Sec. 16-8a. Protection of employee of public service company, contractor or Nuclear Regulatory Commission from retaliation. Procedures. Regulations.
Sec. 16-8a. Protection of employee of public service company, contractor or
Nuclear Regulatory Commission from retaliation. Procedures. Regulations. (a) No
public service company, as defined in section 16-1, holding company, as defined in
section 16-47, or Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensee operating a nuclear power
generating facility in this state, or person, firm, corporation, contractor or subcontractor
directly or indirectly providing goods or services to such public service company, holding company or licensee, may take or threaten to take any retaliatory action against
an employee for the employee's disclosure of (1) any matter involving the substantial
misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance in the management of such public service
company, holding company or licensee, or (2) information pursuant to section 31-51m.
Any employee found to have knowingly made a false disclosure shall be subject to
disciplinary action by the employee's employer, up to and including dismissal.
(b) Any employee of such a public service company, holding company or licensee,
or of any person, firm, corporation, contractor or subcontractor directly or indirectly
providing goods or services to such a public service company, holding company or
licensee, having knowledge of any of the following may transmit all facts and information in the employee's possession to the Department of Public Utility Control: (1) Any
matter involving substantial misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance in the management of such public service company, holding company or licensee; or (2) any matter
involving retaliatory action or the threat of retaliatory action taken against an employee
who has reported the misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance, in the management of
such public service company, holding company or licensee. With regard to any matter
described in subdivision (1) of this subsection, the department shall investigate such
matter in accordance with the provisions of section 16-8 and shall not disclose the identity of such employee without the employee's consent unless it determines that such
disclosure is unavoidable during the course of the investigation. With regard to any
matter described in subdivision (2) of this subsection, the matter shall be handled in
accordance with the procedures set forth in subsections (c) and (d) of this section.
(c) (1) Not more than thirty business days after receipt of a written complaint, in
a form prescribed by the department, by an employee alleging the employee's employer
has retaliated against an employee in violation of subsection (a) of this section, the
department shall make a preliminary finding in accordance with this subsection.
(2) Not more than five business days after receiving a written complaint, in a form
prescribed by the department, the department shall notify the employer by certified mail.
Such notification shall include a description of the nature of the charges and the substance
of any relevant supporting evidence. The employer may submit a written response and
both the employer and the employee may present rebuttal statements in the form of
affidavits from witnesses and supporting documents and may meet with the department
informally to respond verbally about the nature of the employee's charges. The department shall consider in making its preliminary finding as provided in subdivision (3) of
this subsection any such written and verbal responses, including affidavits and supporting documents, received by the department not more than twenty business days after
the employer receives such notice. Any such response received after twenty business
days shall be considered by the department only upon a showing of good cause and at
the discretion of the department. The department shall make its preliminary finding as
provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection based on information described in this
subdivision, without a public hearing.
(3) Unless the department finds by clear and convincing evidence that the adverse
employment action was taken for a reason unconnected with the employee's report of
substantial misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that an employee was retaliated against in violation of subsection (a) of this
section if the department finds that: (A) The employee had reported substantial misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance in the management of the public service company,
holding company or licensee; (B) the employee was subsequently discharged, suspended, demoted or otherwise penalized by having the employee's status of employment
changed by the employee's employer; and (C) the subsequent discharge, suspension,
demotion or other penalty followed the employee's report closely in time.
(4) If such findings are made, the department shall issue an order requiring the
employer to immediately return the employee to the employee's previous position of
employment or an equivalent position pending the completion of the department's full
investigatory proceeding pursuant to subsection (d) of this section.
(d) Not later than thirty days after making a preliminary finding in accordance with
the provisions of subsection (c) of this section, the department shall initiate a full investigatory proceeding in accordance with the provisions of section 16-8, at which time the
employer shall have the opportunity to rebut the presumption. The department may issue
orders or impose civil penalties in a manner that conforms with the notice and hearing
provisions in section 16-41 against a public service company, holding company or licensee or a person, firm, corporation, contractor or subcontractor directly or indirectly
providing goods or services to such public service company, holding company or licensee, in order to enforce the provisions of this section.
(e) If an employee or former employee of such a public service company, holding
company or licensee, or of a person, firm, corporation, contractor or subcontractor directly or indirectly providing goods or services to such a public service company, holding
company or licensee, having knowledge of any matter involving the substantial misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance in the management of such public service company,
holding company or licensee, enters into an agreement with the employee's employer
that contains a provision directly or indirectly discouraging the employee from presenting a written complaint or testimony concerning such misfeasance, malfeasance or
nonfeasance in any legislative, administrative or judicial proceeding, such provision
shall be void as against public policy.
(f) The Department of Public Utility Control shall adopt regulations, in accordance
with chapter 54, to carry out the provisions of this section. Such regulations shall include
the following: (1) The procedures by which a complaint may be brought pursuant to
subsection (a) of this section; (2) the time period in which such a complaint may be
brought; (3) the time period by which the department shall render a decision pursuant
to subsection (d) of this section; (4) the form on which written complaints shall be
submitted to the department by an employee pursuant to subsection (c) of this section;
and (5) the requirement that a notice be posted in the workplace informing all employees
of any public service company, holding company and licensee and of any person, firm,
corporation, contractor or subcontractor directly or indirectly providing goods or services to a company or licensee, as defined in subsection (b) of this section, of their rights
under this section, including the right to be reinstated in accordance with subsection (c)
of this section.
(P.A. 85-245, S. 1; P.A. 89-88; P.A. 91-247, S. 1; P.A. 96-22, S. 1, 2; P.A. 97-60, S. 1, 2; P.A. 99-46, S. 1, 2.)
History: P.A. 89-88 included provisions re employees of a holding company, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensee, a contractor or a subcontractor and added new Subsec. (c) re department orders to enforce provisions of section;
P.A. 91-247 added provision in Subsec. (a) authorizing persons having knowledge of "the discharge, discipline or penalizing
of a person reporting the misfeasance, or nonfeasance of the company" to report the same to the department, in Subsec.
(c) authorized the department to issue cease and desist orders and added a new Subsec. (d) requiring the department to
adopt regulations to provide employees with information re rights relating to complaints against a company; P.A. 96-22
imposed January 1, 1997, deadline for the department to adopt regulations as provided for in Subsec. (d), effective April
29, 1996; P.A. 97-60 inserted new Subsec. (a) prohibiting retaliation against employees, relettered former Subsec. (a) as
Subsec. (b) and restructured the language, deleted former Subsecs. (b) and (c), inserted new Subsec. (c) creating procedures
for preliminary findings of retaliation and establishing presumptions, inserted new Subsec. (d) describing procedures for
full investigatory proceedings, inserted new Subsec. (e) rendering certain agreements as void, and relettered former Subsec.
(d) as Subsec. (f) and restructured language, effective May 27, 1997; P.A. 99-46 amended Subsec. (c) by deleting provisions
re complaints pending on May 27, 1997, and requiring department to make finding based on sworn affidavits and verified
documents without a public hearing in Subdiv. (1), by rewording language re notice to employer and preliminary findings
in Subdiv. (2), authorizing employee to present rebuttal statements and respond verbally and changing to 20 the number
of days a party can respond to department, by adding provision re adverse employment action taken for reason unconnected
to misfeasance and changing Subpara. (c) criteria in Subdiv. (3), and by adding provision re pending completion of department's full investigatory proceeding in Subdiv. (4), amended Subsec. (d) by adding "Not later than thirty days", and making
technical changes, effective May 27, 1999.
See Sec. 16-8d re recovery of costs or expenses associated with any action brought under section 16-8a.
To the extent that section creates some right of action by a whistleblower, it is a right against a power company and
not against Department of Public Utility Control or the state; section does not require a hearing when department investigates
an employee's whistleblower complaint against a nuclear power company and finds no merit to the complaint. 48 CS 188.