Associated Industries of Missouri believes corporate whistleblowers deserve protections from actions by their employers, but employers also need to be protected from malicious whistleblowers.
That is the goal of Senate Bill 490, sponsored by State Senator Brad Lager (R-Savannah). The bill was heard in the Senate’s Judiciary Committee this week. The bill seeks to place whistleblower language into state statute. Currently, corporate whistleblower cases are decided by courts on a case by case basis.
Among other things, Senate Bill 490 will:
Make it unlawful to discharge or retaliate against an employee who becomes a whistleblower under the statute.
Guarantee trial by a jury.
Define in statute how a person becomes protected under whistleblower provisions.
Establish the standards for courts to use in lawsuits.
“This bill will establish reasonable protections for valid whistleblowers, but ensure that those that are taking advantage of the current situation inappropriately are not allowed such protection unless the employer is truly violating a statute or regulation,” AIM president Ray McCarty told committee members Monday evening. “The bill erases the ability of someone who is not entitled to protection, to claim protection under the law.”