An organization may want to retaliate against a whistleblower by taking one or more unfavorable actions. This can be illegal if the whistleblowing was a protected activity.
Elements of a retaliative action:
(1) A person is working for an organization.
(2) The person was a whistleblower against the organization.
(3) The whistleblowing is legally-protected.
(4) The organization did one or more unfavorable actions against the person with whistleblowing the motivation or contributory factor.
Unfavorable actions may include:
(1) being fired or laid off
(2) demotion
(3) denial of overtime or promotion
(4) disciplinary action
(5) denial of benefits
(6) failure to hire or rehire
(7) intimidation
(8) reassignment affecting prospects for promotion
(9) reducing pay or number of hours worked
To be protected the person must report the action within a time period after the action.
