Whistleblower Protection for Reporting 

Criminal Antitrust Violations 

Workers are protected from retaliation for reporting criminal antitrust violations to 

their employers or the federal government, or engaging in related protected activities.

On December 23, 2020, the Criminal Antitrust 

Anti-Retaliation Act of 2019 (CAARA) was 

enacted, establishing protections for reporting 

criminal antitrust violations or engaging in 

related protected activities.

Covered Employers and Individuals

CAARA prohibits employers (or any officer, 

employee, contractor, subcontractor, or agent of 

an employer) from retaliating against covered 

individuals, i.e., employees, contractors, 

subcontractors, or agents of employers for 

engaging in protected activity. Employers 

include corporations or associations existing 

under and authorized by the laws of the U.S., a 

territory of the U.S., a State, or a foreign country.

Protected Activity

An employer may not discharge or otherwise 

retaliate against a covered individual for: 

• Reporting information described below to 

the Federal Government, the individual’s 

supervisor, or a person working for the 

employer who has the authority to investigate, 

discover, or terminate misconduct; or

• Initiating, testifying in, participating in, or 

otherwise assisting in Federal Government 

investigations or proceedings described below. 

The information, investigation or proceeding 

must relate to:

• A criminal violation of the antitrust laws such 

as price fixing, bid rigging, or market division 

or allocation schemes, or

• A violation of another criminal law committed 

in conjunction with a potential violation of the 

criminal antitrust laws or in conjunction with 

an investigation by the Department of Justice 

of a potential violation of those laws.

What Is Retaliation?

Retaliation is an adverse action against a 

covered individual because of activity protected 

by CAARA. Retaliation can include several types 

of actions, such as: 

• Firing or laying off

• Demoting

• Denying overtime or promotion

• Disciplining

• Denying benefits

• Failing 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 

covered individual of poor performance

• Blacklisting (intentionally interfering with a 

covered individual’s ability to obtain future 

employment)

• Constructive discharge (quitting when 

an employer makes working conditions 

intolerable due to the covered individual’s 

protected activity)

• Reporting the covered individual to the police 

or immigration authorities

Deadline for Filing a Complaint

Covered individuals must file complaints within 

180 days after learning of the adverse action.

How to File a CAARA Complaint

A covered individual, or their representative, can 

file a CAARA complaint with OSHA by visiting or 

calling their local OSHA office, sending a written 

complaint to the nearest 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, telephone call, 

hand delivery during business hours, U.S. 

mail (confirmation services recommended), 

or third-party commercial carrier.

The date of the postmark, fax, electronic 

communication, telephone call, hand delivery, 

delivery to a third-party commercial carrier, 

or in-person filing with 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 https://

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 1979, 

until OSHA promulgates procedures specific to 

the CAARA.

Results of the Investigation

If the evidence supports a complainant’s s claim 

of retaliation and the complainant and employer 

cannot reach a settlement, OSHA will issue an 

order requiring the employer, as appropriate, 

to put the complainant 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 complaint, OSHA will 

dismiss the complaint.

After OSHA issues a decision, the employer 

and/or the complainant 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 does not issue a final order within 

180 days from the date the complaint was filed. 

See 15 U.S.C. § 7a-3(b)(1)(B).

To Get Further Information

For a copy of the CAARA whistleblower 

provision, 15 U.S.C. § 7a-3, 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 “Whistleblower Statutes 

Summary Chart” at www.whistleblowers.gov/

whistleblower_acts-desk_reference.

For information on the Office of Administrative 

Law Judges procedures and case law research 

materials, go to www.oalj.dol.gov and click on 

the link for “Whistleblower.”

For information about anti-trust laws, visit the 

Department of Justice Antitrust Division website 

at: www.justice.gov/atr. 

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 working people by 

setting and enforcing standards, and providing 

training, education, and assistance. For more 

information, visit www.osha.gov. 

DWPP FS-4174 03/2022

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.