Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Parmalat – are all too familiar names, and there are many more – all corporate giants with integrity issues. These are few of the many organizations, who have committed accounting fraud, are guilty of corruption or some other form of wrongdoing. The issue is not limited to corporations either. Government agencies have seen their share of integrity problems.
Ethics has become a big part of business culture over the past couple of decades. Ethics training and education, corporate code of conduct policies and even personal code of ethics statements have been integrated into everyday corporate life. Employers require that employees fulfill not only legal, but moral obligations.
One would think that with the amount of attention that the concept of ethical business conduct receives, there would be a definitive way for employees to go about reporting suspicious or blatantly unethical and even illegal activities of their peers and supervisors, but it’s not so.
People witness improper conduct at work every day and are pressured not to say anything. They are afraid to lose their jobs, to lose their friendships at work and in some cases they fear for their safety and their family’s safety. They feel isolated and insecure.
While there are laws in place that protect employees against the retaliation of their employers, there have been many cases where employees got terminated, demoted or suspended and have been bullied by their peers and managers. Many people get fired when they try to resolve their grievances internally before they even share them with the watchdog agency.
Whistleblower laws vary based on the type of claim the whistleblower is making and on the state where the claim is made. It can be very confusing for someone who is trying to report misconduct to know who to go to and it can be very disappointing, since often times they are discriminated against. But there is help. There are attorneys who specialize in defending whistleblowers who have been wrongfully fired or “bullied” at work.
For instance, Kitchens, New and Cleghorn, LLC is a law firm that specializes in U. S. Merit Systems Protection Board (“MSPB”) Law and Federal Employment Law. These attorneys have been helping federal employees who have been on the receiving end of retaliation by various federal agencies that employed them.
If you are a federal employee and a victim of retaliation, be sure to contact a qualified attorney to evaluate your case.