On September 5, 2013, the United States Department of Labor, Office of Public Affairs issued a press release announcing that one of its enforcement arms, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), ordered reinstatement and awarded damages to a former employee of Signature Condominiums, LLC. Signature Condominiums, LLC, does business as The Signature at MGM Grand, which is a subsidiary of MGM Resorts International. The Signature at MGM Grand is a condominium-hotel, specializing in high-end condominium units that can be rented as hotel suites when not occupied by the owner. The Signature at MGM Grand is located in Las Vegas.
The employee, whose identity is not provided in the press release, disclosed that employees were engaging in actions that violated the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act was passed in 2002 and established and enhanced requirements for publicly-traded companies boards of directors and management, as well as public accounting firms providing services for such companies. The Act requires, among other things, that individuals must certify the accuracy of financial information. It was passed in response to corporate collapses and scandals, including Enron, Tyco International, Adelphia, and WorldCom. The Act has whistleblower protections built into it.
Specifically, the individual disclosed that employees of The Signature at MGM Grand were engaging in forecasting. Forecasting involved the employees providing expected revenue and occupancy rates for the condominiums to potential buyers. This type of activity is restricted to security brokers, and the employees in question were not duly-licensed as security brokers. The individual reported the activities to OSHA, which investigated the charges. After the individual reported the activities, The Signature at MGM Grand terminated the employment relationship.
OSHA ordered The Signature at MGM Grand to reinstate the individual’s employment. It also awarded the individual monetary compensation in the amount of $325,000, ordered The Signature at MGM Grand to delete negative information from the individual’s personnel record, and ordered it to post notices regarding employees’ whistleblower rights under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. News releases have indicated that The Signature at MGM Grand is expected to appeal the ruling. The appeal, however, will not stay the enforcement of OSHA’s order.
OSHA’s order highlights the breadth of remedial and other actions that are afforded to prosecuting agencies under whistleblower protection laws. While a wide variety of whistleblower protection laws exist, including provisions in Sarbanes-Oxley Act; Occupational Safety & Health Act; Clean Air Act, Safe Drinking Water Act; and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation & Liability Act, they all have several features in common. The provisions protect employees who report violations, who initiate proceedings under any of the Acts in question, who testify at proceedings, or who assist in investigations.
The provisions generally also provide that any individual who believes he or she has been retaliated against for any of the aforementioned actions can report the violation to OSHA. Depending upon the Act under which the violation occurred, the employee has thirty, sixty, ninety or one hundred eighty days to report the retaliation action. Upon receipt of a complaint, OSHA notifies the employer. If conciliation efforts are unsuccessful, OSHA will then move to an investigation phase. If OSHA determines that there has been a violation, it can order reinstatement, payment of back wages, and reimbursement to the employee for attorneys’ fees. It can also order additional actions it finds necessary to provide relief. More detailed information about the various Acts and whistleblower protections they afford, as well as OSHA’s role in whistleblower investigations, can be found at http://www.dol.gov/compliance/laws/comp-whistleblower.htm.
If you are in a retaliatory situation due to your raising of concerns about practices by your employer and live in Mississippi, Barrett Law, PLLC can help you understand your rights and the protections to which you may be entitled. Our firm has extensive helping individuals obtain the protections to which they are entitled. Contact us today at (800) 707-9577 to schedule an initial consultation.