What is a Whistleblower?
A “Whistleblower” is an employee who discloses information to a government or law enforcement agency, a person with authority over the employee, or to another employee with authority to investigate, discover, or correct the violation or noncompliance, or who provides information to or testifies before a public body conducting an investigation, hearing or inquiry, here the employee has reasonable cause to believe that the information discloses:
A violation of a state or federal statute,
A violation or noncompliance with a local, state, or federal rule or regulation, or
Concerning employee safety or health, unsafe working conditions, or work practices in the employee’s employment or place of employment.
A whistleblower can also be an employee who refuses to participate in an activity that would result in a violation of a state or federal statute, or a violation of or noncompliance with a local, state, or federal rule or regulation.
Let’s look at the key concepts around Labor and Employment Attorney
What Protections are afforded to Whistleblowers?
An employer may not make, adopt, or enforce any rule, regulation, or policy preventing an employee from being a whistleblower.
An employer may not retaliate against an employee who is a whistleblower.
An employer may not retaliate against an employee for refusing to participate in an activity that would result in a violation of a state or federal statute or a violation or noncompliance with a state or federal rule or regulation.
An employer may not retaliate against an employee for exercising his or her rights as a whistleblower in any former employment.
Under California Labor Code Section 1102.5, if an employer retaliates against a whistleblower, the employer may be required to reinstate the employee’s employment and work benefits, pay lost wages, and take other steps necessary to comply with the law.
Purpose of Whistleblower Attorneys
Whistleblowers are employees of a business or entity who are witnesses to violations within the organization. External whistleblowers report misconduct or fraud to outside entities such as the media, law enforcement, and watchdog agencies. Whistleblower Attorneys came into being to support the efforts of such individuals in bringing these violations to light.
The whistleblower stands the risk of coming under some heavy pressure, as well as strong retaliation from the persons or entities that stand accused of the misdemeanors. For instance, if an individual has exposed violations carried out at his workplace, his employer may retaliate by firing him with immediate effect. This kind of retaliatory action could be a huge deterrent to people desirous of exposing fraud/ violation. To ensure that no harm comes to the whistleblower and that he/ she does not face any loss from exposing violations/ fraud the law offers complete protection to the individual in such cases.
Contact Our Top Employment Attorneys in California Today
If you have been the victim of any of the aforementioned types of medical malpractice cases, call our experienced Marcarian Law Firm, P.C. Medical Malpractice Attorneys right away to discuss how we can help you recover your damages.
Marcarian Law Firm, P.C. assists in its partnership with an independent public interest law firm, the Whistleblower Legal Defense and Education Fund. Whistleblowers can fill out a secure intake form that allows whistleblowers to submit basic information about their cases on a confidential basis.