Payback from managers and supervisors keeps workers from reporting safety risks and job dangers while the risk of job site injury rises

This week, an unidentified Illinois factory worker was quoted in Forbes, describing his (or her) dilemma in deciding whether or not to report a work site safety concern.

The Illinois factory worker explained the choice: either report the job site danger and deal with retribution from bosses and supervisors, or just be silent and hope for the best.

For details, read “Fear On The Factory Floor Is Bad For Business,” written by Madeline James and published by Forbes on October 15, 2018.

Retaliation Risk for Workers Reporting Job Dangers in Illinois and Indiana

Sadly, employees and workers throughout Indiana and Illinois, along with the rest of the country, are often scared silent about their worries regarding work site dangers because they believe they will be fired or otherwise punished by employers for speaking up about the safety hazard.  Forbes reports the number of employees who suffered retaliation because of a safety complaint has doubled since 2013 according to a recent Ethics and Compliance Initiative study.

For details on this ongoing problem specifically in Illinois, read the 64-page report entitled “Challenging the Business of Fear,” published by the National Economic and Social Rights Initiative (NESRI) and Raise the Floor Alliance.

From the report (page 46):

With at least a third of Illinois workers living paycheck to paycheck and no reliable safety net to enable most to walk away from even an abusive job, an effective workplace enforcement system is more important than ever. Despite the state’s reliance on workers to trigger enforcement, Illinois has failed to respond to the range of retaliation and intimidation tactics used to evade accountability to basic workplace standards.

Laws Forbid Reprisal against Workers for Reporting Work Dangers

Of course, there are “anti-retaliation” laws in place under both the state laws of Indiana and Illinois as well as federal statute.

For instance, an October 2018 case out of the federal appeals court for the Sixth Circuit (covering the states of Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee), confirms that Section 105(c) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act (Mine Act) was violated when a miner was fired for reporting his safety concerns about the mine’s working environment.  See, CON-AG, INC. V. SEC’Y OF LABOR, No. 17-4200 (6th Cir. July 26, 2018).

Another example can be found in the Federal “Stop Work” Regulation, which is overseen by OSHA.  This includes an anti-retaliation protection for workers who refuse to work because of a high risk danger on the job.  See, Dangerous Work Site: Your Right to Stop Work to Avoid Injury or Death.

Nevertheless, current legal protections are not enough to protect workers from being hurt.  Employees in Indiana and Illinois are working with the risk of being seriously injured or killed on the job site because employers are not keeping a safe working environment.

Safety Costs Balance against the Risk of Work Related Job Site Injuries

From the company’s viewpoint, it may be too expensive to implement safety protections on the job site.  Managers or supervisors may not want to mar their report to upper management with any complaints from workers on their watch.

This leaves workers faced with being intimidated, bullied, and ostracized as a complainer or troublemaker, or terminated from their job should they come forward and voice concerns about job site dangers.

See: Dirty Dozen Report:  No Surprise the Most Dangerous Workplaces are Extremely Profitable Companies.

Legal Claims for Workers injured on the Job Site in Indiana or Illinois

Injuries on the job can be serious, sometimes fatal.  The duties of the employer as well as on-site management include providing a safe environment for every worker.  Whether the employee is full-time or part-time, seasonal or temporary, there are longstanding legal protections in place to keep workers safe from harm while working on the job site.  Sadly, these laws are often disrespected and disregarded.

Why?  Safety measures cost money.  All too often, companies will choose profits over people.  Profit margins are often the reason for retaliation and payback against employees and workers who dare to come forward with concerns for job site hazards or work dangers.   

When someone is injured on the job, any evidence of past retaliation or retribution because of employees reporting work site dangers works to bolster the claims made by or on behalf of that injury victim.

Retaliation and Injury Claims for the Worker Hurt on the Job Site

For a worker injured on the job here in Indiana or Illinois, where the cause of the accident was a safety issue or site danger that was outside that worker’s control, both that accident victim and his or her loved ones may investigate their legal rights under state and federal law.

Evidence of past whistleblower retaliation, or a company pattern of discouraging reporting of safety concerns, may be important in these worker injury cases.

In our next post, we will discuss the circumstances where an injured worker who was hurt while on the job can pursue a damages claim under the Worker’s Compensation Laws of Indiana or Illinois, and when that worker injured on a job site in either state can pursue a claim under personal injury laws or wrongful death statutes.  Please be careful out there!