Workplace retaliation is a type of discrimination that occurs when an employee experiences adverse treatment because he or she has engaged in protected activities. The best way to avoid workplace retaliation is to ensure the employee knows what the law considers harassment and how to protect themselves.
Before we go ahead in the details, remember to seek legal advice and assistance with the best Massachusetts wrongful termination attorney and understand all the legal ways to claim your rights.
What Is Retaliation?
Retaliation is when your employer takes some adverse action against you after you've complained or spoken up about a problem or issue at work. It's not too much of a stretch to say that retaliation is one of the most common causes of wrongful termination and discrimination cases in the United States.
The Federal Labor Standards Act (FLSA), and its state and local equivalents, are laws that protect workers from employers who retaliate against them for engaging in certain protected activities, such as raising safety concerns.
An employer who retaliates against a worker usually does so in one of three ways:
By terminating or threatening to terminate the worker – by either firing, forcing to quit, or refusing to hire them because of a complaint about their job duties, and more are the leading issues in work retaliation. In this case, the employer is acting without any valid business reason to do so. By denying them access to any benefits or insurance benefits – such as health insurance or sick leave – after they have spoken up about their workplace conditions. In such a case, the employer is taking a disadvantageous position by doing this.
By changing a workers' term/privilege/job role after they have complained about workplace standards. By threatening to take action or taking action against an employee after they have complained to management, government officials, or otherwise engaged in workplace activism.
Other actions that may qualify as retaliation include:
Demotion (the worker has to take on more work after they complained)
Reduction in hours (the worker has to work less following a complaint)
Job duties altered (following a complaint)
Co-workers are made to act hostile towards the complaining worker (following a complaint) – also known as mobbing, and places like the European Union now make it illegal for any employer to retaliate against their workers for joining labor unions.
If you or your friends/family are victims of work retaliation, do not hesitate to reach out to Hayber Law firm and get the best assistance to take your case forward.