Whistleblowing At Work And Employment Law In Illinois

In this article, you will discover:

• Some forms of retaliation that are used to intimidate or punish whistleblowers.
• How to protect yourself from subsequent retaliation if reporting wrongdoing.
• How an attorney can help protect you if you have reported wrongdoing.

What Are Some Common Forms Of Retaliation Whistleblowers Face In The Workplace?

Some of the most common retaliation whistleblowers or those who make a complaint face are:

• Termination;
• Demotion;
• Micromanaging;
• Withholding of promotion;
• Alteration or inflation of disciplinary history;
• Title changes;
• Lateral moves;
• Being moved to a department that is outside of your skill set.

How Can Whistleblowers Protect Themselves Once Filing A Report?

Your company likely has a retaliation-free or open-door policy as part of its wrongdoing response. While most employers have them, many unfortunately fail to actually follow them in practice.

As such, the best way to protect yourself after reporting wrongdoing is to involve an attorney as soon as you have made the report, if not sooner.

Additionally, maintaining a paper trail and regularly following up on your report will pay dividends later. Employers tend to take a much different approach to the incident if you have one, especially if they have in-house counsel or consult counsel. Further, most of the time they will not want to bother you with an overt action such as termination, demotion, or anything of the sort because of the explicit evidence you have.

What Can A Whistleblower And Retaliation Attorney Do For My Case?

Regardless of the situation you think you need to report, if you partner with a whistleblower and retaliation attorney before reporting, they can help you:

• Outline who to report wrongdoing to;
• Educate you as to how to best report it.

An attorney’s goal will likely shift, as is the case with our practice, if you reach out to them after you report wrongdoing. We resolve to work with you from that point forward. If wrongdoing is affecting your day-to-day work life, then we:

• Work to move you to a different department;
• Move you under another supervisor;
• Ensure you get the protection you need.

If you have actually reported something and it resulted in an adverse action such as termination or demotion, we can:

• Work out a settlement outlining how you should be treated moving forward. This can include things like providing training to the company.
• Negotiate a “buyout.” This is essentially a severance package to completely get you out of the company.
• File the actual suit against your employer.

For more information on Employment Law in Illinois, a free initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling +1-888 5WHISTLE today.