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The Complete Guide to Whistleblower Labor Laws

Written by Staff Writer

The Complete Guide to Whistleblower Labor Laws

A whistleblower is defined as someone who informs the authorities about a person or organization engaged in illegal or unacceptable behavior. OSHA's whistleblower laws protect employees from employer retaliation, such as dismissal, discipline, harassment, and demotion. These are the important things to know about whistleblower labor laws.

Certain federal acts protect whistleblowers from retaliation. Examples of these include:

For a full list of OSHA-enforced statutes that contain whistleblower provisions, visit whistleblowers.gov.

Who Can File a Complaint?

If employees believe a violation has occurred, they have the legal right to request an OSHA inspection of their workplace. Employees can also file a complaint if they believe that their safety is in danger. An attorney or an authorized representative, such as a labor organization, social worker, member of the clergy, nonprofit group, spouse or government official, can also file a complaint on an employee's behalf.

The Acts above protect applicable whistleblowers' rights to the following activities:

  • Initiating, testifying, assisting or participating in a proceeding
  • Violation complaint

The Acts protect applicable whistleblowers from the following employer retaliation:

  • Firing or laying off
  • Blacklisting
  • Demoting
  • Denying overtime or promotion
  • Discipline
  • Denial of benefits
  • Failure to hire or rehire
  • Intimidation
  • Harassment
  • Threats
  • Reassignment affecting prospects for promotion
  • Reducing pay or hours

How to File a Complaint with OSHA

OSHA accepts whistleblower complaints via letter, telephone and walk-in meeting. You can contact OSHA at 1-800-321-6742 or visit www.osha.gov to find a local OSHA office near you. You can also complete the online form provided on the complaint website.

Filing Requirements

Each whistleblower law requires complaints to be filed within a certain time period of the alleged retaliatory action. These time periods vary from 30 to 180 days, depending upon what statute the action falls under.

The following Acts require employees to report a discrimination complaint within 30 days after the occurrence: OSH Act, CAA, CERCLA, SWDA, FWDA, FWPCA, SDWA and TSCA.

ISCA requires employees to report a discrimination complaint within 60 days after the occurrence.

The following Acts require employees to report a discrimination complaint within 90 days after the occurrence: AIR21, SOX and AHERA.

The following Acts require employees to report a discrimination complaint within 180 days of the occurrence: STAA, ERA, PSIA, FRSA, NTSSA and CPSIA.

Employees or their representatives must provide the following information to OSHA to determine the severity of a hazard:

  • How many employees work at the site and how many are exposed to the hazard?
  • How and when are workers exposed?
  • What work is performed in the unsafe or unhealthful area?
  • Have employees been informed or trained about the hazardous conditions?
  • What process and/or operation is involved?
  • How often and for how long do employees work at the task that leads to their exposure?
  • Have any attempts been made to correct the problem?

Penalties

After receiving a timely complaint, OSHA will contact the employer. If no reconciliation is met, OSHA will conduct an investigation. If OSHA finds valid complaints under the OSH Act, AHERA or ISCA, it will refer the problem to the Solicitor's Office to take legal action.

Meritless complaints are dismissed. For those with merit, OSHA will issue a letter to the employer, requiring he or she amends any of the following committed offenses: withholding whistleblower wage or firing whistleblower. OSHA also reimburses the whistleblower for any attorney or expert witness fees.

Whistleblowers protected by STAA have the Solicitor's Office conduct litigation, though sometimes a private party will. The other Acts usually have private parties conduct litigation.

Employees who file false, trivial or deliberately malicious complaints can be fined up to $1,000 under AIR21, SOX, PSIA, FRSA, NTSSA and CPSIA.

Objections to OSHA's determination can be made to the Department of Labor's Office of Administrative Law Judges (OSLJ).

Various Whistleblower Acts

Whistleblower protection is important to all workplace industries, and there are specific whistleblower acts that apply to different types of jobs. Occupational Environmental and Nuclear industries employees are protected by OSH Act, AHERA, CAA, CERCLA, ERA, FWPCA, SDWA, SWDA and TSCA. Those in the transportation industry are protected by FRSA, ISCA, NTSSA, PISA, STAA and AIR21. Consumers and investors are protected by SOX and CPSIA.

You can read more about the specific whistleblower laws enforced by OSHA on the U.S. Department of Labor whistleblower complaint page, the statute page and the OSHA Worker Rights and Protections page.

State Whistleblower Laws

In addition to federal whistleblower protections, some workers in the private sector benefit from state whistleblower laws. OSHA allows individual states to operate their own occupational safety and health programs, which are known as OSHA state plans. Explore OSHA's state plans page to learn about any whistleblower provisions specific to your state.

For more information about state whistleblower laws, you can visit the National Conference of State Legislatures page.