Mayer bill addresses 'whistle-blower protection' for employees

DEXTER, Mo. -- Eyebrows are being raised by lawmakers across the state at a piece of legislation sponsored by Sen. Rob Mayer, R-Dexter.

Senate Bill 1046, if approved, would explicitly dictate what is needed for employees to claim whistle-blower protection against Missouri employers who terminate the employment of the employees that choose not to 'look the other way' when laws are broken or policies violated.

The state of Missouri, like more than 40 other states, is an at-will employment state. In an at-will employment state, employers do not need a specific reason, in most cases, to hire or fire employees. Under several state statutes, however, there are exceptions. Employees can file suit for wrongful termination if they believe they were fired due to race, gender or sexual orientation, or because they acted as a whistle-blower and the employer retaliated with termination.

Missouri's current whistle-blower exemption states that employees cannot be terminated for reporting being a witness to or asked to participate in an activity that is illegal or is in violation of generally accepted public policy.

Sen. Mayer was unavailable at press time for comment on SB 1046.

One of the bill's supporters is Associated Industries of Missouri (AIM) President Gary Marble. Marble cited that the bill responds to recent court decisions that AIM believes has increased the amount of unnecessary lawsuits that stem from whistle-blowing and these recent court decisions have expanded the whistle-blower statute beyond its intended purposes.

"Employers need to have the ability to hire and utilize human resources the way they need to in order to be effective and competitive," said Marble. "These types of court rulings can prevent that type of growth in our state."