Employees Obtain Significant Victory In U.S. Department of Labor Administrative Review Board Ruling
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Administrative Review Board (ARB) issued a 3-2 decision in favor of a whistleblower, Robert Powers, in Powers v. Union Pacific Railroad Company, ARB Case No. 13-034, in a decision that was a resounding victory for employees asserting whistleblower claims. In Powers the ARB held that the correct standard of proof was a contributing factor causation standard for retaliation claims brought under various whistleblower laws enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor. Prior to the decision in Powers, a whistleblower was required to show that his protected activity was the “but for” cause of his termination or other adverse employment action. After Powers an employee need only prove that the protected activity was a “contributing factor” leading to an adverse employment action. This distinction is significant for many reasons, including, perhaps most importantly, an employee's ability to get to...