On November 17 and 18, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced two decisions regarding whistleblower retaliation cases.
DOL’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) aims “to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for workers,” according to its website. The agency’s Whistleblower Protection Program enforces the whistleblower provisions under 25 whistleblower statutes.
In the first news release, the DOL announced that the agency’s Office of the Solicitor, which handles its legal services, is filing a lawsuit against PACCAR Inc., “one of the world’s largest manufacturers of light, medium, and heavy-duty trucks.” The lawsuit followed an OSHA investigation that found the company violated federal whistleblower protections by retaliating against a PACCAR employee.
According to the news release, the whistleblower raised concerns about COVID-19 exposure at a PACCAR facility in Texas in March of 2020. However, “a representative of PACCAR — doing business as Peterbilt Motor Co. — told the employee that the company planned to clean work spaces and continue work as usual.” When PACCAR found out that the whistleblower “expressed concerns publicly about the company’s response and their concern for the safety of other employees, the company fired the employee.”
The subsequent OSHA investigation found that the employee’s firing was an act of retaliation because the employee “engaged in protected activity by raising their workplace safety concerns.”...
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