June 24, 2011 (Press-News.org) A lot of courage is sometimes required to report an employer's illegal activity or unsafe working conditions. A panoply of relatively recent laws and new amendments to existing laws offer legal protections and remedies for the courageous among us who wish to blow the whistle on corporate wrongdoing in the workplace. The laws address specific industries.
Whistleblower Protection Laws
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) oversees the Office of the Whistleblower Protection Program and is responsible for enforcing 21 federal-level whistleblower protection statutes. The most commonly used statute, Section 11(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who raise workplace safety and health concerns by:
- Complaining to OSHA about workplace safety
- Seeking an OSHA inspection
- Participating in an OSHA inspection
- Reporting an on-the-job injury, illness or death
Twenty other whistleblower protection statutes cover workers who report employers' violations of laws or regulations in specific areas of commerce such as transportation and shipping and securities. Recently, new legislation expanded whistleblower protection to workers in the food industry.
The 21 statutes enforced by OSHA and the regulations governing their administration are listed below:
- Section 11(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 29 U.S.C. Section 660
- Surface Transportation Assistance Act (STAA), 49 U.S.C. Section 31105
- Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA), 15 U.S.C. Section 2651
- International Safe Container Act (ISCA), 46 U.S.C. Section 80507
- Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), 42 U.S.C. Section 300j-9(i)
- Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA), 33 U.S.C. Section 1367
- Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), 15 U.S.C. Section 2622
- Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA), 42 U.S.C. Section 6971
- Clean Air Act (CAA), 42 U.S.C. Section 7622
- Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. Section 9610
- Energy Reorganization Act (ERA), 42 U.S.C. Section 5851
- Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (AIR21), 49 U.S.C. Section 42121
- Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), 18 U.S.C.A. Section 1514
Amendments to SOX, enacted July 21, 2010 - Sections 922 and 929A of the Dodd Frank Act (DFA)
- Pipeline Safety Improvement Act (PSIA), 49 U.S.C. Section 60129
- Federal Railroad Safety Act (FRSA), 49 U.S.C. Section 20109
- National Transit Systems Security Act (NTSSA), 6 U.S.C. Section 1142
- Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), 15 U.S.C. Section 2087
- Section 1558 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), P.L. 111-148
- Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 (CFPA), Section 1057 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, 12 U.S.C.A. Section 5567
- Seaman's Protection Act, 46 U.S.C. Section 2114 (SPA), as amended by Section 611 of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010, P.L. 111-281
- Section 402 of the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), P.L. 111-353
Food Industry Whistleblowers
In January 2011, President Obama signed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Food Safety Modernization Act. The Act is designed to ensure the safety of food in the U.S. by focusing federal regulation on preventing food contamination rather than simply responding to it. One way the Act seeks to prevent food contamination is by providing whistleblower protection to workers in the food industry.
Section 402 of the Act -- effective immediately -- prohibits retaliation against an employee "engaged in the manufacture, processing, packing, transporting, distribution, reception, holding or importation of food" when the employee performs a protected activity. Protected activity includes:
- Providing information about an employer's unlawful activity to the employer, the federal government or a state attorney general
- Testifying about a potential violation of any law, order, rule, regulation, standard or ban
- Assisting or participating in a proceeding concerning the potential violation
- Refusing to participate in any activity that the employee reasonably believes violates a law, order, rule, regulation, standard or ban
What Is Considered Retaliation?
Unlawful retaliation for reporting a workplace violation can take many forms, such as:
- Firing
- Demoting
- "Blacklisting"
- Denying promotions or overtime
- Reassigning to a different task or location
- Reducing pay or hours
- Denying benefits
- Intimidating or threatening
Employers who take any of these actions against an employee because he or she reported a workplace violation or engaged in a protected activity are breaking the law. If you work in the food industry or any other regulated industry and are thinking about reporting a workplace violation -- or if you have reported a violation and suffered negative employment consequences as a result -- contact a lawyer with experience in whistleblower claims to discuss your legal options.
Article provided by The Rubin Law Corporation
Visit us at www.stevenrubinlaw.com
Workers Protected Against Retaliation for Reporting Violations
The federal Office of the Whistleblower Protection Program offers processes to report unlawful activity by employers and provides protection to workers who make whistleblower claims.
2011-06-24
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Boy Killed in a New York Driving Lesson Accident
2011-06-24
A 16-year-old girl with a learner's permit panicked, jumped a curb and hit a nine-year-old boy biking on the sidewalk. The boy died soon after the auto accident in New York's Floral Park.
New York auto accident lawyer David Perecman, who has been following the story, agrees with the boy's mom who wondered why a person would teach a teen to drive in a residential neighborhood.
"There is a lot of responsibility that comes with driving - and teaching teenagers to drive. Inexperienced teen drivers are more likely to make simple mistakes that can lead to both minor ...
Who Is Liable When Your Child Gets Into an Accident in New York With Your Car?
2011-06-24
It's a story that no parent likes to hear, but that many have heard in one form or another. Junior borrows the car and gets into an accident. It may be that he ran the car into a mailbox or it could be more serious. In the case of injury-causing accidents, who is liable for those injuries? Sixteen-year-old Junior? His parents? The registered car owner?
Generally under New York Vehicle and Traffic Law, when someone gets into a car accident while driving with the owner's consent, the owner can be held liable for the driver's negligence. This means that if parents give ...
Pennsylvania Gas Drilling Blamed For Extensive Water Contamination
2011-06-24
A new report from Duke University suggests that natural gas drilling operations in the Marcellus Shale region could be responsible for polluting nearby sources of drinking water. Although industry insiders insist that further study is required before jumping to conclusions, for those who live close to drilling sites, stepped-up governmental oversight could not come too soon.
Extracting Natural Gas
The Marcellus Shale is a black shale formation rich in natural gas deposits: scientists estimate it contains some 168 trillion to 516 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. ...
Penn physicists observe 'campfire effect' in blinking nanorod semiconductors
2011-06-24
PHILADELPHIA — When semiconductor nanorods are exposed to light, they blink in a seemingly random pattern. By clustering nanorods together, physicists at the University of Pennsylvania have shown that their combined "on" time is increased dramatically providing new insight into this mysterious blinking behavior.
The research was conducted by associate professor Marija Drndic's group, including graduate student Siying Wang and postdoctorial fellows Claudia Querner and Tali Dadosh, all of the Department of Physics and Astronomy in Penn's School of Arts and Sciences. They ...
City Worker Crushed to Death When Truck Driving Co-Worker Accidentally Backed Over Him
2011-06-24
According to the New York Daily News, a New York City highway worker was killed in a truck accident that involved a Department of Transportation vehicle.
Errol Wilson, a 59-year old veteran employee of the New York Department of Transportation, was killed when a co-worker accidentally backed over him with a giant Mack Truck. Wilson was crushed to death by the truck while directing the driver during construction in Queens, New York. The driver reportedly lost sight of Wilson.
The NYPD is investigating the cause of the fatal truck accident and New York auto accident ...
Large numbers of birth defects seen near mountaintop mining operations
2011-06-24
SPOKANE, Wash.—Birth defects are significantly more common in areas of mountaintop coal mining and are on the rise as the practice becomes more common, according to a study by researchers at Washington State University and West Virginia University.
The researchers, led by Melissa Ahern, health economist and associate professor in WSU's College of Pharmacy, found 235 birth defects per 10,000 births where mountaintop mining is most common in four central Appalachian states. That's nearly twice the rate of 144 defects per 10,000 in non-mining areas.
Previous studies have ...
Breaking the chain: 'Molecular cap' blocks processes that lead to Alzheimer's, HIV
2011-06-24
A new advance by UCLA biochemists has brought scientists one step closer to developing treatments that could delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease and prevent the sexual transmission of HIV.
The researchers report that they have designed molecular inhibitors that target specific proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease and HIV to prevent them from forming amyloid fibers, the elongated chains of interlocking proteins that play a key role in more than two dozen degenerative and often fatal diseases.
"By studying the structures of two key proteins that form amyloids, ...
Researchers suggest new way of looking at what causes sepsis
2011-06-24
TORONTO, Ont., June 22, 2011 – Researchers at St. Michael's Hospital have put forward a new theory as to what causes sepsis, an often fatal condition that occurs when infection spreads throughout the body.
Leaking blood vessels may actually be a cause of sepsis, rather than a symptom as previously thought, said Dr. Warren Lee.
Dr Lee's hypothesis and a review of recent research on sepsis were published today in the journal Science Translational Medicine.
Sepsis kills about 1,400 people a day worldwide and is the second-leading cause of death in intensive care units ...
In search of the memory molecule, a key protein complex discovered
2011-06-24
Have a tough time remembering where you put your keys, learning a new language or recalling names at a cocktail party? New research from the Lisman Laboratory at Brandeis University points to a molecule that is central to the process by which memories are stored in the brain. A paper published in the June 22 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience describes the new findings.
The brain is composed of neurons that communicate with each other through structures called synapses, the contact point between neurons. Synapses convey electrical signals from the "sender" neuron to ...
In motor learning, it's actions, not intentions, that count
2011-06-24
Cambridge, Mass. – June 23, 2011 – Albert Einstein defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Practicing the same task repetitively, though, tends to be the default procedure when trying to learn a new motor skill.
A study led by Maurice Smith and colleagues at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) suggests that simple task repetition may not be the most efficient way for the brain to learn a new move.
Their results, published in PLoS Computational Biology, demonstrate "motion-referenced learning." ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
New research boosts future whooping cough vaccines
Mechanistic understanding could enable better fast-charging batteries
No bones about it: new details about skeletal cell aging revealed
UNM scientists discover how nanoparticles of toxic metal used in MRI scans infiltrate human tissue
UMaine research examines best methods for growing Atlantic sea scallops
Medical cannabis could speed recovery, especially at community recovery homes
Study assesses U.S. image amid weakening of democracy
Two scientific researchers to receive 2025 Ralph L. Sacco Scholarships for Brain Health
Researchers improve chemical reaction that underpins products from foods to fuels
Texas Tech to develop semiconductor power devices through $6 million grant
Novel genomic screening tool enables precision reverse-engineering of genetic programming in cells
Hot Schrödinger cat states created
How cells repair their power plants
Oxygen is running low in inland waters—and humans are to blame
ACP’s Best Practice Advice addresses use of cannabis, cannabinoids for chronic noncancer pain
Beyond photorespiration: A systematic approach to unlocking enhanced plant productivity
How a small number of mutations can fuel outbreaks of western equine encephalitis virus
Exposure to wildfire smoke linked with worsening mental health conditions
Research uncovers hidden spread of one of the most common hospital-associated infections
Many older adults send their doctors portal messages, but who pays?
Fine particulate matter from 2020 California wildfires and mental health–related emergency department visits
Gender inequity in institutional leadership roles in US academic medical centers
Pancreatic cells ‘remember’ epigenetic precancerous marks without genetic sequence mutations
Rare combination of ovarian tumors found in one patient
AI-driven clinical recommendations may aid physician decision making to improve quality of care
Artificial intelligence has potential to aid physician decisions during virtual urgent care
ACP and Annals of Internal Medicine present breaking scientific news at ACP’s Internal Medicine Meeting 2025
New study reveals polymers with flawed fillers boost heat transfer in plastics
Signs identified that precede sudden arrhythmic death syndrome in young people
Discovery of bacteria's defence against viruses becomes a piece of the puzzle against resistance
[Press-News.org] Workers Protected Against Retaliation for Reporting ViolationsThe federal Office of the Whistleblower Protection Program offers processes to report unlawful activity by employers and provides protection to workers who make whistleblower claims.