Whistleblower Protection for Pipeline 

Facility Workers

Owners and operators of pipeline facilities and their contractors and subcontractors 

are prohibited from retaliating against employees for reporting potential violations of 

federal law related to pipeline safety or engaging in other protected activities.

The Pipeline Safety Improvement Act (PSIA), 

49 U.S.C. § 60129, provides retaliation protections 

for employees of pipeline owners and operators and 

employees of their contractors and subcontractors.

Covered Employees

Under PSIA, employees of owners and operators 

of pipeline facilities and employees of their 

contractors and subcontractors are protected from 

retaliation for engaging in protected activities. 

Protected Activity

If your employer is covered under PSIA, it 

may not discharge you or in any other manner 

retaliate against you because you:

• Provided, caused to be provided, or are about 

to provide to the employer or the federal 

government information relating to any violation 

or alleged violation of federal pipeline safety law.

• Refused to engage in any practice made unlawful 

by federal pipeline safety law, if you have 

identified the alleged illegality to the employer. 

• Provided, caused to be provided, or are about 

to provide testimony before Congress, or any 

federal or state proceeding regarding any 

provision (or proposed provision) of federal 

pipeline safety law. 

• Commenced, caused to be commenced, or 

are about to commence a proceeding under 

federal pipeline safety law, or a proceeding 

for the administration or enforcement of any 

requirement imposed under federal pipeline 

safety law.

• Provided, caused to be provided, or are 

about to provide testimony in any proceeding 

described in the previous bullet.

• Assisted or participated or are about to 

assist or participate in any manner in such a 

proceeding in any other action to carry out the 

purposes of federal pipeline safety law.

What Is Retaliation?

Retaliation is an adverse action against an 

employee because of activity protected by PSIA. 

Retaliation can include several types of actions, 

such as: 

• Firing or laying off 

• Demoting

• Denying overtime or promotion

• Disciplining

• Denying benefits

• Failure to hire or rehire

• Intimidation or harassment

• Making threats

• Reassignment to a less desirable position or 

actions affecting promotion prospects

• Reducing pay or hours

• More subtle actions, such as isolating, 

ostracizing, mocking, or falsely accusing the 

employee of poor performance 

• Blacklisting (intentionally interfering with 

an employee’s ability to obtain future 

employment) 

• Constructive discharge (quitting when an 

employer makes working conditions intolerable 

due to the employee’s protected activity) 

• Reporting the employee to the police or 

immigration authorities

Deadline for Filing Complaints

Employees must file complaints within 180 days 

after learning of the adverse action. 

How to File a PSIA Complaint

An employee, or their representative, can 

file a PSIA complaint with OSHA by visiting 

or calling their local OSHA office, sending a 

written complaint to the closest OSHA office, 

or filing a complaint online. No particular form 

is required and complaints may be submitted 

in any language.

FactSheet
Written complaints may be filed by fax, 

electronic communication, hand delivery 

during business hours, U.S. mail (confirmation 

services recommended), or other third-party 

commercial carrier.

The date of the postmark, fax, electronic 

communication, hand delivery, delivery to a 

third-party commercial carrier, or in-person filing 

at an OSHA office is considered the date filed. 

To file a complaint electronically, please visit 

www.osha.gov/whistleblower/WBComplaint.

To contact an OSHA area office, please call 

1-800-321-OSHA (6742) to be connected to 

the closest area office. Or visit our website at 

www.osha.gov/contactus/bystate and click on 

your state to find your local OSHA office address 

and contact information. 

When OSHA receives a complaint, the agency 

will first review it to determine whether certain 

basic requirements are met, such as whether the 

complaint was filed on time. If so, the agency will 

then investigate the complaint according to the 

procedures required by 29 CFR Part 1981.

Results of the Investigation

If the evidence supports an employee’s 

complaint of retaliation and the employee and 

employer cannot reach a settlement, OSHA 

will issue an order requiring the employer to, 

as appropriate, put the employee back to work, 

pay lost wages, restore benefits, and provide 

other possible relief. The exact requirements will 

depend on the facts of the case. If the evidence 

does not support the employee’s complaint, 

OSHA will dismiss the complaint. 

After OSHA issues a decision, the employer 

and/or the employee may request a full 

hearing before an administrative law judge of 

the Department of Labor. The administrative 

law judge’s decision may be appealed to the 

Department’s Administrative Review Board 

(ARB). The ARB’s decision is subject to review by 

the Secretary of Labor, and a final decision may 

be appealed to a court of appeals. The employee 

may also file a complaint in federal court if the 

Department has not issued a final decision 

within 210 days of filing the complaint. 49 U.S.C. 

§ 60129(b)(3)(D).

To Get Further Information

For a copy of the PSIA whistleblower provision, 

49 U.S.C. § 60129, the regulations (29 CFR 

Part 1981), and other information, go to 

www.whistleblowers.gov.

OSHA’s Whistleblower Protection Programs 

enforce the whistleblower provisions of more 

than twenty federal whistleblower laws. To learn 

more about the whistleblower statutes that OSHA 

enforces, view our “Whistleblowers Statutes 

Summary Chart” at www.whistleblowers.gov/

whistleblower_acts-desk_reference. 

For more information on the Office of 

Administrative Law Judges procedures and 

case law research materials, go to www.dol.gov/

agencies/oalj/topics/information/Information_

for_Whistleblowers. 

To obtain more information about pipeline safety 

laws, please visit the Pipeline and Hazardous 

Materials Safety Administration’s website at 

www.phmsa.dot.gov.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health 

Act of 1970, employers are responsible for 

providing safe and healthful workplaces for 

their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these 

conditions for America’s workers by setting and 

enforcing standards, and providing training, 

education, and assistance. For more information, 

visit www.osha.gov.

DWPP FS-4072 02/2022

This is one in a series of informational fact sheets highlighting OSHA programs, policies or standards. 

It does not impose any new compliance requirements. For a comprehensive list of compliance 

requirements of OSHA standards or regulations, refer to Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations. 

This information will be made available to sensory-impaired individuals upon request. The voice phone 

is (202) 693-1999; teletypewriter (TTY) number: 1-877-889-5627.