HR exec allegedly assured no retaliation – then came the termination
A lead auditor says she was fired after flagging financial concerns and requesting medical leave, raising questions about how her employer handled both.
Jacqueline Craine has filed suit against Cboe Global Markets, the publicly traded exchange network behind the Chicago Board Options Exchange, accusing the company of retaliating against her for speaking up about accounting irregularities and then denying her request for medical leave. The case, lodged in federal court in Kansas on January 26, offers a cautionary tale for human resources leaders navigating the intersection of whistleblower protections and leave management.
Craine spent nearly three years as a Lead Auditor at Cboe, where she was responsible for testing the company's Sarbanes-Oxley compliance and reviewing internal controls. During that time, she says she uncovered a series of red flags: assets recorded below defined capitalization thresholds, bank reconciliations with gaps exceeding $48 million, absent financial policies for overseas operations, and persistent billing errors affecting customers. According to court filings, her concerns were routinely downgraded to "enhancements" or labeled "immaterial" by leadership.
What makes the case particularly instructive for HR professionals is what allegedly happened next.
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