Tennesse Whistleblower Protections

TN ST § 8-50-116:

(b)(1)  No  head  of  any  state  department,  agency  or  institution, state  employee exercising  supervisory  authority,  other  state  employee  or  state  contractor  shall  recommend  or  act  to  discharge, demote,  suspend,  reassign,  transfer,  discipline,  threaten  or  otherwise discriminate against a state employee regarding the state employee’s  evaluation,  promotion,  compensation,  terms,  conditions, location or privileges of employment, nor may any state employee or state contractor retaliate against another state employee because the employee, or a person acting on behalf of the employee, reports or attempts to report, verbally or in writing…

TN ST § 8-50-116

(b)(1)(A) The  willful  efforts  of  such  person  or  agency  or  contractor to violate a state or federal law, rule or regulation which had or would have had a material and adverse effect upon program operations or program integrity, or the willful efforts to conceal such a violation;

(B) Acts which constituted fraud against the state, the federal government, the public or any fellow employee;

(C) The willful misappropriation of state or federal resources;

(D) Acts which  posed  an  unreasonable  and  specific  danger  to  the health or safety of the public or employees; or

(E)  Acts  constituting  gross  mismanagement  of  a  program,  gross waste of state or federal funds, or gross abuse of authority;

(b)(3)   No  head  of  any  state  department,  agency,  or  institution,  state employee exercising supervisory authority, other state employee or state contractor shall recommend or act to discharge, demote, suspend,  reassign,  transfer,  discipline,  threaten  or  otherwise  retaliate or  discriminate  against  a  state  employee  regarding  the  state  employee’s  evaluation,  promotion,  compensation,  terms,  conditions, location,  or  privileges  of  employment  because  the  employee  refused to carry out a directive if the directive constitutes a violation of state or federal law, rule or regulation, written policy or procedure  which  materially  and  adversely  affects  the  operations  or  integrity of a program or if the directive poses an unreasonable and specific  danger  to  the  health  or  safety  of  the  employee,  the  employees or the public.

TN ST § 8-50-116

(c)  Any state  employee  injured  by  a  violation  of  subsection  (b) may maintain an action in circuit or chancery court within one (1) year after the occurrence of the alleged violation of this section for

actual damages,  injunctive  relief, or  other  remedies  provided  in this section against the person or agency or state contractor, or any of them, who committed the violation. An act or conduct constituting  part  of  an  alleged  continuing  pattern  of  violations  of  this  section shall only be considered in calculating any damages if an action is brought within one (1) year of the occurrence of the act.

(d)(1)  A court, in rendering a judgment in an action brought pursuant  to  this  section,  may  order  injunctive  relief,  actual  damages, reinstatement  of  the  employee,  the  payment  of  back  wages,  full reinstatement of fringe benefits and seniority rights, costs, reasonable attorney’s fees or any combination thereof.

(2) If an application for a permanent injunction is granted, the employee shall be awarded

costs and reasonable attorney’s fees.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-50-1408 (West)

(a) Any person having knowledge of a knowing or willful falsification within the meaning of §§ 49-50-1404 and 49-50-1405 or the waste or mismanagement of public education funds may report or disclose the falsification, waste or mismanagement to the department of education or committee of the general assembly or individual official, member or employee of the department or committee.

(b) The department shall make a thorough investigation of any written report of falsification, waste or mismanagement. No investigation of anonymous reports shall be required by this part. Reports of alleged falsification, waste or mismanagement shall be confidential only to the extent the person reporting requests that the person’s name not be revealed.

(c) No penalty shall attach to the failure to report and a person reporting shall be presumed to be acting in good faith and shall thereby be immune from any liability, civil or criminal, that might otherwise be incurred or imposed for the reporting.

See previous section.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-50-1409 (West):

(a) Any person reporting under this part shall have a civil cause of action against any person or employer who causes a disciplinary action or threat of disciplinary action against the reporting person. An action commenced pursuant to this part may seek appropriate injunctive relief or damages for each violation of this section.

(b) A court, in rendering a judgment over a disciplinary action against a person reporting pursuant to this part, shall order, as the court considers appropriate, reinstatement, payment of back wages, full reinstatement of fringe benefits and seniority rights, actual damages, or any combination of these remedies. A court may also award the complainant all or a portion of the costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney fees.

TN ST §§ 4-18-101 – 4-18-108

Tenn. Code Ann. § 4-18-104 (West)

(c)(1) A person may bring a civil action for a violation of this chapter for the person and either for the state of Tennessee in the name of the state, if any state funds are involved, or for a political subdivision in the name of the political subdivision, if political subdivision funds are involved, or for both the state and political subdivision if state and political subdivision funds are involved. The person bringing the action shall be referred to as the qui tam plaintiff.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 4-18-105 (West)

(b) No employer shall discharge, demote, suspend, threaten, harass, deny promotion to, or in any other manner discriminate against an employee in the terms and conditions of employment because of lawful acts done by the employee on behalf of the employee or others in disclosing information to a government or law enforcement agency or in furthering a false claims action, including investigation for, initiation of, testimony for, or assistance in, an action filed or to be filed under § 4-18-104.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 4-18-104 (West)

(4) If the action is one provided for under subdivision (d)(4), the present or former employee of the state or political subdivision is not entitled to any minimum guaranteed recovery from the proceeds. The court, however, may award the qui tam plaintiff those sums from the proceeds as it considers appropriate, but in no case more than thirty-three percent (33%) of the proceeds if the state or political subdivision goes forth with the action or fifty percent (50%) if the state or political subdivision declines to go forth, taking into account the significance of the information, the role of the qui tam plaintiff in advancing the case to litigation, and the scope of, and response to, the employee’s attempts to report and gain recovery of the falsely claimed funds through official channels.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 4-18-105 (West)

(c) An employer who violates subsection (b) shall be liable for all relief necessary to make the employee whole, including reinstatement with the same seniority status that the employee would have had but for the discrimination, two (2) times the amount of back pay, interest on the back pay, compensation for any special damage sustained as a result of the discrimination, and, where appropriate, punitive damages. In addition, the defendant shall be required to pay litigation costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees. An employee may bring an action in the appropriate chancery court of the state for the relief provided in this subsection (c).

(d) An employee who is discharged, demoted, suspended, harassed, denied promotion, or in any other manner discriminated against in terms and conditions of employment by such person’s employer because of participation in conduct that directly or indirectly resulted in the submission of a false claim to the state or a political subdivision shall be entitled to the remedies under subsection (c) if, and only if, both of the following occur:

(1) The employee voluntarily disclosed information to a government or law enforcement agency or acted in furtherance of a false claims action, including investigation for, initiation of, testimony for, or assistance in an action filed or to be filed; and

(2) The employee had been harassed, threatened with termination or demotion, or otherwise coerced by the employer or its management into engaging in the fraudulent activity in the first place.

T.C.A. §§ 71-5-181 – 71-5-185

Tenn. Code Ann. § 71-5-183 (West)

(g) Any employee, contractor, or agent

Tenn. Code Ann. § 71-5-183 (West)

…lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, agent, or associated others in furtherance of an action under this section or other efforts to stop one (1) or more violations of §§ 71-5-181 — 71-5-185.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 71-5-183 (West)

(d)(1)(A) If the state proceeds with an action brought by a person under subsection (a), a person shall, subject to subdivision (d)(1)(B), receive at least fifteen percent (15%) but not more than twenty-five percent (25%) of the proceeds of the action or settlement of the claim, depending upon the extent to which the person substantially contributed to the prosecution of the action.

(d)(2) If the state does not proceed with an action under this section, the person bringing the action or settling the claim shall receive an amount that the court decides is reasonable for collecting the civil penalty and damages. The amount shall be not less than twenty-five percent (25%) and not more than thirty percent (30%) of the proceeds of the action or settlement and shall be paid out of such proceeds. Such person shall also receive an amount for reasonable expenses which the court finds to have been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs. All such expenses, fees, and costs shall be awarded against the defendant.

(g) Any employee, contractor, or agent shall be entitled to all relief necessary to make that employee, contractor, or agent whole, if that employee, contractor, or agent is discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment because of lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, agent, or associated others in furtherance of an action under this section or other efforts to stop one (1) or more violations of §§ 71-5-181 — 71-5-185. The relief shall include reinstatement with the same seniority status the employee, contractor, or agent would have had but for the discrimination, two (2) times the amount of back pay, interest on the back pay, and compensation for any special damages sustained as a result of the discrimination, including litigation costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees. An action under this subsection (g) may be brought in the appropriate court for the relief provided in this subsection (g), but may not be brought more than three (3) years after the date when the retaliation occurred.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304

Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304

(a)   No employee shall  be  discharged  or  terminated  solely  for refusing  to participate in,  or  for  refusing  to  remain  silent  about, illegal activities.

(b)  In addition  to  all  employees  in  private  employment,  the provisions of this section shall apply to all employees who receive compensation from the federal government for services performed for  the  federal  government,  notwithstanding  that such  persons  are not full-time employees of the federal government.

(g)  As used in this section:

(1) “Employee”   includes   an   employee   of   the   state,   or   any municipality,   county, department,   board,   commission,   agency, instrumentality, political  subdivision  or any  other  entity thereof;

Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304

(a)   No employee shall  be  discharged  or  terminated  solely  for refusing  to participate in,  or  for  refusing  to  remain  silent  about, illegal activities.

(c)  As used in this section, “illegal activities” means activities that are in violation  of  the  criminal  or  civil  code  of  this  state  or  the United  States  or  any regulation  intended  to  protect  the  public health, safety or welfare.

(e)(1)   No  employee  shall  be  discharged  or  terminated  solely  for participating  or engaging  in  the  use  of  an  agricultural  product  not regulated   by   the   alcoholic beverage   commission   that   is   not otherwise  proscribed  by  law,  if  such  employee participates  or engages in such use in a manner that complies with all applicable employer  policies  regarding  such  use  during  times  at  which  such

employee is working.

(2)  No  employee  shall  be  discharged  or  terminated  solely  for participating  or engaging  in  the  use  of  such  product not  regulated by   the   alcoholic   beverage commission that is not otherwise

proscribed by law if such employee participates or engages in such activity during times when such employee is not working.

Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304

(d)(1)

Any employee terminated in violation of subsection (a) shall have   a   cause of   action   against   the   employer   for   retaliatory discharge  and  any  other  damages  to which  the  employee  may  be entitled.

(2) Any  employee  terminated  in  violation  of  subsection  (a)  solely for refusing to participate in, or for refusing to remain silent about, illegal  activities  who prevails  in  a  cause  of  action  against  an

employer for retaliatory discharge for such actions shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees and costs.