Retaliation Lawyers in Seattle: Experience to Fight for You
If an employer has retaliated against you because you exercised a protected legal right, our retaliation lawyers can help fight for you. At Rekhi & Wolk, we have successfully represented hundreds of employees who have experienced retaliation at the hands of their employers. If you believe an employer unfairly and unlawfully retaliated against you due to your exercising a legal right, you may be entitled to lost wages, emotional distress damages, and punitive damages.
What is Workplace Retaliation?
Workplace retaliation is any action (or failure to act) your employer (or a manager or supervisor) takes in response to your exercise of a protected legal right that has negative consequences for you at work.
How to Know if You’re a Victim of Retaliation
If you are a whistleblower or have exercised a legally protected right at work and have subsequently experienced negative consequences, you may be experiencing unlawful workplace retaliation. The only way to confirm if actions taken against you at work rise to the level of unlawful workplace retaliation is to meet with an experienced retaliation attorney.
Call us today to discuss your case. The sooner you do, the sooner we can help you.
Retaliation Claims Can Have Very Short Statutes of Limitations
Please be aware that the timeline to file a retaliation complaint with the appropriate governmental agency can be as short as 30 days from the notice of adverse action. It is critical in these whistleblower cases to quickly contact the appropriate governmental agency, file a claim, and preserve your rights. It is advisable to speak with a workplace retaliation attorney as soon as possible.
When Workplace Retaliation Claims Arise
The circumstances surrounding workplace retaliation are virtually endless, but workplace retaliation often occurs after an employer takes adverse action against an employee for:
- Reporting wage or overtime violations
- Filing a workers’ compensation claim
- Requesting family leave or medical leave under FMLA or Washington law
- Complaining about discriminatory behavior
- Reporting illegal employer or employee behavior (commonly referred to as “whistleblowing”)
In each of these cases, the employee has a legal right to take one of these actions, and the employer is prohibited from taking any sort of adverse action against the employee in return. Our Seattle employment lawyers can help.
What Forms Can Workplace Retaliation Take?
It is important to note that workplace retaliation doesn’t always result in the wrongful termination of the employee. This is clearly the most egregious form of workplace retaliation, but it is certainly not the only one. Workplace retaliation may also take the form of:
Unjust Demotion
If you were demoted after filing a whistleblower claim or filed a complaint to exercise your legally protected employment rights, you may be experiencing unlawful workplace retaliation.
Reduction of Hours or Pay
If you are receiving fewer work hours or your employer reduced your pay after exercising a legally protected right, you may be experiencing unlawful workplace retaliation.
Unjust Disciplinary Action
Many jobs entail periodic employee reviews and assessments. If you’ve received a negative review after exercising a legally protected right, you may be experiencing unlawful workplace retaliation.
Reassignment to a Less Desirable Job
Unfortunately, employers try to find more subtle ways to get you to leave your job other than termination because if that occurs after you exercised a legally protected right, it is too obviously unlawful workplace retaliation. Reassignment to a job that is less desirable than your current position may be an attempt to get you to leave.
Creating a Hostile Work Environment
Harassment by managers, supervisors, or coworkers can result if an employer informs them of your perceived disloyalty to the company in exercising your rights.
This is far from a complete list of the forms of workplace retaliation, and sometimes, it can be even harder to identify. If you suspect you may be experiencing workplace retaliation, reach out to Rekhi & Wolk to speak with a Seattle workplace retaliation lawyer.
Damages Available in Workplace Retaliation Claims
Compensatory Damages
In a workplace retaliation case, you may receive any wages you’ve lost due to your employer’s unlawful retaliation. You may also receive compensation for the cost of any medical care you needed, including therapy and medications.
Emotional Distress
If the retaliation caused you mental or emotional anguish, you might be entitled to compensation.
Punitive Damages
If your employer’s retaliatory actions were particularly egregious, you might be entitled to punitive damages to punish your employer and deter other employers from engaging in the same behavior.
Attorneys’ Fees and Court Costs
Some statutes allow the court to grant someone who experienced retaliation their attorneys’ fees and court costs.
What Are the 3 Elements of Retaliation Claims?
In order to file a successful workplace retaliation claim, there are three elements that must be met. You must be engaged in a protected activity that caused your employer’s adverse action.
Protected Activity
Examples of Protected Activity at Work Include:
Complaining about Discrimination
You have the legal right to complain about workplace discrimination in any form, including discrimination due to age, gender, gender preference, sexual orientation, race, status as military or military veteran, and disability, among others.
Requesting Disability or Religious Accommodations
You are entitled to reasonable accommodations for your disability and religion.
Reporting Illegal Activity
- Wage and hour violations
- Worker health and safety
- Public health and safety
- Fraud, government corruption, and others
Exercising Legal Employment Rights
- Filing for workers’ compensation
- Taking family or medical leave
Identifying whether your actions at work are considered protected activity is the first step in establishing a claim of retaliation.
Adverse Action
The second element to establishing a case against your employer is proving that you have suffered adverse action by your employer.
Adverse action can take the form of being fired, demoted, suspended, or other disciplinary action given by your employer, as well as acts of determent to engage in protected activity, such as assigning the employee to undesirable tasks or the reduction of hours.
Cause & Effect
You must also be able to prove that your employer’s adverse action was motivated by your protected activity. The proximity of time between the two events is key in establishing cause and effect. However, other facts and circumstances can help establish this causation element, such as shifting reasons from your employer for the adverse decision.
Keep in mind that it is not only your employer who is forbidden from retaliating against you for engaging in protected activity but also all agents of your employer, including supervisors and managers.
How a Seattle Retaliation Attorney Can Help With Your Claim
Workplace retaliation is rarely as cut-and-dried as termination immediately following your exercise of your legal employment rights. Retaliation is often much more subtle, and whether the facts rise to an actionable retaliation claim can be determined by your retaliation lawyer.
Also, your retaliation lawyer will consult with experts to accurately calculate your damages, considering your compensatory damages, emotional distress, and punitive damages.
FAQ
Does workplace retaliation have to be intentional?
The short answer is yes. The facts must show that your employer or any agent of your employer, such as supervisors or managers, intentionally took action against you or failed to act, causing an adverse employment result.
How Do I Know If I Have a Valid Case?
There is a complex web of state and federal law governing retaliation cases, each law having its own criteria. Also, retaliation cases are extremely fact-specific. Whether you have a case or not may depend on a single fact. Talk with an experienced retaliation lawyer.
When Should I Contact a Retaliation Lawyer?
As soon as you suspect you have experienced retaliation at work, call an experienced retaliation lawyer.
What is Not Considered Retaliatory?
Many adverse employment actions are not considered retaliatory, such as:
- Losing your job because the company downsized or went out of business
- Being disciplined deservedly
- Working with people you do not like
- Being transferred to a comparable position with the same pay
- Not getting a bonus, raise, or promotion you do not deserve
Are retaliation and whistleblowing lawsuits the same thing?
They have similarities, but there are specific statutes and court-created doctrines protecting whistleblowers. Talk with your retaliation attorney about which laws apply to your particular case.
Do I lose my retaliation claim if I lose my discrimination case?
Not necessarily. Talk with your retaliation attorney about whether the results of your discrimination case impact your ability to receive compensation for workplace retaliation.
Can my employer retaliate against my family?
No. The same laws that protect you in the workplace protect your family.
What Determines a Hostile Work Environment?
Whether a hostile work environment exists is a fact-based inquiry that depends on the circumstances of your particular case. Aspects may include:
- Speech or images in the workplace that make you uncomfortable
- Lack of support from your superiors in doing your job
- Coworkers ignoring you or acting hostile towards you
- Lack of reasonable accommodations for your disability
- Lack of reasonable accommodations for your religion
What is considered employer retaliation?
Retaliation is any negative action an employer takes because you engaged in a protected activity. These negative actions could include being fired, demoted, disciplined, or other subtler actions such as discouraging your pursuit of protected activities.
What laws protect against workplace retaliation?
Several laws protect employees from retaliation from employers. The Washington Law Against Discrimination and Title VII protect employees who participate in an investigation of discrimination or harassment. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Seattle Wage Theft Ordinance protect employees when they complain about missed wages and other payment issues. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) protects employees who report workplace hazards. These are only a few laws protecting employees from workplace retaliation.
Does retaliation have to be egregious?
No. Some employers take actions such as reassignment while your complaint is being investigated, but if this action hurts your work performance or results in lesser earnings or prestige, this can also be considered retaliation.
Why should I hire a lawyer to help with my retaliation claim?
Our retaliation lawyers have been successful in proving employee claims of employer retaliation. The process of proving these claims is often complicated, and it can be difficult to determine if what you’ve experienced in the workplace would be considered retaliation under the law. An employment lawyer can support you through the legal process and help you with all the legal logistics.
Call Rekhi and Wolk and Hold Washington State Employers Accountable for Unlawful Retaliation in the Workplace
The sooner you call, the sooner we can help you solve the awful situation and get you the compensation you deserve. Call our attorneys today.