WASHINGTON, D.C. | December 9, 2020 — Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act, a bipartisan bill led by long-time whistleblower advocates Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) that grants retaliation protections to whistleblowers in the private sector who expose violations of antitrust laws. The bill, which passed in the Senate last year, must now be signed by the President to become law.
The Criminal Antitrust Anti-Retaliation Act provides protections to private sector employee whistleblowers who provide information regarding criminal antitrust violations to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). If an employee believes they are the victim of retaliation, this bill allows the employee to file a complaint with the Secretary of Labor and get reinstated to their former status, if the Secretary finds in their favor. Protected whistleblower channels are paramount to ensuring consumers do not bear the brunt of antitrust violations and whistleblowers do not suffer undue retaliation.
John Kostyack, Executive Director of the National Whistleblower Center, said: “We thank our whistleblower advocates in Congress for drafting and passing this bipartisan bill in defense of whistleblowers and in support of antitrust enforcement. Creating safe, legal avenues for whistleblowers to report instances of antitrust fraud and crime is critical. Reprisal is a serious threat to whistleblowers and to our collective fight against corruption; no whistleblower should suffer retaliation for coming forward in service of the public interest.”
