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Sarbanes-Oxley News & Developments
Blowing The Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) WhistleThe Sarbanes-Oxley Act included a groundbreaking provision protecting employees who blow the whistle on corporate fraud.
> > Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) almost a year ago yet many have paid little attention to the whistle-blower provisions. There are now stiff criminal, as well as civil, penalties for violating rights of a whistle-blower. These whistle-blower provisions provide broader remedies for employees than other whistle-blower protection laws, such as protecting employees who face retaliation for reporting environmental or health and safety offenses.
SOX has two enforcement regimes - the civil provision creates a right to reinstatement, back pay and damages for whistle-blowers - the criminal provision makes it a felony to retaliate against a protected whistle-blower.
It is not just corporations that are at risk. Managers - for example, a human relations executive or supervisor of a whistle-blower - can be charged with unlawful retaliation and face up to ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
New rules just issued by OSHA implement new civil protections and have set a fast time frame for filing and responding to complaints. Employees have 90 days after retaliation to file a claim with OSHA, which then gives the employer only 20 days to respond. OSHA has to respond with an initial determination within 60 days after receiving the complaint.
Source: Forbes article
Published:2003-06-23
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