We spotlighted matters relevant to whistleblowing strategy in a recent Sterling Employment Law blog post. We noted in the firm’s March 31 entry that “there are important don’ts of whistleblowing for employees who want to preserve the strength of their claims and avoid liability.”
“Don’t take the kitchen sink” is one prominent admonition advanced in a recent national legal publication.
What that means is this: Be judicious concerning the scope and variety of information you copy, record or otherwise gather from an employer that is all by indications bent on retaliation and wrongful termination in response to whistleblowing activity. The above article notes, for example, that courts “have consistently refused to condone an employer’s indiscriminate removal of gigabytes of company documents.” The same goes for extracted files that seemingly have nothing to do with a claimant’s job or allegations concerning wrongful managerial conduct.
This is obviously important, too, and a recommendation that can scarcely be overemphasized: Don’t wait. Being tardy or hesitant in moving forward with a whistleblower complaint can flatly doom it, given federal and/or state filing deadlines.
And then there is this: Many whistleblowers are understandably overwhelmed concerning where to turn as regards various agencies. There are scores of them that have oversight in employment law matters.
When it comes to whistleblowing strategies and next steps, it makes sense for an individual with questions or concerns to timely contact a proven employment law firm. An established attorney team with a record of strong advocacy in employee whistleblowing matters will fully safeguard a client’s interests and work diligently to secure an optimal outcome.