Many of the issues come to my attention via our Legislative Updates from Missouri NEA. This one applies to all workers.

Missouri NEA Daily Legislative Update Week 5, No. 1, January 31, 2011
By Otto Fajen MNEA Legislative Director
WORKPLACE DISCRIMINATION AND WHISTLE-BLOWER LAW

The House Workforce Development and Workplace Safety Committee met on January 31 and heard HB 205 (Kevin Elmer).  The Association opposes HB 205. The bill makes several harmful changes to the state’s anti-discrimination law in employment, disability and housing and significantly limits and weakens the “whistle-blower” protections that ensure front line employees with the best information and knowledge are able to hold public institutions and public officials accountable for faithfully fulfilling their public duties.

The bill contains many harmful changes to the state’s discrimination law.  Missouri NEA believes that unfair, discriminatory treatment in the workplace should remain unlawful.  Perhaps the most problematic discrimination law change in the bill is the indirect change of the definition of “discrimination”.  The bill would limit workplace discrimination, for example,  to only those cases where discrimination can be shown to be “the motivating factor” of the unfair treatment.   This change will drastically limit the number of cases of improper, discriminatory action where the perpetrator can actually be held accountable in a court of law.  For example, the bill legalizes unfair, discriminatory treatment of employees in the workplace if there can also be shown any other motivating factor for the treatment.

The bill also excuses persons acting on behalf of an employer from liability under the discrimination law.  Limitations on recovery of attorney’s fees make it less likely that otherwise unlawful conduct will be held accountable in a court of law, and the ban on punitive damages for public employers limits the court’s ability to punish unlawful acts in a way that will deter future wrongdoing.

Missouri NEA supports accountability that fosters confidence in our public schools and other public institutions and believes the existing “whistle-blower” protections should remain in place to help ensure that employees can play their role in providing that accountability. The bill significantly weakens the state’s “whistle-blower” statute by narrowly defining  the authority under which the protection exists, stripping the employees of many employers from any protection at all and eliminating the common law protection that currently reflects our core Missouri value that all employees should be able to speak up and help hold employers, especially public employers, accountable for faithfully performing their public duties.