Whistleblowing, Wrongful Termination Claims and Counseling

Although Arizona is an “at will” employment state, employers may not fire employees for unlawful reasons, including age, disability, sex, pregnancy, race, national origin or religion. Similarly, an employer may not terminate an employee for whistleblowing or taking time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

If an employer fires an employee in violation of state or federal statute, the employee may seek reinstatement, wage loss or other damages. Under these laws, an employer is barred from taking adverse action because the employee filed an internal or external complaint of discrimination, reported violations of law by the employer or participated in the investigation of another employee’s complaint of discrimination. This includes claims by employees who have knowledge of fraud committed against the government in qui tam actions under the False Claims Act. We regularly counsel individuals and employers regarding these claims.

Faulkner Law Offices has decades of experience counseling clients in these matters, including proactive measures to avoid these claims. If you believe you have been a victim of retaliation or are an employer defending a wrongful termination claim, please contact our offices to discuss your matter immediately. Many of these claims have very short time frames, some of which may be as short as 30 days after an employee becomes aware of the adverse action.