Utah Whistleblower Laws: Protections and How to Report

Utah's Protection of Public Employees Act, codified at Utah Code 67-21-3, prohibits public employers from retaliating against employees who report waste, fraud, law violations, or abuse of authority in good faith. The law covers workers at state agencies, counties, cities, and school districts.

Overview of Utah Whistleblower Laws

Utah is an employment-at-will state, meaning employers can generally terminate employees for any reason or no reason. However, both statutory and common law protections create important exceptions for workers who report illegal activity or refuse to participate in unlawful conduct.

The primary whistleblower statute in Utah is the Protection of Public Employees Act (Utah Code Chapter 67-21), which covers public sector employees. Several additional statutes address specific types of retaliation in areas like discrimination and workplace safety. Utah also recognizes a common law public policy exception that provides some protection for private sector workers.

Federal whistleblower laws also apply to all Utah employees and provide additional layers of protection. For a complete overview, see our guide to Federal Whistleblower Laws.

Common Law Protections for Whistleblowers

Utah courts recognize a public policy exception to the employment-at-will doctrine. Under this exception, employers cannot discharge employees for reasons that violate clearly established public policy. Courts look to statutes, constitutional provisions, and prior judicial decisions to identify relevant public policies.

Utah's common law protections generally cover employees who:

• Exercise a legal right or privilege (such as filing a workers' compensation claim or collecting minimum wage)
• Refuse to carry out illegal activities
• Carry out a public obligation (such as serving on a jury)

One important limitation applies to employees who report illegal activities: Utah courts have held that common law protection only applies when the report is made to public officials, not to internal supervisors. Employees who report wrongdoing only to their employer may not be covered under this exception.

The statute of limitations for common law retaliatory discharge claims in Utah is four years from the retaliatory action.

Utah Protection of Public Employees Act

The Utah Protection of Public Employees Act, codified at Utah Code Chapter 67-21, is the state's primary whistleblower protection statute.

Who Is Protected

The Act covers employees of state agencies, counties, cities, school districts, and other political subdivisions. It applies to all public sector employees in Utah.

Protected Activities

Under Utah Code 67-21-3, employers cannot take adverse action against a public employee for:

• Reporting in good faith the waste or misuse of public funds, property, or manpower
• Reporting a violation or suspected violation of a federal, state, or local law, rule, or regulation
• Reporting gross mismanagement, abuse of authority, or unethical conduct by a government employer
• Participating in or providing information in an investigation, hearing, court proceeding, legislative inquiry, or administrative review held by a public body
• Objecting to or refusing to carry out a directive that violates state or federal law, rule, or regulation

Reporting Requirements

To qualify for protection, employees must generally communicate their concerns in good faith to a person in authority over the individual alleged to have engaged in the wrongful conduct, or to the Attorney General's Office, law enforcement, or another appropriate authority. The Act encourages employees to first attempt to resolve concerns through internal channels before making external reports.

Employer Prohibitions

In addition to prohibiting retaliation, the Act also bars employers from adopting rules or policies that prevent employees from documenting waste, violations of law, mismanagement, abuse of authority, or unethical conduct.

Remedies

Employees who prevail under the Protection of Public Employees Act may recover:

• Reinstatement to the former position at the same level
• Payment of back wages
• Reinstatement of full fringe benefits and seniority rights
• Actual damages
• Reasonable attorney's fees and witness fees (if the court determines the award is appropriate)
• If the retaliation involved denial of a promotion, the employee may be awarded the pay increase they would have received

Filing Process

A state employee covered by the Protection of Public Employees Act must choose between two mutually exclusive paths: filing a grievance with the Career Service Review Office, or bringing a civil action directly in court within 180 days after the violation. Choosing one path waives the right to pursue the other over the same facts. Higher-education employees must exhaust their institution's independent personnel board before suing (Utah Code 67-21-3.7); a political subdivision may adopt such a board (67-21-3.6), and where it has, its employees must exhaust that process first. After exhaustion, the employee has 180 days to file a civil action. There is no three-year deadline under this Act; 180 days is the controlling statute of limitations.

Utah False Claims Act

Utah has enacted a limited False Claims Act (Utah Code 26-20-9.5 et seq.) that targets fraud involving medical benefits. However, this statute is narrower than the false claims laws in many other states.

Key Limitations

Utah's False Claims Act does not include a qui tam provision. This means private individuals cannot file lawsuits on behalf of the state to recover fraudulently obtained funds. Only the state itself may bring civil lawsuits under the Act. Whistleblowers who discover fraud against the state of Utah cannot receive financial rewards under state law.

Federal Alternative

While Utah does not offer a state-level qui tam remedy, whistleblowers who discover fraud against the federal government (including federal funds administered by Utah) can still file qui tam lawsuits under the federal False Claims Act. The federal law provides for whistleblower awards of 15% to 30% of recovered funds.

Additional Whistleblower Protections

Several other Utah statutes provide whistleblower protections in specific employment contexts.

Anti-Discrimination Protections

Under Utah Code 34A-5-102 and 34A-5-106, employers cannot retaliate against individuals who:

• Oppose discriminatory practices prohibited under the Utah Antidiscrimination Act
• File a charge or complaint under the statute
• Testify or participate in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing

Utah law prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, pregnancy-related conditions, age (40 and older), religion, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Complaints must be filed with the Utah Labor Commission, Antidiscrimination and Labor Division (UALD) within 180 days of the retaliatory action. Remedies include reinstatement, back pay and benefits, attorney's fees, and legal costs. In compensation-related cases, the employee may receive an additional amount equal to the back pay. The employer may also be ordered to cease discriminatory or prohibited employment practices.

Occupational Safety and Health

Under Utah Code 34A-6-203, employers cannot retaliate against employees who:

• File a complaint related to workplace safety
• Institute or participate in proceedings under the occupational safety statute
• Testify or intend to testify in safety proceedings
• Exercise rights under the statute on behalf of themselves or others

Complaints must be filed with the Utah Labor Commission, Division of Occupational Safety and Health (UOSH) within 30 days of the retaliatory action. This is one of the shortest deadlines under Utah law. Remedies include a cease and desist order, reinstatement with back pay, and other appropriate relief.

Payment of Wages

Under Utah Code 34-28-19, employers cannot discharge, demote, alter terms of employment, or retaliate against employees who:

• File a complaint or testify in proceedings related to wage enforcement
• Intend to file a complaint or testify in wage proceedings
• Are believed by the employer to potentially file a complaint or testify

Complaints are filed with the Utah Labor Commission, Antidiscrimination and Labor Division. Remedies include a cease and desist order and payment of lost wages and benefits.

Employment of Minors

Under Utah Code 34-23-402, employers cannot discharge or threaten employees who testify or intend to testify in investigations or proceedings related to the employment of minors. A violation is a class B misdemeanor, rising to a class A misdemeanor if the employer has a prior conviction under this statute and a third-degree felony if the employer has two or more prior convictions.

How to File a Whistleblower Complaint in Utah

Reporting to Public Bodies

Public employees should first attempt to report concerns through internal channels by communicating with a person in authority. If internal reporting does not resolve the issue, employees may report to the Attorney General's Office, law enforcement, or another appropriate authority.

Filing with the Utah Labor Commission

For discrimination-related retaliation, contact the Utah Labor Commission, Antidiscrimination and Labor Division (UALD) at (801) 530-6801. Complaints must be filed within 180 days.

For workplace safety retaliation, contact the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (UOSH) at (801) 530-6494 or (801) 530-6437. Complaints must be filed within 30 days.

Filing with the Career Service Review Office

Career service state employees may grieve retaliation under the Protection of Public Employees Act through the Career Service Review Office, but this is an exclusive election: choosing the CSRO grievance path waives the right to bring a civil action over the same facts, and vice versa. Political-subdivision and higher-education employees do not use the CSRO; where their institution has an independent personnel board (mandatory for higher education, optional for political subdivisions), they must exhaust that process before filing suit.

Filing a Civil Lawsuit

For common law retaliatory discharge claims, lawsuits must be filed within four years. A Protection of Public Employees Act claim must be filed within 180 days of the violation (or within 180 days of exhausting administrative remedies for political-subdivision and higher-education employees). Other statutory claims carry their own deadlines, such as the 180-day UALD discrimination window and the 30-day UOSH safety-complaint window noted above.

Practical Tips for Utah Whistleblowers

• Make reports to public officials rather than only to internal supervisors, as common law protection may not cover internal-only reports.
• Document all reports in writing and keep copies.
• Be aware of the 30-day deadline for workplace safety complaints, which is extremely short.
• Consult with an employment attorney who has experience with Utah whistleblower cases.
• Federal whistleblower protections may provide additional remedies beyond what state law offers, especially since Utah does not have a state-level qui tam provision.

More Utah Laws

• Utah At-Will Employment Laws
• Utah Employee Monitoring Laws
• Utah Final Paycheck Laws
• Utah Workers Compensation Laws