You see something at work that crosses a line. A safety report gets backdated. A complaint disappears from the system. A policy is quietly rewritten to excuse prior misconduct. In all of these situations, speaking up feels risky—and it is. Whistleblowers often face retaliation, career setbacks, and emotional stress....
You reported misconduct at work, maybe fraud, a safety violation, or harassment. You believed you were doing the right thing. But then, the facts shift, and the evidence does not pan out. Or maybe you misread the situation. Now you are wondering, What happens if a whistleblower is wrong...
If you work in healthcare and are considering reporting unsafe practices or fraudulent billing, you might wonder: Which state and federal whistleblower laws protect me? And what are the differences? The answer isn’t always straightforward. Both state and federal laws offer safeguards for healthcare whistleblowers, but the rules, remedies,...
Earlier this month, the SEC awarded $6 million to a pair of whistleblowers whose tip led to a significant enforcement action. This award is just the latest in a string of multi-million-dollar payouts designed to incentivize individuals with insider knowledge to report securities fraud and investor deception. If you’re...
Certain whistleblower laws require the whistleblower to show that they provided non-public information in order to receive a whistleblower award. This requirement leads many prospective whistleblowers to ask whether they can be a whistleblower after being fired. Wrongful termination of a whistleblower occurs when an employer fires or punishes...
The simplest answer to this question is maybe. Your ability to break a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with your employer depends on the terms of your agreement, what you want to disclose, how you plan to disclose, and the laws applicable to your disclosure. If you are facing concerns about...
Public sector employees know some of the government’s most sensitive secrets. They employees may learn of corruption, waste, abuses of power, and other unethical and illegal practices. Employees who want to report this misconduct are often hesitant because they fear what might happen to them. State and federal law...
One way that California stands out among the 50 states is through its whistleblower protection act. The California Whistleblower Protection Act (CWPA) is a crucial piece of whistleblower retaliation legislation that provides unique protections to would-be whistleblowers. However, the CWPA differs from federal whistleblower acts in several ways. We’ll...
Proper use of public resources and policing with integrity are concerns on many people’s minds these days. If you are in law enforcement and have noticed legal violations committed by your colleagues or supervisors, what kind of police whistleblower protections do you have? Unfortunately, police officers often have fewer...
Your employer has the authority to make many demands of you. However, your employer cannot command that you engage in unlawful behavior or tolerate the employer’s misconduct. Your job should not be at odds with the law. Fortunately, federal and California whistleblower protection laws help ensure that workers have...