A former university employee recently filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the school for which he previously worked. He claimed that his employer terminated him in response to his decision to report misconduct that the president of the institution was accused of being involved in. A whistleblower who feels that he or she has been wronged by an employer certainly has the right to seek justice in Wisconsin.
In this out-of-state case, the former university employee was a chief financial officer at the school. The school actually just lost a wrongful firing case and had to pay more than $3 million to a previous employee. He said the school fired him after he expressed concerns about how the president was having a personal relationship with a worker who was hired and promoted based on a fake resume.
The man who filed the recent lawsuit also voiced concerns about different monetary decisions being made at the school, such as how certain salaries were given to particular administrators. All of this took place at Chicago State University. The man has filed his suit against the school and the board of trustees, and he is seeking the reinstatement of his job, back pay and damages of more than $50,000.
Employers in Wisconsin cannot retaliate against a whistleblower employee without potentially facing legal action. This is because there are federal protections for workers who have chosen to speak up about unethical behavior at a company. Understanding the particular facts that must be proven in this situation can increase an employee’s chance of succeeding in this type of civil case and possibly being awarded monetary relief for damages.
Source: Chicago Tribune, “2nd former Chicago State employee files whistleblower lawsuit“, Jodi S. Cohen, March 26, 2014
