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What is Retaliation?
Example of how retaliation happens:
- An employee reports an illegal, unsafe or unethical act (protected activity).
-AND-
- The employee’s manager, who resents the fact that the employee called negative attention to the department, gives the employee a lower rating at a performance review three weeks later (adverse action).
-AND-
- If the employee is successful at demonstrating there is a connection between the two events—that the only reason the employee got the lower rating was because she filed the intial report - then the employee may be able to claim workplace retaliation. And the employee could win a retaliation lawsuit, even if the original report she made about the illegal activity proves to be unfounded.
Some of the more common examples of retaliation include, but are
not limited to, the following:
- Termination of employment
- Failure to hire or rehire
- Demotion (actual or constructive)
- Withheld or delayed pay increases
- Reduced responsibilities or assignments
- Exclusion from meetings or communications where information necessary or important for job performance is disseminated, discussed or determined
- Illegal harassment
- Disciplinary action (e.g., reprimand, warning, suspension)
- Surveillance, monitoring or “papering the file”
- Giving poor job references or revealing protected activities to potential employers
Remember, both managers and employees can be the target of retaliation, and both managers and employees can commit retaliation.Be sure all your employees know their responsibilities when it comes to preventing retaliation in the workplace with Preventing Retaliation. Learn more about Preveting Retaliation in the Workplace. |
