Question

There are special protections for the common law doctrine employment at will for patient abuse and whistleblowing. What are they and why should they exist?

Answer 1

Ans) Several federal and state statutes prevent the at-will doctrine from being applied e.g., employment discrimination laws and whistleblower protection laws.

- Retaliation is another statute-based exception to the at-will presumption. Federal and/or state laws prohibit employers from firing employees in retaliation for engaging in legally proper, necessary, or desirable activities.

- Example of protected activities include claiming minimum wage or overtime compensation, engaging in union activities, opposing unlawful discriminatory practices, filing for workers' compensation, and "whistleblowing."

- While most states provide whistleblower protection for public sector employees, protection for private sector employees is more limited. Approximately seventeen states have enacted whistleblower statutes that protect private sector employees from adverse employment actions if they report an employer’s wrongdoing.

- Where there is no general state statute, private employees are left with a patchwork of federal and state statutes that address a wide variety of issues including workplace health and safety, environmental protection, accounting fraud, and discrimination, that also include whistleblower protections. The challenge for employees in these jurisdictions is to find a statute that applies to their particular circumstances.