On January 29, 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously in Crawford v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, Tenn., that §704(a) of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (the anti-retaliation provision) not only applies to employees who bring a complaint, but also to employees who disclose information regarding inappropriate behavior or illegal conduct in response to questions posed during an employer’s internal investigation. Facts The Metro School District was performing an internal investigation into rumors that its employee relations director, Gene Hughes, had sexually harassed various employees. During the internal company investigation, the plaintiff (Crawford) who had worked for the Metro School District for 30 years reported that Hughes had sexually harassed her. Although the Metro School District took no action against Hughes, shortly after the investigation it fired Crawford alleging unrelated reasons. Crawford filed suit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, claiming that the Metro School District was retaliating against her for stating that Hughes had sexually harassed her.

Held. The anti-retaliation provision provided in §704(a) in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects an employee who speaks out about discrimination or harassment during a company’s internal investigation.

Implications for Employers.

The Crawford case greatly extends anti-retaliation protections afforded to employees under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Now, even employees who silently oppose illegal conduct, or whose disclosures to coworkers indirectly reach the employer, may be protected under the Act. To avoid or limit claims of retaliation, employers should exercise extreme caution before disciplining, or terminating, an employee who has even briefly mentioned inappropriate behavior, or illegal activity, committed by the employer or a coworker. In addition, employers should conduct and document annual employee performance reviews, as such performance evaluations can provide documentation supporting performance problems that pre-exist any “protected” statements later made by an employee.