For an employee, one of the toughest decisions you will ever have to make, should you be forced to do so, is whether or not to “blow the whistle.”
Realizing that your employer is violating the law and/or the trust and confidence of investors, is never easy. Doing something about, known as being a “whistleblower”, is even harder.
If you are considering blowing the whistle you may be wondering “What damages am I entitled to for being a whistleblower?”
When an employee decides to stand up and do something about illegal or unethical conduct on the part of an employer that employee often risks retaliation on the part of the employer.
Whistleblower retaliation comes in many forms, including:
- Demotion
- Termination
- Failure to promote
- Harassment
- Intimidation
- Threats
- Working in a generally hostile work environment
Fortunately, there are a number of federal and state whistleblower laws which can be used by your Florida whistleblower attorney to protect from retaliation.
Most of those same laws also provide damages to an employee who has suffered retaliation for blowing the whistle on an employer.
Some of the more commonly used federal laws include:
- Federal False Claims Act (FCA) —protects whistleblowers in cases involving government fraud.
- Dodd Frank Act (DFA) — protects whistleblowers who provide information to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, or the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.
- Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) — protects whistleblowers in cases involving fraud, violations of SEC rules or regulations, or fraud against shareholders.
- Whistleblower Protection Act (WPA) — protects federal government employee whistleblowers in cases involving agency misconduct.
In addition to the various federal whistleblower laws the State of Florida also enacted a whistleblower law, referred to as the “Whistle-Blowers Act” which protects whistleblowers in cases where a public employer or independent contractor has created a substantial and specific danger to the public’s health, safety, or welfare.
The precise type and amount of damages a whistleblower may receive depends on the law involved as well as the unique facts of the case; however, there are some types of damages that are commonly available, including:
- Back pay – money you would have earned had you not been the victim of whistleblower retaliation.
- Future pay – money you would have earned in the future had you not been the victim of whistleblower retaliation.
- Compensatory damages – may include actual out of pocket expenses such as medical bills but also includes intangible damages such as for the pain and suffering you endured because of the retaliation.
- Liquid damages – a set amount of money – usually double your back pay award.
If you believe that you have suffered retaliation as a result of whistleblower conduct on your part, contact the experienced Florida employment law attorneys at Celler Legal, P.A.