The following is not meant to be legal advice, and is for information purposes only.
On October 14, 2006, Kenneth J. Sugarman, an associate at Rudy Exelrod & Zieff, LLP, spoke in San Francisco, CA on whistleblower and retaliation concerns.
Retaliation laws apply to people who complain against employment law violations. Retaliation laws encourage people to report violations, participate in investigations.
The timing of an adverse action against an employee who has reported a legal violation is a factor in determining whether or not there has been retaliation as a result of the report. If, after a short time of reporting a violation of a protected activity, an employee receives a performance plan or is terminated, there is better argument for the employee to claim that he/she has been retaliated because of the report.
When an employer uses progressive discipline procedures, it should ensure to follow the procedures exactly, and to not create expectations that any at will provisions no longer apply.
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