will be done.

About 10 to 15 percent of the site’s 11,000 workers have continued to report to the 580-square-mile nuclear reservation near Richland to do work that is essential to protect the public, workers and the environment.

About 60 percent of Hanford workers are teleworking to support on-site activities.

The economic stimulus bill approved by Congress and signed into law by President Trump allowed the Department of Energy to revise the contracts of companies that do most of the work at Hanford to continue to pay their workers and most of their subcontractor workers with federal funds.

Paying workers up to 40 hours a week, even if they cannot telecommute, ensures they can continue to provide for their families and maintains a stable workforce.

“On a weekly basis, we will continue to evaluate the multiple factors under consideration that will lead to a decision to begin a phased, structured and methodical process toward the resumption of site operations,” said Brian Vance, DOE manager for Hanford.

Some contractors at the site have told workers they are working on the planning that will be needed to ramp up work.

Hanford produced plutonium for the nation’s nuclear weapons program from World War II through the Cold War.

About $2.5 billion is spent annually to clean up radioactive and hazardous chemical waste contaminating the site. Workers are being paid as work has dropped to just critical operations with the already budgeted money.

DOE has not reported any COVID-19 cases among Hanford workers.

This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 10:56 AM.