Business owners and managers are required to engage in business in a fair, equitable, and unbiased manner. Multiple California and federal laws are in place to ensure businesses operate according to fair business ethics. The purpose of business ethics laws is to protect the rights of employees, ensure employees receive fair treatment in the workplace, hold employers accountable, and make employers liable for ethics violations.
Types of Ethics Investigations
Ethics investigations in the workplace can arise from many different types of situations, and they will depend on the underlying state or federal law. When employees file claims about sexual harassment, discrimination, hostile work environments, and other unethical conditions in the workplace, there will almost always be investigations into the facts of the situation. When employers make legally protected whistleblower claims about illegal behavior on the part of their employers, investigators will look into the company and the alleged violations.
Should I Participate in an Ethics Violation Investigation as an Employee?
Depending on your unique situation and the circumstances involved, state and federal laws May provide you with legal protection during this time as an employee. You may wonder whether you should agree to participate in the investigation and how that could hurt you. Employees who participate in ethics investigations, including administrative and criminal investigations, will be protected against employer retaliation.
In other words, your employer cannot fire you, demote you, or transfer you to a worse working environment or place you want a more difficult schedule because you participated in an ethics violation. Taking adverse actions against employees for participating in whistleblower claims or investigations is considered unlawful retaliation. If you’ve been retaliated against, you can pursue a claim for compensation from your employer.
Providing Legal Counsel to California Residents Regarding Ethics Investigations
Being involved in an ethics investigation can be challenging for employees. One of the best things you can do is reach out to an attorney who can ensure you’re fully educated about your rights and the investigation process.
If complications or disputes arise during the investigation, HKM Employment Attorneys are equipped with the experience and skills to fight for your rights. We will draw from our experience as employment defense attorneys to use our insight to anticipate your employer’s actions and how we can best protect your rights.
How Ethics Investigations Usually Work
When you work with HKM Employment Attorneys, we will begin by asking questions and gaining a better understanding of what’s happening in your case. We may talk to your company’s management to understand the company’s history better. We will focus on the proper Department to confirm the allegations and build your case. Our legal team has the resources to interview everyone involved discreetly and collect as much evidence and information as we can during the investigation phase.
Practice Areas of Workplace Ethics Investigation Attorneys
HKM Employment Attorneys has extensive experience representing employees in a wide range of ethics violation cases. Proving ethics violations can be more challenging than it may seem. Businesses may try to claim that they had valid, lawful reasons for taking adverse action against an employee when engaging in unlawful discrimination or retaliation.
Our team is prepared to provide you with excellent legal counsel. For example, if you were harassed by a coworker, manager, client, customer, contractor, or anyone else at work, we can interview the alleged perpetrator.
If you were wrongfully terminated from your position, we would investigate how other employees were treated in the same or similar situations. We will also investigate your employment contract to see if your employer violated it when terminating you. Our investigators will find any available evidence showing that your employer violated anti-discrimination, anti-harassment, or any other type of employment law at the state or federal level.
If you were passed over for a promotion and you suspect it was because of discrimination or in retaliation for reporting employment violations, we will investigate your case. We will look into who else applied for the position, why they were chosen, and whether your employer can justify choosing them.
Discrimination and Harassment
Many ethics investigation claims involve discrimination and harassment in the workplace, including sexual harassment and creating a hostile work environment. If you have been harassed or witnessed other coworkers being harassed, the problem may be more widespread than many people realize.
When employers permit an environment where discrimination or harassment is allowed or even promoted, the problem can become widespread and hurt many employees. An ethics investigation into discrimination or harassment will include talking to victims and witnesses, Gathering any evidence of the harassment or discrimination, and looking for other incidences of discrimination or harassment.
The Benefits of Speaking to an Employment Attorney
If a coworker or your employer has mistreated you, you deserve a hard-hitting advocate who can find out the truth and hold any guilty parties liable. By speaking up, you are not only protecting yourself and holding your employer accountable, but you are also protecting other employees from being mistreated in the future. You may be entitled to multiple types of compensation through a legal claim against your employer. Compensation could include back pay, front pay, emotional distress, punitive damages, and attorneys fees and costs.
Discuss Your Case With a Riverside Ethics Investigation Attorney
Suppose you find yourself participating in an ethics investigation as a voluntary participant, or you are an employee who’s been unlawfully retaliated against for participating in an ethics investigation. In that case, you will benefit from speaking to an experienced attorney.
HKM Employment Attorneys are prepared to help you walk through this process step by step and help you make informed decisions throughout the process. We will provide you and your case with the personal intention it needs and deserves. When you work with us, you can be confident that our proven legal advocates will be on your side to ensure your rights and confidentiality are protected.
