Employment law cases can be challenging to prove, especially in harassment cases where the case may come down to he-said, she-said.
For a person involved in a wrongful termination, harassment or retaliation case, the facts may seem obvious. After all, if you have been subjected to an employer or manager treating you unfairly or illegally at work for an extended period of time, it may seem like something everyone should be able to see. But although it may seem wrong, these cases cannot be decided on how a person feels. Something more solid is often necessary in order to demonstrate that you were fired or harassed. That is why having one or more witness statements can be so important to proving your case.
In employment law cases, it may often come down to who a judge or jury believes: the manager who claims that he did not harass an employee, or the employee who said that he did. But what if you had another person — for example, another employee who does not stand to benefit from the lawsuit — who could testify that he witnessed the harassment? If a witness is willing to testify that he saw the harassment, or sign a statement that he saw it, then that can make a significant difference in an employee’s ability to prove his or her case. It can be vitally important during settlement negotiations as well as at trial, when a jury may not be sure who to believe.
For example, consider a retaliation case. If employee X was terminated after making a complaint about safety violations, he may have been told that it was for another reason, such as poor performance or lack of work. It could be hard to prove that this reason was false. But if employee Y comes forward and states that the boss told him that if he wants to keep his job, he better not complain about safety like employee X, that would be evidence that employee X was fired in retaliation for complaining.
Similarly, it may be hard to prove that an employee was being sexually harassed at work. Perhaps a manager kept pressuring a young female waitress to go out on a date with him, or was cornering her and trying to get her to kiss him, or was grabbing her bottom as she walked past him. While it may be challenging for this waitress to prove these allegations on her own, if her co-workers sign statements that they also saw this harassment, it would significantly strengthen her case.
An advantage to having witness statements is that these witnesses are often considered more credible because they do not stand to gain anything from testifying or providing a statement — and in fact, they may actually find themselves in trouble with their boss for doing so. That can make these statements even more helpful in proving an employment law case.
If you have been harassed at work or retaliated against by your employer, getting a witness statement can help you prove your case. A seasoned employment law attorney can work with you to put together strong proof of your claim, including through the use of witness statements.
At PLBH, our dedicated team of professionals has more than 50 years of experience handling employment law cases. Contact us at (800) 435-7542 or info@plblaw.com to schedule a free initial consultation or to learn more about how we can help you.