What is Retaliation?

Although most employees are subject to employment at will, employees are still expected to stand up and refuse to go along with activities they believe to be unethical or unlawful and, in some circumstances, employees are required to make a report to their supervisor and/or a government agency. In such cases, it is unlawful for a company to terminate the employee for making a report or refusing to abide by instructions the employee believes to be unlawful.

There are many ways in which an employer may retaliate against an employee for engaging in protected conduct. In most cases though, retaliation comes in the form of wrongful termination. Wrongful termination is typically a discharge that is based on discrimination or in response to an employee’s report of discriminatory conduct or other unlawful activity, such as tax fraud, improper accounting methods.

Different Forms of Wrongful Termination

One form of retaliation often occurs after an employee takes FMLA leave or reports harassment or other possible discrimination. An employee that is terminated shortly after reporting a workers' compensation injury, making a claim about gender discrimination, age discrimination, disability discrimination, religious discrimination, national origin discrimination or race discrimination or after returning from disability leave or FMLA leave, should consult with an employment attorney immediately to determine if he/she is a victim of retaliation.

Another form of wrongful termination is based on an employee’s report of potentially illegal activities. Such activities are usually unrelated to the employment relationship, but may involve asking an employee to conceal illegal activities or participate in a fraud against the public. If an employee is terminated after reporting suspected illegal activties to a government agency or his/her supervisor, it may be a form of retaliation. Speak with a wrongful termination lawyer as soon as possible.

In Illinois, there is also a common law form of wrongful termination that involves an employee reporting activities or refusing to go along with activities that would be against public policy. This type of wrongful discharge is more difficult to define and, therefore, if you believe you have been subjected to this type of retaliation, you should consult an employment attorney as soon as possible.

There are many different state and federal laws and administrative agencies that deal with different forms of retaliation. If you are employed and feel you may be subjected to retaliation or if you have been fired and believe it was the result of retaliation, contact an employment lawyer immediately to discuss your rights. Many of the laws governing employment discrimination and wrongful termination have very short deadlines by which you must file a claim and waiting could eliminate some of the options available to you.