Witnessing wrongdoing at work is easy, and it is often unavoidable. You may have nothing to do with the wrong that occurs, but there you are, as it’s happening or after it has happened, when evidence of it is in plain view. You’re in the unenviable position of deciding what to do next. You know that what you see is not right, but you are afraid of losing your job and uncertain what your next step should be because whistleblower policies and laws are confusing. You need help, and a whistleblower protection attorney may be able to help you decide what to do next.
The success or failure of many whistleblower complaints depends upon how the whistleblower goes about reporting the wrongdoing they have witnessed. It’s not an easy task to do it right, because there are different laws that protect public and private employees and protection is often only available to individuals who follow the proper procedures for reporting misconduct. Whether you work for a private company or a government agency or contractor, the very first thing you must do before you blow the whistle is to make sure that you know the procedure for reporting wrongdoing that applies to your situation. If you need help, an attorney may be able to help you understand what a whistleblower policy says about what you must do. If you interpret the policy incorrectly and embark on a course of action that is improper, such as jumping the chain of command, you may jeopardize your ability to claim protection as a whistleblower.
In addition to helping you know how to expose wrongdoing properly, a whistleblower protection attorney may be able to help you obtain protection if you lost your job or suffered retaliation after you refused to participate in an illegal activity. Sometimes you don’t have the opportunity to read and understand your company’s policy or the applicable laws before you do something that causes you to lose your job. Workers are sometimes caught in the difficult position of having to choose between doing their job as they have been asked to do it and breaking one or more laws. For example, a truck driver might be asked to make a trip that would violate the laws that govern work and rest periods for truckers. In that moment the trucker must choose between obeying their boss and breaking the law or obeying the law and almost certainly losing their job. If you decide to follow what the law says and you get fired, meet with a whistleblower protection attorney to assess whether you may be able to prevail in a case against your former employer. You’re not likely to want your job back, but you may be able to recover lost wages and prevent your former employer from sabotaging your future employment seeking efforts.
Those are just two of the many reasons a whistleblower protection attorney is a powerful ally both before and after you blow the whistle or experience retaliation. To learn more about the protections available to whistleblowers, call the Mississippi Whistleblower Attorneys of Barrett Law PLLC today at 1 (800) 707-9577 for an initial consultation.