Retaliation Claims Text Size:

Employees of all walks of life get laid off or fired from their jobs everyday and for a variety of reasons. Sometimes a worker doesn't meet quotas or steals from his employer. Sometimes there are legitimate business reasons, like downsizing to lower expenses.

Just as there are legitimate reasons for layoffs, workers often lose their jobs for wrongful and even illegal reasons. Getting fired because of your gender is a good example of unlawful employment discrimination. It's also illegal to get fired because you:

• Did something you were legally entitled to do
• Stood up against your employer's illegal activity

Retaliation

Generally, you can't be laid off or fired because you exercised your rights under state or federal laws. Often, retaliation claims come up in the discrimination area. For example, it's illegal for your employer to discriminate against you because of your age, gender or disability.

These same laws make it illegal for your employer to terminate your employment (retaliate) because you:

• Participated in a discrimination action against your employer. This includes filing a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), or equivalent state agency, testifying as a witness and assisting in an investigation by the EEOC
• Opposed your employer's discrimination, such as by threatening to file a charge with the EEOC; or telling a co-worker, attorney, or supervisor about the discrimination. Your opposition is protected so long as you have a reasonable, good faith belief that the employer's conduct is unlawful

Retaliation isn't limited to discrimination laws. For example, you can't be laid off because you requested a leave of absence under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or for filing a claim for worker's compensation benefits.

Whistle Blowing

Whistle blowing is very similar to retaliation. It's when you report illegal activities by your employer to a government agency or law enforcement. Various state and federal laws protect you from being fired or laid off because you blew the whistle on your employer. For example:

• The False Claims Act protects workers who report when employers defraud the US government, such as by overcharging it for goods sold under a contract
• The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) prevents your employer from retaliating against you because you reported unsafe working conditions to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
• Under the Sarbanes Oxley Act, your employer can't retaliate against you for reporting violations of the federal securities laws
• The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) lets you report your employer's failure to pay the proper wages
• Most if not all states have whistle blower laws that protect workers in all sorts of fields and professions, as well as general whistle blower laws that protect employees who report any violation of any federal, state or local law

As with opposing discrimination, your whistle blowing activity will be protected so long as you have a good faith and reasonable belief that your employer is doing something illegal, or not doing something the law requires it to do.

Questions for Your Attorney

• My employer told me I'm being laid off because of "poor performance." I think it's because I've been complaining about unsafe working conditions. Do I have a case for retaliation?
• Can my employer fire me for filing a complaint with the EEOC and the EEOC finds that my employer wasn't discriminating against me?
• Will my employer have to pay for my attorney's fees if I file a retaliation law suit?

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