Subtle Signs of Workplace Retaliation

Employers aren't supposed to retaliate against employees who assert their workplace rights. However, some employers do engage in retaliatory actions if they disagree with their employees. Some forms of retaliation, such as demotion or firing, are overt enough. Others are more subtle. Below are some signs of these subtle forms of retaliation.

The Silent Treatment

You should be suspicious if your employer, supervisor, or colleagues suddenly ignore you after a complaint. Isolation or the silent treatment might be a subtle sign of retaliation. Maybe the management has badmouthed you to your colleagues, or your supervisor has decided to squeeze you out of the company via isolation.

The silent treatment can take various forms. Consider a case where an employee makes a sexual harassment claim against their employer. Soon after:

• The management leaves the employee out of meetings they used to attend before;
• Colleagues who used to take lunch with the employee get too busy during lunch;
• The employee only hears about networking events in the grapevine or after the events.

You might be the victim of retaliation if you are such an employee.

Unusual Shift Change

Typically, companies that operate in shifts switch things up for employees now and then. The reassignment makes sense since some shifts are more tiresome, dangerous, or inconvenient for employees. Therefore, mere reassignment does not equal retaliatory tactics.

However, you should be suspicious if you suddenly get all the worst possible shifts after a complaint. Maybe the supervisor used to switch things up every two weeks, but you have been doing the graveyard shift for the last month or so.

Reduced Working Hours

An employer can also retaliate against you by reducing your number of working hours. That means reduced pay for those who receive hourly pay. Maybe you are a part-time employee, and your job description does not specify your minimum hours. Alternatively, maybe you have a fixed number of hours plus regular overtime.

Consider a restaurant worker who works 35 hours per week plus regular overtime over the weekends. A short while after making a workers compensation claim, the employer does not schedule the employee for any more overtime hours. In the meantime, the employer schedules all the other employees at the same level l the usual amount of overtime hours.

Denied Opportunities

Many employers provide their employees with career-improvement opportunities. For example, an employer may:

• Provide ongoing education for their workers;
• Give eligible employees time off for further education, licensing, or recertification;
• Hold seminars in relevant fields. 

Thus, you should be suspicious if your employer used to provide such opportunities, but they have since stopped. You should especially be concerned if the cessation hasn't affected everyone in the company.

Excessive Micromanagement

People have different management styles. Some prefer a hands-off approach, while others prefer to micromanage every situation as closely as possible. Thus, micromanagement by itself isn't an issue, even if you don't like it.

The problem arises if the micromanagement becomes excessive only after you have raised a workplace complaint. Again, you should be doubly suspicious if you are the only one at the receiving end of the excessive micromanagement.

Excessively Negative Performance Review

For employees who undergo regular performance reviews, an excessively negative review might be a retaliatory sign. Of course, you have to consider the negative review within the existing circumstances. Consider an employee who:

• Has always had stellar reviews;
• Hasn't changed their work routine or productivity;
• Has never experienced any disciplinary actions or warnings. 

After the employee testifies in a hearing against their employer, the next performance review returns an excessively negative rating. Such an employee might be the victim of workplace retaliation.

Not every negative experience in the workplace is a sign of retaliation and a lawyer will need to evaluate the totality of the circumstances. You need an experienced lawyer to evaluate the circumstances and help you determine whether your case qualifies as retaliation. Contact Allen D. Arnold Attorney at Law to evaluate your case and determine the possible remedies.

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