NJ Supreme Court Rules Whistleblower Law Extends to Watchdog Employees
July 16, 2015
In a unanimous decision issued on Tuesday, the New Jersey Supreme Court widened the state’s whistleblower law, ruling in Lippman v. Ethicon that employees whose jobs entail identifying health and safety risks are entitled to protection under the statute.
The New Jersey Work Environment Council, New Jersey State Industrial Union Council, HPAE, and 24 other community, labor and environmental groups had previously filed a friend of the court brief asking the Supreme Court to uphold the state’s landmark whistleblower law. Consumer advocates and labor unions hailed the MJ Supreme Court’s decision.
Read a Statement from the New Jersey Work Environment Council on the Court’s Decision
“Every health care worker has a responsibility to report violations that affect patient safety,” said Bernie Gerard, vice president of Health Professionals and Allied Employees (HPAE), the state’s largest health care union. “Removing whistleblower protection would have been a huge blow to quality patient care.”