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Q: I work as an activities director for a convalescent hospital. In an investigation conducted by the State Department of Health Services, I was asked by my employer to state something which was not true. Can my employer legally fire me for refusing to lie?A: No. Employees provide their time and services to the employer in exchange for a mutually agreed salary. However, employees have the right to refuse to perform certain work if the said conduct violates the law. Employees who lawfully exercise their rights, either by refusing to violate the law or reporting violations, are protected under our system.
What is a Whistleblower?
A whistleblower is usually an employee who discloses information to a government or law enforcement agency because the employee reasonably believes that there is a violation or non-compliance with a state or federal law. The applicable laws are usually those designed to protect the health and safety of the public. Some of these examples include environmental laws and industry regulations pertaining to airlines, trucking, public transportation, and health care.
To encourage workers to report violations of these laws, a whistleblower statute was enacted. The law prohibits the employer in any way from preventing an employee to disclose information to government or law enforcement agency. Whistleblower complaints focus on conduct prohibited by a specific law or conduct that may cause damage to public safety, waste tax dollars, or violate public trust in an honest, accountable government. Whistleblower complaints are usually not about employer's retaliation for complaints about personal dislikes or issues that affect only a single person.
If an employee reports a violation or noncompliance with a state or federal law and the employer subsequently fired, suspended, demoted or in some way mistreated the employee, the employer may additionally be held liable for retaliation. Although whistleblower and retaliation claims are often discussed interchangeably, and claims brought by whistleblowers generally involve retaliation by an employer, there is a difference between the two types of claims. A whistleblower claim will usually involve a retaliation claim, but not necessarily the other way around.
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