Whistleblower Attorney in kansas City

The Missouri Whistleblower Protection Act

The Missouri Whistleblower Protection Act (“WPA”) was enacted in 2017 to codify protections given to whistleblowers under Missouri’s common law. To qualify for protection, you must first meet the statute’s definition of a “protected person.” There are three ways you can become a “protected person”:

1. You report an illegal act by your employer to proper authorities;
2. You report serious misconduct to proper authorities; or
3. You refuse to follow an employer’s directive order that would require you to break the law.

“Serious misconduct” for purposes of meeting the second prong means behavior that is a violation of a clear mandate of a public policy enshrined by a constitutional provision, statute, or regulation. An example might be an engineer who reports that her employer has utilized non-licensed engineers to perform work that requires an engineering license. This would be a violation of Missouri’s licensing regulations, which exist to ensure buildings are structurally sound and safe. Another violation might be a health care worker who reports that medical care is being provided to patients by those who are not qualified to provide such medical care. This could be a violation of the Nursing Practices Act or other statutes that exist to protect patient health and safety.

Missouri whistleblowers must also ensure that their report is made to the “proper authorities.” This generally means that the whistleblower must report the misconduct to the police, a government authority, an officer of the company, the employee’s supervisor, or the employee’s human resources representative. Importantly, making the report to the same person who broke the law or attempting to break the law is insufficient. You must report to someone who has the power to stop the wrongdoing.

Now, even if you meet the definition of a “protected person” by reporting a violation of law or serious misconduct to proper authorities, there are certain exceptions under the WPA that may exempt you from protection. If you hold a supervisory or managerial position and your primary responsibility is to report the kind of misconduct you observed, then you are not protected by this law.

Additionally, the WPA does not apply to all employers. Specifically, state agencies, public colleges, and corporations owned or operated by religious or sectarian groups are excluded from the WPA.

And strangely enough, the WPA does not apply to the people who work for your employer – such as the manager or co-worker you reported for wrongful conduct. You have remedies against your employer, but not the people who work within your employer’s business who were responsible for the wrongdoing or retaliation. So, if you reported wrongdoing by your manager and your manager turned around and fired you in retaliation, the law only lets you bring claims against your employer, not the manager.

Assuming you qualify for protection under the WPA, and you experienced adverse action after whistleblowing, you must then prove that your report was a factor in the retaliatory action your employer took against you. This does not mean that you have to prove your report was the only reason for the retaliation. You can win a whistleblower case just by showing that your report played a role and had a determinative influence in the employer’s actions against you.

If you win your case and prove that your employer retaliated against you for reporting wrongdoing, you can receive money damages to compensate you for your harms and losses. The damages available under the WPA include back pay, reimbursement for medical bills, liquidated damages, and attorney fees.

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Other Missouri Whistleblower Laws

Missouri has several other statutes that protect employees for reporting certain illegal activities. These protections extend to employees who report the following misconduct:

Discrimination (R.S.Mo. 213.070): Employees may not be punished or retaliated against “in any manner” for reporting discriminatory employment or business practices. So if you make a complaint of discrimination, or report discrimination against someone else, you are protected from retaliation. This protection also applies if you took some action to oppose discriminatory employment practices on your own, or if you assisted an employee who made a complaint of discrimination. See our page on Retaliation for more information.

Workers’ Compensation Retaliation (R.S.Mo. 287.780): This law protects employees who report work injuries or make worker’s compensation claims. For more information about your rights under this law,please visit our Worker’s Compensation Retaliation page. 

Healthcare Fraud (R.S.Mo. 191.908): This law protects employees who report fraudulent healthcare billing practices, such as Medicaid fraud, or assists in any related investigation. Employers may not “discharge, demote, suspend, threaten, harass, or otherwise discriminate against an employee” who has reported or assisted in the investigation of healthcare fraud. An employee who suffers retaliation under this law is entitled to reinstatement, double lost back pay, and interest on their lost back pay. 

Elder Abuse or Neglect (R.S.Mo. 198.070): Missouri law requires many healthcare professionals, caregivers, and law enforcement officers to report any suspected abuse or neglect of any person 60 years of age or older living in a residential care facility, assisted living facility, or skilled nursing facility. It is illegal to retaliate, harass, or terminate a “mandatory reporter” because he or she has reported possible abuse or neglect.

Nursing Home Abuse (R.S.Mo. 198.301): This law protects employees of nursing homes from retaliation and harassment because the employee reported any violation or suspected violation of any laws and licensing regulations governing nursing home facilities.

Teacher Sexual Misconduct (R.S.Mo. 162.068.6): Protects any school district employee who reports alleged student sexual abuse by a teacher or other school employee. 

Child Abuse (R.S.Mo. 210.115.3): People who work in certain professions are required to report suspected child abuse or neglect to the state. These “mandated reporters” include physicians, nurses, mental health professionals, health care providers, social workers, child-care workers, juvenile officers, teachers, law enforcement officers, and many more. This statute protects mandated reporters of child abuse from “any sanction, including adverse employment action, for making such report.”

Municipal Police Department Misconduct (R.S.Mo. 84.342.1): This law protects any employee of a municipal police department who reports potentially illegal conduct by another employee. 

Correctional Department Misconduct (R.S.Mo. 217.410): This protects corrections officers from retaliation for reporting any violation or suspected violation of the laws and regulations governing correctional facilities. For example, a corrections officer who reports prisoner abuse could be protected by this law.

Abortion Refusal Retaliation (R.S.Mo. 188.105): This statute prohibits employers from taking discriminatory or retaliatory actions against employees who refuse to participate in abortion. It also protects employees who report or oppose discriminatory employment practices against employees who refuse to participate in abortion.

Jury Service Retaliation (R.S.Mo. 490.464): This law prohibits employers from terminating, disciplining, threatening, or taking adverse action against employees who receive or respond to a jury summons. Employers also may not require the employee to use vacation, personal, or sick time to cover the employee’s absence during the time spent serving a juror or potential juror. If an employer discharges an employee on account of the employee’s jury service, the employee can file a lawsuit within 90 days of the termination and seek lost wages and other damages, including reasonable attorney’s fees. 

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Whistleblower Protections for Federal Government Employees

Employees of a federal agency are also given the same protections as private industry businesses when it comes to government waste or fraud. If a government employee knows that unlawful acts are being committed, they can file the same type of whistleblower complaint with the government. Some of the common issues found include:

• Misappropriation of funds
• Mismanagement or waste of government funding
• Violations of laws or federal regulations
• Placing the public trust at risk
• Placing the public health at risk
• Placing the public safety at risk
• Abuse of authority

Other acts of fraud or gross misconduct may fall into this category. If you believe that there is fraud occurring within your government office, contact a whistleblower attorney about your rights to file a claim.

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Contact A Kansas City Whistleblower Attorney About Your Case

Employees who have knowledge of fraudulent practices in their company or government office are encouraged to be a whistleblower. The only way to get these fraudulent acts to end is to make it known that the fraud is occurring. It may be intimidating to report your company for these misdeeds, but it is the right thing to do.

Reporting corporate or government misconduct can be a little complicated. Depending on the type of fraud committed, certain authorities must be notified before a lawsuit can begin. Failure to notify these entities could result in your case being dismissed or receiving a much lower compensation package. When you work with a whistleblower attorney, you do not have to worry about all of these small details; your lawyer will manage these issues.

Stopping fraud should be a priority for everyone. When a business or government agency is committing fraud against the government, everyone pays the price. If you know that fraud is taking place, you don’t have to worry; the law is on your side. Speak with a Kansas City whistleblower retaliation attorney about your case today; contact us now for a free and confidential consultation.

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