Normal, Illinois — A recent report from Bloomberg shares a history of serious health and safety violations at automaker Rivian’s plant in Normal, Illinois, including a former employee claiming to have experienced “Rivian Blue” bile after painting R1T pickup trucks without PPE.
The electric vehicle manufacturer has specifically received citations for 16 initial violations in the past 21 months from the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as well as a following two serious violations.
According to Bloomberg’s report—which merges both government findings and interviews with current and past employees—Rivian employees stated that they were “being put in harms way as the company ramps up production of delivery vans for Amazon as well as $100,000 luxury SUVs.”
While the automaker commented to Bloomberg that almost all of the initial violations OSHA labeled as serious were ultimately downgraded in severity or dismissed, employee interviews highlight, in detail, the safety issues they have personally experienced.
Notably, 20-year-old Addison Zwanzig told Bloomberg that within weeks of beginning to work at Rivian in July 2023, she complained of dizziness, alongside other symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, leading to weight loss. After requesting that her supervisor provide her with a respirator—which she reportedly saw other colleagues using—her request was declined.
By September, Zwanzig said she was seeing doctors regarding what she described as blue-tinted vomit. Following this symptom, Rivian then provided a respirator the following month and further provided personal protective equipment (PPE) to other employees.
Even with these serious health and safety complaints, OSHA has noted that since the company began inspections at Rivian in 2021, the automaker “has improved its safety and health team and are very cooperative with the OSHA process.”
Rivian further reported to Electrek that it has committees in place that regularly review factory processes and make recommendations on how to improve them.
Still, other employees told Bloomberg about instances experiencing skull fractures and amputated fingers.
To see the full report, click here.
