U.S. Labor Department Reinstates Regional Solicitor Who Filed Whistleblower Complaint Against Former Labor Secretary
February 9, 2021, Washington, D.C., – Effective Wednesday, February 10, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) will reinstate Janet Herold as the Regional Solicitor for the Western Region, the largest of DOL’s enforcement regions.
As widely reported, on August 7, 2020, Ms. Herold filed a whistleblower complaint with the Office of Special Counsel (“OSC”) alleging unlawful retaliation and discrimination because of her objections to then-Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia’s improper involvement in settlement negotiations with Oracle, a company with strong political ties to the Trump Administration, and because of her vigorous enforcement of federal laws on behalf of workers.
Despite repeated requests by the OSC for DOL to halt any action against Ms. Herold while the independent agency investigated her whistleblower complaint, DOL moved forward with its actions against Ms. Herold, culminating in former Secretary Scalia ordering her termination effective January 11, 2021.
“I am pleased to be reinstated and am eager to continue my work at the Department of Labor fighting and standing up for workers,” Ms. Herold said in response to her reinstatement.
“This immediate reinstatement is a clear vindication of both Ms. Herold’s outstanding work for the Department and the validity of the concerns that spurred her to raise her voice and blow the whistle,” explained Alexis Ronickher, Ms. Herold’s counsel.
Ms. Herold has been represented in this matter by Debra Katz and Alexis Ronickher of Katz, Marshall & Banks, LLP, and Bryan Schwartz of Bryan Schwartz Law, P.C..
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