Thread regarding 3M layoffs

WSJ: 3M Agrees to Pay Nearly $10 Million Over Sale of Products to Iran

Treasury’s sanctions enforcer said a 3M subsidiary sold products to a German reseller knowing they were destined for an Iranian customer.

WSJ, Sept. 21, 2023:

3M has agreed to pay more than $9.6 million to settle a probe by the U.S. Treasury Department into sales to an Iranian entity controlled by the country’s law enforcement forces.

Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said that between September 2016 and September 2018, a 3M subsidiary allegedly sold reflective license plate sheeting to a sanctioned Iranian entity, police foundation Bonyad Taavon Naja. The sales occurred even after outside due diligence staff had flagged potential problems, OFAC said.

3M came forward to disclose the conduct and cooperated throughout the investigation, OFAC said, adding the company had fired several employees and cut off a Germany-based intermediary involved in the sales.

3M East, the Switzerland-based subsidiary, sent 43 shipments of the product to the German reseller knowing the products were destined for a customer in Iran, the agency alleged. The transactions covered by the alleged violations were valued at around $10 million.

The agency added that one U.S. person employed by a 3M overseas subsidiary was involved in the sales. In total, the settlement covers 54 alleged violations of sanctions placed on Iran.

3M in response to the settlement said that the company in 2019 determined a small number of employees had committed these violations, but that it promptly disclosed the matter to the government and disclosed it in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission that year.

The company said it conducted an investigation, had cooperated with the U.S. government, “and took appropriate corrective actions, including personnel actions and policy changes for future compliance.”

3M last month agreed to pay more than $6.5 million to settle an SEC probe after marketing employees of a China-based subsidiary took healthcare officials on secret tourist excursions to the U.S. and Australia, in violation of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

@ctkg+1ovIyONH - The criminals are not limited to the president and military leaders. Members of the military who's actions in any way contributed to the injury or death of innocent men, women and children around the world are also criminals, and should be prosecuted.

The criminals are not limited to the senior executive team. Those who manufactured things that caused illness are also criminals, and should be prosecuted.

Let’s play a game. I wonder how many people have been investigated by the Ethics and Compliance department and lived to see another day?

Please feel free to share your horror story!

It amazes me how many people have been terminated for E&C volitions and yet more and more people within this organization continue to get caught for the same actions…. Rinse and repeat.

Keep up the good work

Anyone else’s going bye bye this week? I can think of one individual we are all waiting for up in the Northeast :)

These “alleged crimes”…. Unfortunately, they did occur and continue to take place within the Medical Division. To my knowledge, nobody that was terminated because of E&C violations was issued criminal charges l

The alleged criminal activity at 3M Medical Sales is intolerable. If investigators substantiate the allegations, termination followed by law enforcement action would be required. There are no excuses for committing crimes against your company or your customers.

Most recently, researchers estimated that exposure to some PFAS may have played a role in about 6.5 million deaths in the U.S. from 1999-2018, primarily those caused by cancer and heart disease.

3M Company Leadership & Management coupled with the 3M employees who manufactured things that exposed human beings to PFAS are culpable for a portion of the 6.5 million deaths in the U.S.

Shameful.

How about having a guy like this in the company. Wonder how he skipped through the vetting process when we acquired KCI.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2002-07-30-0207300143-story.html

I can give more examples of unethical behavior at 3M than I can of any other place I’ve worked. I have encountered shocking behavior while there. Not surprised by anything.

It is only a job… nothing more.

Treat others as you want to be treated.

☮️

Looks like all the negative likes are from the KCI employees that were terminated or sadly still here breaking the rules. Disliking posts isn’t going to save you losers! Good riddance and don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

• mae alsalama

Responding to @2wxz+1ovIyON: I think Acelity started under Inge and he made the call to pass before exiting as CEO. Second hand of course, but I heard MR and IT had a discussion about it with MR pushing for the deal and IT pushing back against it. Seems like this could be true given all the other major blemishes on MR’s record - he can’t buy growth, he can’t cut his way to growth, he can’t reorganize his way to growth, etc.

Probably Stark and Sunshine related.

What kind of behavior?

I think another one was taken out today in A7 for the same naughty behavior.

Red Wing plant needs clean out starting with HR, then lower management. Ethical corruption is disgusting here.

So many stories and instances of these behaviors and terminations taking place within MSD, the list goes on and on. The last major one was under RSL CB in A7 who lost about 7 reps and 1 manager as a result of these unethical practices. CB must have been feeling the heat so he fled as of last week. Off to the next company to corrupt, mismanage, lie, and deceive. You won’t be missed!

Can't put the KCI acquisition debacle on MR's plate as that was vetted and approved under Inge's regime. But the lack of leadership and enforcement of E&C principles definitely points to the continued erosion of integrity throughout the company. In another example of 3M's M&A team not looking deep enough, the only thing more questionable than KCI's numbers and technology claims was their desire to leverage 3M's reputation and training to "mature" their sales associates. The sales team openly cheered the spin announcement and worked their plans to "endure" 3M's presence until they could get back to "business as usual" practices. The unwritten KCI sales playbook revolves around using booze, gifts, and lots of winking and "I never witnessed that" tactics.

The comment about Moe N brought back memories. I'm trying to remember the name of the exec who roasted Moe in his retirement town hall by thanking him for his service and his reputation as a "lovable tyrant...but that's not fair to Moe. He was never lovable." Cut to Moe with that frozen cake eating smile on his face.

Manipulating expenses to cover the cost of bribing doctors to use KCI NPWT, providing not for human use sample products as free goods to make doctors happy and offset cost. Just some of the little things to get the business. Let’s not forget messing with and stealing customer inventory to generate additional sales. All prime examples of the funny business.

Let me tell you, I witnessed this behavior first hand and was encouraged by my former manager to do shady things to generate sales up until I was let go last August due to the restructuring that took place within the healthcare business group. I am very happy I am no longer with the firm.

RSL in A6 led by the former Baseball player MC in the Southeast and the illustrious A9 RSL led by TH in the Northeast. Great culture guys!

I am not surprised. My time in the military taught me when unethical behavior and bad leadership at the top is condoned it will trickle down to all levels.

Where are A6 and A9???

It seems like most of the KCi soldiers at the bottom are getting taken out, but none of the upper managment team that are most likely directing and condoning this type of behavior. I wonder how the upper and middle managers are being protected as a result of all this. They should be found just as guilty for letting this take place knowingly under their watch.

The most pathetic part is this is not the first time this has happened within MSD. There have been many reps and a few managers terminated for the same behavior over the past few years from the KCI acquisition. The best part this company can do is keep shoving more and more ethics trainings yet the puppets keep listening to the masters and try and beat the system to generate some additional sales. I’m not going to go into specifics as far as the violations but they are do not reflect the internal code of conduct or even the legal system.

Is it another bad acquisition KCI? Sounds like another disaster following Aearo.

Lesson learnt- you cannot buy growth

Roman should get the boot and sent packing for the corrupt KCI acquisition that he approved, that 3M way over paid for. The board should terminate him for cause and make the New Healtcare CEO temporary CEO of the company and delay the sift spin and seperation until all of the corrupt KCI leaders and sales reps are booted.

Those KCI folks are bad news. Doesn’t surprise me.