Whistleblower in Arkansas Settles Lawsuit for $87,500

The city of Hot Springs, Arkansas recently paid out $87,500 to settle a lawsuit filed in 2015 stemming from a case of whistleblower retaliation. The settlement terms were publicized after a local paper, the Sentinel-Record, made a request under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

In the lawsuit, a former employee of the city alleged the deputy city manager fired him for corroborating a sexual harassment claim levied against the deputy manager by a female coworker. As a result of the settlement, a federal judge dismissed the employee’s lawsuit against the deputy city manager and the city of Hot Springs.

The man who filed the lawsuit, Bill Boyles, had been working in a managerial role in the city’s solid waste department at the time of the incident. He helped his female coworker file the sexual harassment complaint.

As part of the settlement, neither the deputy city manager nor the city were required to admit any wrongdoing in the incident.

Whistleblower retaliation is illegal

There are many federal protections afforded to whistleblowers, including penalties for employers who fire or otherwise retaliate against employees for speaking out about wrongdoing. Any employer that violates these rules is subject to significant fines and various other penalties.

People who have been victims of whistleblower retaliations have several options available to them, one of which is filing a whistleblower lawsuit against their employer. For more information on the best way to proceed, contact a trusted Dallas whistleblower attorney at Whistleblower Law for Managers.