If you’ve reported workplace harassment, discrimination, or other illegal behavior, you have legal protections against retaliation. Retaliation occurs when your employer takes adverse action against you because you’ve exercised your legal rights. This can include termination, demotion, reduction in pay or hours, or other adverse actions.
If you’re experiencing retaliation in the workplace, it’s essential to understand your legal rights and take action to protect yourself. This blog post explains how to protect yourself from retaliation and seek justice if you’re being retaliated against.
Your Legal Rights
If you’ve reported illegal behavior in the workplace, you have legal protections against retaliation. These protections include:
- The right to file a complaint: You have the right to file a complaint with your employer, a government agency, or a court if you’ve experienced retaliation.
- The right to protection against retaliation: Your employer is prohibited from retaliating against you for reporting illegal behavior in the workplace.
- The right to recover damages: If you’ve been retaliated against, you may be able to recover damages, including lost wages, emotional distress, and other damages.
Retaliation in the Workplace
Retaliation in the workplace can take many forms, including termination, demotion, reduction in pay or hours, transfer to a less desirable position, reassignment to a different location, negative performance evaluations, and verbal or physical abuse.
Retaliation can also take a more subtle form, such as exclusion from meetings, failure to provide necessary equipment or training, and denial of opportunities for advancement or promotion.
If you’re experiencing any of these types of retaliation, it’s important to take action to protect yourself.
How to Protect Yourself
If you’re experiencing retaliation in the workplace, here are some steps you can take to protect yourself:
- Document the retaliation: Keep a record of any adverse actions taken against you, including the date, time, and details of what happened. This information will be important if you decide to file a complaint or a lawsuit.
- Report the retaliation: Report the retaliation to your employer’s human resources department or a supervisor. Be specific about what happened and who was involved. If your employer is unaware of the retaliation, they cannot take steps to stop it.
- Seek legal help: An experienced attorney can help you understand your legal rights and take action to protect yourself. They can also help you pursue compensation if you’ve suffered damages as a result of the retaliation.
Why Retaliation is Illegal
Retaliation is illegal because it undermines the legal protections that are in place to protect employees from harassment, discrimination, and other illegal behavior in the workplace. When employers retaliate against employees for exercising their legal rights, it sends a message that reporting illegal behavior is not acceptable.
Retaliation also creates a hostile work environment, which can have serious consequences for victims. Victims of retaliation may experience anxiety, depression, and other emotional distress, and may find it difficult to perform their job duties.
Contact PLBH for a Free Legal Consultation
If you’re experiencing retaliation in the workplace, it’s essential to take action to protect yourself. Our experienced attorneys can help you understand your legal rights and take action to stop the retaliation. Contact PLBH at (800) 435-7542 for a free legal consultation and learn how we can help you protect yourself from workplace retaliation.