Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Maryland

Re: Discriminatory Retaliation within Retail Industry in Maryland

You should not delay, some whistleblower statutes of limitations are as short as 30 days from the date of the alleged retaliation. A retaliation claim must be brought to the attention of the appropriate government official within that time period or cannot be pursued.

Maryland permits private employee-whistleblowers to base a wrongful discharge action on violation of the public policy. The Court found that a statute reflected the public policy mandate that employees should be encouraged to report suspected criminal activities to the appropriate public authorities.

Another law, the Civil False Claims Act, or the Qui Tam Statute, 31 U.S.C. Section 3729 et seq., allows a private person to sue a person or company who knowingly submits false bills or invoices to the federal government. The Act also protects the reporting person, who may face adverse employment actions such as being �demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment� for acts done in furtherance of filing a claim under the Act. This provision allows reinstatement, double back pay, interest on the back pay, plus special damages including litigation costs and reasonable attorneys� fees.

If you are being discriminated against because of your age, there are also protections under the law.

In Maryland, Md.Code Ann., Art. 49B, � 16(a), prohibits discrimination based on age. You may file a complaint with the Maryland Commission on Human Relations.

The Federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) provides two routes by which aggrieved party may pursue claim for age discrimination in federal district court; under "direct route," ADEA plaintiff may proceed directly to federal court, and only prerequisite to action is timely notice to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) as required by statute or plaintiff may pursue claim administratively via EEOC, and then bring action in federal court if he or she is not satisfied with outcome of administrative process. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, � 15(b-d), as amended, 29 U.S.C.A. � 633a(b-d).