Retaliation Attorney in Chicago — Workplace Retaliation Claims
Workplace retaliation occurs when an employer takes adverse action against an employee for engaging in legally protected activity. Retaliation claims are among the most common employment law cases filed with the EEOC, and our retaliation attorneys at Liberum Law have extensive experience representing employees in these matters throughout Chicago and Illinois.
Protected activities that employers cannot retaliate against include filing a discrimination or harassment complaint with the EEOC or state agency, reporting workplace safety violations to OSHA, filing a workers’ compensation claim, exercising rights under FMLA or other leave laws, participating as a witness in an investigation or litigation, reporting illegal activity (whistleblowing), and requesting reasonable accommodations for a disability.
Retaliation can take many forms beyond termination. Adverse actions include demotion or reduction in responsibilities, pay cuts or denial of raises and bonuses, transfer to a less desirable position or shift, exclusion from meetings, projects, or opportunities, increased scrutiny or negative performance reviews, hostile treatment by supervisors or coworkers, and constructive discharge through intolerable working conditions.
To establish a retaliation claim, you must show that you engaged in protected activity, your employer took an adverse action against you, and there is a causal connection between the protected activity and the adverse action. Our attorneys build strong cases by documenting the timeline, gathering evidence of the employer’s knowledge and motive, and demonstrating the connection between your protected activity and the employer’s response.
Remedies for workplace retaliation may include reinstatement to your prior position, back pay and front pay, compensatory damages for emotional distress, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees. Our retaliation lawyers fight to maximize recovery for every client.
Do not let fear of retaliation prevent you from exercising your legal rights. Contact Liberum Law for a free consultation with our employment retaliation attorneys.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is workplace retaliation?
Adverse action taken against an employee for engaging in legally protected activity — filing discrimination complaints, reporting harassment, requesting reasonable accommodation, raising wage concerns, refusing illegal activity, whistleblowing, jury duty, military service, or workers' comp claims. Retaliation is often a stronger claim than the underlying complaint.
What counts as an "adverse action"?
Anything that would dissuade a reasonable employee from making a complaint: termination, demotion, pay cut, schedule change, exclusion from meetings, denial of promotion, written discipline, transfer to a worse location. Courts use a broad standard for retaliation than for discrimination.
What's the deadline to file a retaliation claim?
Federal claims (Title VII, ADA, ADEA): 300 days with the EEOC in Illinois. State whistleblower: varies by statute (often 1 year). Workers' comp retaliation: 3 years. Sarbanes-Oxley: 180 days. We identify the deadline applicable to your case at consultation.
Can I win retaliation even if the original complaint was unfounded?
Yes — retaliation requires only that you made the complaint in good faith and were subjected to adverse action because of it. Many strong retaliation cases have weak underlying discrimination claims. The retaliation itself is the violation.
What damages can I recover for retaliation?
Back pay, front pay, emotional distress damages, punitive damages, attorney's fees. Under Title VII and ADA, total compensatory and punitive damages are capped by employer size ($50,000–$300,000). Some retaliation statutes (FCA, SOX, certain state laws) have no cap.
