Your rights under the whistleblower laws

The United States Department of Labor has established whistleblower laws to ensure that employees who expose ongoing fraud or safety issues in their workplace are not retaliated against. There are certain requirements for you to exercise your rights under the whistleblower laws that you should be aware of.

What the whistleblower laws cover

If you find specific occupational or health hazards in your workplace and report them, this type of action would be protected.  OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) also states "These rights include complaining to OSHA and seeking an OSHA inspection, participating in an OSHA inspection, and participating or testifying in any proceeding related to an OSHA inspection."

In addition to this, there are certain circumstances where you may also have the right to refuse to work. This right is only in very egregious circumstances where you are at serious risk for injury as a result of a company's failure to comply with an OSHA regulation.  This also requires that you prove that you have brought the safety issue to the attention of your employer and they have not taken steps to remedy the problem.

How to know if you have been harmed

In most cases, for you to file a suit under the whistleblower laws, there are specific retaliatory actions that you must prove have occurred. These include (but are not limited to) intimidation, threats from your employer, demotion (without other cause),
denying overtime or being passed over for a promotion. As an employee, you must be able to prove that any of these actions was a result of your whistle blowing activities and not a result of some other workplace changes.

File on time or lose your rights

Once an adverse action has taken place as a result of your whistle-blowing, you have only a specific amount of time to file a complaint with OSHA.  This may be as little as thirty days or as many as one hundred and eighty days. It is a good idea to contact an attorney who specializes in employment law if you decide to file a complaint (although you may do so without an attorney).

Filing a claim

Filing a whistleblower complaint must be done as soon as possible. This may be done online by using the OSHA Claim form, via mail or fax by filling out a form and returning it or by contacting the appropriate OSHA office and filing a report by phone.

If you have filed an OSHA report against your employer and you believe that you have been the victim of retaliation as a result of that report, it is important that you know your rights under the whistleblower laws. In addition to federal statutes you should also find out if your state has additional protections.

Image credit: By Lulzpop (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons