Has your boss asked you to commit perjury

[date_with_the_co urtroom]

Sorry for the delay. I have had someone looking over my shoulder a lot.

It is a defective product issue. Civil case.

I am so scared. I don't want to lose my job, but I would rather be unemployed than commit perjury. I do NOT want to go to jail.

I would email the person back, but I might be possible that they are the person or attorney suing us, or worse....my boss.

[Devil Annie]

Never, ever email anyone commenting on Topix, regardless of the circumstances. There are more trolls here per capita than just about any other site.

[Miss Practicality]

Do not lie. If something is going so horribly wrong with the company that you're going to court, the whole thing may be about to collapse anyway and you may lose your job regardless. You don't know how things will play out, so better to be on the right side of the law and your conscience.

[Tru dat]

date_with_the_courtroom wrote:

Sorry for the delay. I have had someone looking over my shoulder a lot.
It is a defective product issue. Civil case.
I am so scared. I don't want to lose my job, but I would rather be unemployed than commit perjury. I do NOT want to go to jail.
I would email the person back, but I might be possible that they are the person or attorney suing us, or worse....my boss.

You would be protected as a whistleblower. If they fire you it would be retaliatory in nature. You would have your own legal battle, but would get backpay and reinstatement in the end if they fire you. The government has specifically passed laws to protect people in your position.

Just know that the law firm representing your company does not represent you. Watch what you tell them.

[Tru dat]

That is, if you report the problem to a consumer protection or govt agency beforehand. Not sure the details of the lawsuit, but you can protect yourself by reporting it as well. Then you may testify openly and are protected.

[Tru Dis]

The Whistleblower Protection Act extends only to federal employees. It does not extend to employees in private industry.

Chances are that she/he is not covered under any whistleblower protection laws.

[Tru dat]

Tru Dis wrote:

The Whistleblower Protection Act extends only to federal employees. It does not extend to employees in private industry.
Chances are that she/he is not covered under any whistleblower protection laws.

It is any industry. Private employers and govt employers alike.

Know before adding your comments.

[Judge Biship]

date_with_the_courtroom wrote:

I do not want to lose my job of nearly 2 decades but I do not want to commit perjury either. How can I tactfully get out of this without getting fired?
Anyone been in a situation like this?

When you go to court and swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth and you raise your right hand and say "Yes or I do" you have committed yourself to telling the truth! So what is your problem?

[Devil Annie]

No, the Whistleblower Protection Act is not equally applicable to both private and government employers. That is a common misconception.

By all means, though, feel free to keep pulling crap out of your rear end and flinging it against the wall like so much monkey poo, in the desperate hope that some of it will stick.

I will neither read nor respond to you further, however, because I refuse to have any part in the horrendously bad advice you are giving this person.

[Tru dat]

Devil Annie wrote:

No, the Whistleblower Protection Act is not equally applicable to both private and government employers. That is a common misconception.
By all means, though, feel free to keep pulling crap out of your rear end and flinging it against the wall like so much monkey poo, in the desperate hope that some of it will stick.
I will neither read nor respond to you further, however, because I refuse to have any part in the horrendously bad advice you are giving this person.

Hilarious that you did a quick search for the term "whistleblower" without looking further. "Whistleblowing" is a broad term and is encompassed in more than just laws pertaining to federal workers and the specific Act you mentioned.

Employees of private companies have whistleblowing protection in various federal acts including the Americans with Disabilities Act and complaints involving the EEOC. Where a union is involved, private emplooyes are protected under the National Labor Relations Act. If it is something against public policy, one can bet there is a law that shields the one who brings it to the attention of an entity like the NLRB or OSHA.

Are you seriously implying that the Americans with Disabiliies Act does not apply to private employers and that parts of the Act do not shield those who report infractions?

The definition alone should give away the answer:

"A whistleblower (whistle-blower or whistle blower)[1] is a person who tells the public or someone in authority about alleged dishonest or illegal activities (misconduct) occurring in a government department, a public or private organization, or a company."

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistleblower_...

It is probably best that you do stay away since you are obviously confused.

The original poster could give some more precise information to see exactly what Act or statute protects them.

[Wendy]

Get your own lawyer now. No one would suggest that you commit perjury (perjury is more than just lying under oath, the lie must relate materially to the issue), but perjury is common and rarely prosecuted. This is not legal advice, get a lawyer who will help protect you!

[Tru dat]

Wendy wrote:

Get your own lawyer now. No one would suggest that you commit perjury (perjury is more than just lying under oath, the lie must relate materially to the issue), but perjury is common and rarely prosecuted. This is not legal advice, get a lawyer who will help protect you!

He is saying that the boss is asking him to lie about the product or the method of making that product apparently.

That would be material to the case.

If the boss is asking him to lie about the toupee that the boss wears it would not be perjury.

[Wendy]

I don't think he said what the lie was concerning, something like whether certain testing was done may not be material to the case but may get the boss fired. We do not know whether the boss is protecting himself or the compaony against liability.

[Tru dat]

Wendy wrote:

I don't think he said what the lie was concerning, something like whether certain testing was done may not be material to the case but may get the boss fired. We do not know whether the boss is protecting himself or the compaony against liability.

The poster was very vague.

Defective products and products liability seems to implicate the company whether the lie is to benefit the company or just the boss.

The poster could get a more precise answer if he would give some more info.

Does the lie involve standard operating procedures, where the boss ate lunch, etc.

[Wendy]

Another thing is that the case may not go to trial and will be settled.

I think that you will be OK if you don't panic.

[Tru dat]

Tru Dis wrote:

The Whistleblower Protection Act extends only to federal employees. It does not extend to employees in private industry.
Chances are that she/he is not covered under any whistleblower protection laws.

"An employee is protected from being fired in retaliation for answering questions during an employer's investigation of suspected sexual harassment, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday, January 26, 2009.

The unanimous court ruled the federal civil rights law's anti-retaliation provision for employees who report workplace sex or race discrimination also extended to an internal investigation of a supervisor or another worker."

And what kind of work does the plaintiff do?

"The ruling was a victory for Vicky Crawford, who had been a payroll coordinator for more than 30 years for the public school system in Nashville and Davidson County in Tennessee."

http://www.waemploymentlawblog.com/blog/2009/...

Wait a minute! Didn't you say that only federal employees were covered?

What gives?

You were wrong.

[Tru dat]

Devil Annie wrote:

No, the Whistleblower Protection Act is not equally applicable to both private and government employers. That is a common misconception.
By all means, though, feel free to keep pulling crap out of your rear end and flinging it against the wall like so much monkey poo, in the desperate hope that some of it will stick.
I will neither read nor respond to you further, however, because I refuse to have any part in the horrendously bad advice you are giving this person.

Private sector employees are also protected by court interpretation and other state and federal statutes.

Read all about it on page 35 of this U.S. House of Representatives hearing before the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections.

I thought this was over, but apparently Drama Annie thinks one must be trolling if they disagree with her.

[Tru dat]

Here is the link:

http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent...

[1down2togo]

When I worked for Civic Development and the investigation into them over unpaid wages were brought to the Huntington location we were told by the managers, specifically Shawn Smith to deny it or we would be fired. I told the truth and I got fired 2 days later as I refuse to lie for anyone.

[Faust The Unbound]

Tru dat wrote:

<quoted text>
Perjury is a felony.
You can record away without any legal repercussion. You can record by phone in wv without needing the permission of the party on the other end of the line. In wv only one party to the conversation must consent. As long as YOU know it is being recorded that is perfectly legal.

of course he can record without any legal backfire. however it can not be used in a court of law because the record was taken without the recorded parties knowledge of the recording. outside of a court yeah it can be used however but aside from that in the persecution of someone it would be immediately dismissed