Early in the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Jared Polis signed a law allowing for job reinstatement and financial repercussions for employees disciplined for raising red flags on health and safety concerns in their workplaces. Through last month, it had assisted 48 such whistleblowers.
Sen. Brittany Pettersen, one of the sponsors of the 2020 bill said this showed that the law is doing what it was supposed to do, having resulted so far in seven settlements and the issuance of 33 additional right-to-sue letters. And, with funding for the original legislation set to run out at the end of this year, she and its other authors now want to extend the law beyond its existing protections, which apply only during a public-health emergency, and implant it permanently in state law.
Senate Bill 97 is on its way to Gov. Jared Polis’ desk, where he will have until June 10 to sign or veto it after its formal receipt.
While business groups did not make a huge case against it during a session that featured a lot of proposals that they considered more financially or regulatorily impactful, it is a law that stands to impact every employer in Colorado.
“Workers are speaking up when they feel unsafe, knowing that they can no longer lose their jobs,” said state Rep. Leslie Herod, D-Denver, as she explained SB 97 to the House Public and Behavioral Health and Human Services Committee on April 12.
Under the original law, HB 20-1415, employees who had been fired or otherwise adversely impacted in their...
ANKARA — US President Donald Trump made a series of “false” and “uncorroborated” claims about the Iran conflict and his foreign policy record during a recent press conference, according to a fact ...