Workers could challenge retaliation and seek rewards for FTC tips

Businesses and individuals under FTC authority would be barred from punishing people for protected reports. Covered violations would include breaking laws or rules the FTC enforces or final FTC orders still in effect. Reports could go to public agencies, supervisors, or coworkers reasonably believed able to address the issue. Reports would require a reasonable belief that a covered violation was involved. Public recipients would also include law enforcement agencies and members or committees of Congress.

Workers could bring retaliation claims in federal court and receive a jury trial. These rights would apply to whistleblowers alleging retaliation prohibited by the proposal. Employment agreements could not waive these rights, and arbitration agreements made before the dispute could not force these retaliation claims into arbitration. A business reported by a whistleblower could not enforce an agreement preventing that person from pursuing a lawful occupation. Claims could not be filed more than six years after retaliation or more than three years after key facts were known or reasonably knowable. A ten-year outer limit would also apply.

The FTC would pay qualifying whistleblowers a share of collected enforcement payments. Current or former employees, contractors and their workers, grant recipients, and agents of an entity under FTC authority, or their helpers, could qualify. Successful FTC cases, including related cases, must involve counted payments exceeding $1 million. People with these work or grant ties must take a protected action, or helpers must assist them with it. Tips must go voluntarily to the FTC and provide original information that leads to successful enforcement. The 10%–30% share would be a combined total if several whistleblowers qualify.

People with certain work or grant ties, and their helpers, could qualify for whistleblower awards. The ties would include current or former employment, contracting, grant support, or acting as an agent for an entity under FTC authority. The person with those ties would need to take an action protected by the proposal, or the helper would need to assist that person with such an action.

People submitting both an award claim and its supporting tip anonymously would need a lawyer, and intentional falsehoods would block an award. These requirements would apply to people seeking whistleblower awards. Original information must come from independent knowledge or analysis. Information already known to the FTC would qualify only if the whistleblower was its original source. Information drawn only from allegations in court or agency cases, government reports, hearings, audits, investigations, or news media would qualify only if the whistleblower was a source. Other award exclusions involve related convictions, certain involvement in wrongdoing, filing failures, and information learned through normal FTC or law-enforcement duties. The wording leaves unclear whether any one alone would bar payment. Anonymous applicants would have to disclose their identities before receiving an award.