How to discipline your employees even after their 'protected' activity.

Employees who know they are about to be disciplined sometimes think the best defense is going on offense. So they file internal discrimination, harassment or whistleblower complaints.

Employees assume this action will stop any discipline, on the theory that employers don't want to be sued for retaliating against employees who have participated in such "protected" activities.

Don't worry, your hands aren't tied. It's unlikely a court will find retaliation if you follow your usual disciplinary rules, treat the employee just like other similarly situated workers and keep detailed, dated records.

Recent case: Michael was an engineer at Abbott Laboratories for seven years until he was fired.

He sued for retaliation, saying the real reason for his firing was that he sent his boss a whistleblower complaint via email about three months before he was fired.

The company had documented Michael's workplace errors before the complaint and it continued to catalogue other misconduct in the three months...