This is pathetic. So Blackwater changes it’s name to Xe, yet does absolutely nothing about insuring that it’s management corps is competent? Because obviously, by reading into all of these claims, it looks to me like the leadership on the McArthur sucked. And what really kills me is that Xe probably pays a really kick ass wage for these positions, yet it looks to me like they invested nothing into instilling any kind of management policy or new company philosophy into these folks.
Worse yet, where is the quality control? Obviously this guy D’Alfio is a loser to the ninth degree, and I bet you dollars to doughnuts that he has a record of poor performance on other boats. You would think that a multi-million dollar company like Xe would at least invest the time and effort into ensuring that their captain and management on this boat, are folks they want in charge of such a visual project? Or that because Xe is already skylined, that it would have the business sense to make sure all the pieces of the machine are working properly? Come on folks, this is getting old, and it is time to get on board with doing things right.
On another note, bravo to the crew members that had the courage to stand up to these dorks. That sucks that you had to go through such a crappy ordeal, but if Xe is to learn it’s lessons, it takes folks like you to force them to do what is right and actually hold them accountable. And to me, taking care of your people means actually caring about who you put in charge out there and paying attention to what is happening on these contracts. Leadership, leadership, and leadership…..-Matt
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Sailors on Blackwater anti-piracy ship claim harrassment
05/14/2009
If three pending legal cases are any indication, it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for the Blackwater counterpiracy ship.
The company, now known as Xe, launched the 183-foot vessel McArthur in the fall, saying it was ready to begin patrolling the Gulf of Aden to protect merchant vessels against pirate attacks.
However, legal papers allege that it’s the McArthur’s own crewmen that need protection – from their superior officers.
The picture of life aboard the McArthur that emerges from those documents seems to be ripped from the pages of a pirate yarn of yore: Verbal and physical abuse. Alcohol-fueled outbursts. Racial harassment and retaliation. And the punishment for loose lips: being clapped in irons.
One former crew member says that on the orders of the captain, he was thrown to the deck and handcuffed in retaliation for speaking to a newspaper reporter. He is suing for false imprisonment, saying he was unlawfully detained by being “placed in irons.”
Another crew member, who is black, says that he was subjected to racial epithets from the chief engineer and that when he complained, the captain did nothing about the harassment and retaliated by giving the seaman a poor evaluation.
A third man, the ship’s chief steward, says he was fired after he submitted a written statement to his superiors documenting the hostile work environment and racial harassment aboard the vessel.
Company officials had hoped the McArthur would help take up the slack from the loss of their big diplomatic security contract in Iraq. That contract was not renewed after a 2007 shooting incident in Baghdad left 17 Iraqis dead and spurred a series of lawsuits against the company, which is based in Moyock, N.C.