The advantage of doing this is that it might limit the retaliation against the employee. It must be shown that the employer had knowledge of the complainer. A daily diary is helpful to record retaliation as it happens. Some states give employees substantial rights against retaliation even it the complaint is made to higher management. Some states require complaints to be made within an extremely short time period, such as 30 days, tot the appropriate government agency.
Some states have other deadlines such as one-year periods.
Weighing the Options Even though some whistle-blowers have recovered substantial amounts in court, many others have ended up with nothing or had their careers or lives ruined.