Wells Fargo Whistleblower Files Lawsuit to Enforce Department of Labor Order of Reinstatement

[Omaha Steve]

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WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Daniel Fisher has filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of California to enforce a U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) order requiring Wells Fargo to reinstate him to his former position at Wells Fargo's Cupertino branch. After conducting a thorough investigation of Mr. Fisher's Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower retaliation claim, OSHA issued its findings on November 26, 2008, concluding that Wells Fargo violated Section 806 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act by retaliating against Fisher because he disclosed that his co-worker was steering customers from CDs and savings accounts to unsuitable mutual funds. In addition, OSHA ordered Wells Fargo to reinstate Fisher, pay him compensatory damages, and post a notice to employees in a conspicuous place committing not to engage in further retaliation.

A copy of OSHA's findings and preliminary order is attached. Wells Fargo is refusing to comply with the order and therefore Fisher is bringing a lawsuit in federal court to enforce the order of reinstatement. Fisher's SOX case is pending in the Office of Administrative Law Judges at the United States Department of Labor.

"In light of recent scandals in the financial services industry, Wells Fargo's retaliation against Fisher is especially troubling because he was trying to protect customers who were being steered to unsuitable investments by a financial advisor eager to generate fees. Instead of commending Mr. Fisher's efforts to protect Wels Fargo customers, Wells Fargo punished him and launched a smear campaign against him, thereby damaging his relationships with customers and his reputation," said Fisher's Counsel Scott Oswald and Jason Zuckerman of The Employment Law Group law firm in Washington, D.C. "We commend Mr. Fisher's courageous whistleblowing and look forward to a trial in this matter to obtain all remedies available to compensate Mr. Fisher for the substantial damages he has suffered."

SOX was enacted on July 30, 2002, and is also known as the Corporate and Criminal Fraud Accountability Act of 2002. With the enactment of SOX, Congress provided statutory protection for employees who report corporate fraud to ensure that employees have an effective means of making such reports without fear of employer retaliation.

R. Scott Oswald and Jason Zuckerman, Principals at The Employment Law Group (www.employmentlawgroup.com), are representing Mr. Fisher and can be reached at 202-331-2883.


SOURCE The Employment Law Group