Rivian's Illinois Factory is Reportedly A Pretty Dangerous Place to Work

by Chris Teague

Published: October 23rd, 2024

rivian s illinois factory is reportedly a pretty dangerous place to work

Many automakers operate manufacturing facilities around the world and have to manage health and safety for tens of thousands of employees. Rivian only has one factory, but its track record for safety is one of the worst in the industry. The company has seen more “serious” safety violations than any other automaker since the start of 2023.

Some of the injuries sound pretty serious, too. Automotive News reported that the facility has recorded an employee with a cracked skull, a back laceration requiring surgery, an amputated finger, and a foot fracture, among others. There have also allegedly been injuries not reported to the government. One person told Bloomberg News that they vomited bile with a “Rivian Blue” color after working in the paint shop without a respirator.

Over the past 21 months, Rivian has racked up initial citations for 16 serious violations. In comparison, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) gave significantly larger automakers like Toyota, Honda, Volvo, Nissan, GM, and Ford no more than 10 each, while VW, BMW, and Subaru had none.

A Rivian statement said, “The health and safety of everyone at Rivian is our top priority, and we’re proud of our strong safety record – which continues to improve year over year.” Despite that, the company’s past and current employees tell a different story, one of a struggling automaker willing to cut costs at the expense of safety.

[Images: Rivian]

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Chris Teague

Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.

More by Chris Teague

Comments

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3 of 16 comments

Jonathan on Oct 24, 2024
If Rivian thinks so little of their employees safety, then maybe it's time to shut them down, permanently if need be. Perhaps the employees should get together and file a class action lawsuit.

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Crazymonkey on Oct 24, 2024
I'm a co-founder of a software company, and I'm here to tell when corporations say "worker safety is our top priority, " it's b.s. the top priority is profit, bc return on shareholder investment is the only priority. So sick of that meaningless corporate HR schleck.

1 Reply
- 28-Cars-Later on Oct 24, 2024
  I believe you and agree, but our line of work seldom involves risks of serious injury for employees/peers. After all if you fail to catch an exception, it isn't going to fall and break someone's foot :D (cue the laugh track).
  
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