Can someone get fired for testifying against the boss in a lawsuit?

Question

Employee hurt at work-another employee witnessed incident but quit after-injured told superviser, boss, owner-obvious they hurt and now boss denying that employee said anything at the time-that employee had to quit due to pain and is now suing company-since everyone (including superviser, boss, owner, employees) saw that person in obvious pain in front of superviser, boss, owner, can employees be called by the suing employee to testify against the boss that that employee was obviously in pain (sitting on box instead of chair to alleviate pain, keyboard on books to adjust height to alleviate pain). They all saw this employee do this...also makes me wonder what kind of boss we are working for if someone else gets hurt...good paying job, don't want to lose, but scared at the same time about the ethics of employer if someone else gets hurt in the future. Now have to sign "I did not get hurt, I did not witness anyone else get hurt" forms to get paycheck--blackmail/intimidation?

Answer 1

First it would be ILLEGAL to fire someone for giving testimony against their employer, but it will ALWAYS happen. The employer will find some excuse to prosecute the employee and any excuse to get them fired. That’s a simple fact of human nature. If an employee is served with a subpoena and required to testify then the company should not hold them responsible since they are compelled to tell the truth. However, that isn’t always the case and the company could find a way to fire that employee. In fact they could find a way to fire anyone for any reason and if done well it will hold up even in court.

You can’t refuse to testify, and if you talk with the company they may encourage you to take a “vacation” during the trial. That too is illegal. I wouldn’t talk with the company, but I wouldn’t volunteer anything either. If you are called to testify at a trial then I would file a complaint with the prosecution saying that if you testify you could put your job in danger (and keep a copy). Of course that is an invalid excuse and you will have to testify, but you might get the prosecution to treat you as a hostile witness. If you can then you can tell your employers that you did everything you could to avoid testifying, without doing anything illegal. This way you can tell the truth while trying to convince your employer that you are doing it reluctantly and you are loyal to the company.

Do you want to work for a company that tries to deny its employees their health benefit; NO of course not. But, you have to face reality almost every company would try to get out of paying for an on the job injury. They should be insured through the state or privately for this kind of event so the company won’t lose a lot of money, unless they don’t have this insurance. I assume that the Worker’s Compensation Insurance is mandatory for every company in the US though. This should cover the employee’s injury, if it happened on the job. The company’s insurance company should do all that they can do to defend the company and to try and get out of paying.

Of course this isn’t a very moral practice, but it is a legal one. The legal system assumes an adversary relationship between the defense and the offense (prosecution or other lawyer). Under this system each side will do whatever it can, provided it is legal, to defend their client and to shed doubt upon the other side’s case. This insures the best performance, but it also encourages dirty tricks to be used; like Scientific Experts who base their testimony on who is paying them. It is possible to find an Expert to say almost anything you want said. A really good one can get away with calling a dead person alive and claiming the sky is green. They can also fool a lot of juries. Then there are the other tricks we see shown in the movies and TV shows that cover lawyers. Almost all of them are legal and just considered maneuvering, it is why one character on the Fox TV show Justice says, “I have always said that we have the best legal system in the world, IF you have the right lawyer.”

If you are called to testify then there is no reason why you can’t consult with your own lawyer. The company may want you to talk with their lawyer, and hear their spin, but I would rather talk to a lawyer that has your own interests at heart. Most lawyers will give out some free advice over the phone.

Sites for Free legal advice in the US:
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&aq=t&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLR,GGLR:2006-49,GGLR:en&q=Free+Legal+advice
http://www.lawhelp.org/
http://www.freeadvice.com/all_topics.htm
http://www.lawinfo.com/
http://www.lsc.gov/about/grantee_links.php
http://www.thelaw.com/
http://www.flac.ie/
http://www.legalsurvival.com/

[I hope that the injured employee gets all that he deserves, I wish we had a system that would reward insurance companies for doing what is right, not just what saves them money.]

Answer 2

Legally, no they can not fire you for testifying, but I can guarantee this, if you have a lying snake of a boss they will find a way to get rid of you legally. Myself I'd start looking for another job ... NOW! By the way, they can not make you sign any form relating to a legal action to get your check. I'm telling you dude, this is NOT a good job.

Answer 3

If you have been asked to sign what you say just to get your paycheck, that's a violation in and of itself and if that's true of you, then it must be asked of everyone, right?

It would be a good idea to see that the lawyer is provided with a copy of this statement. If all of you got together as a group and confronted the Owner, what then?

Answer 4

That's not right. If you did the work, he owes you the paycheck. Organize the rest of the workers to slow down. I don't know what kind of work you do, but if there isn't a union available, try the labor relations board. Good luck.

Answer 5

i would defenitely say something ! at least the truth !! maybe you would lose your job but after all there is other jobs but there is no alternative to perjury n court especially if this is a long strung out battle in court !! just do the right thing !!! i have seen it happen even it being a 2 year battle and they ended up losing their jobbut at least they found a new and better oppurtunity in life !!! the TRUTH!!!!!!

Answer 6

If you dont get fired watch your back, i would look for another job.

Answer 7

this is illegal retaliation...courts do not like to see this....speak to someone in HR and tell them you will not stand for it...if they refuse contact your local board of labor.

Answer 8

you don't. you just get on with your life.

Answer 9

Duh. YES!