US Coast Guard promises reforms after members say they don’t feel safe

U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan is pushing for reforms across the service after a blistering accountability and transparency report found it is plagued by a toxic workplace environment and sexual harassment.

Fagan said the report makes clear there is a “disconnect” between the desired workplace and the experiences Coast Guard members are having, which she said undermines readiness, creates harm and erodes trust in leadership.

“We each must ensure every Coast Guard workplace has a climate that deters harmful behaviors and gives everyone the positive Coast Guard experience they expect and deserve,” she wrote in an email to senior officials.

Fagan directed her senior officers to prepare new training courses to better educate the Coast Guard on the principles of the service, as well as developing new policies and frameworks to ensure accountability for service members who report sexual harassment.

A Coast Guard accountability and transparency review team, authorized in July, traveled across the country to meet with service members about the harassment and workplace concerns. They also studied previous surveys of the Coast Guard workplace climate.

The report shows sexual harassment cases have spiked since 2017, and there continues to be a lack accountability, with just 61 of 113 reported cases from fiscal 2021 being substantiated.

Researchers conclude in the report that the Coast Guard must do more to foster an inclusive and welcoming workplace environment.

“Acknowledging this broken trust is an important first step in reestablishing it. However, a
report will not in and of itself rebuild trust,” they wrote. “Building and earning trust will come through the actions of Coast Guard leaders at all levels of the organization.

“It must start with the Coast Guard providing opportunities for victims to tell their story. Current and future leaders will also need to understand our history and why it is vital to affect culture change.”

The Coast Guard has come under fire for years over accusations it has ignored and mishandled harassment allegations across the service.

A Senate subcommittee launched an investigation into the Coast Guard in September after CNN shined another light on the issue.

CNN found the Coast Guard concluded an investigation, known as “Operation Fouled Anchor,” in 2020 into whether the Coast Guard Academy mishandled reports of rape and sexual assault from the late 1980s until 2006.

The internal investigation was kept secret until it was exposed by the news outlet. Coast Guard members have expressed more frustration with the military service following the CNN report.