Ciconte Wasserman, a Wilmington law firm, represents employees fired after reporting discrimination or harassment. Firing someone for reporting harassment tied to a protected category is retaliation, which is illegal under federal law, and Delaware expands that protection. The firm's employment lawyers in Delaware offer a free consultation, with no fee unless the firm wins the case.
Key points
- A report of harassment tied to a protected category is protected, and firing someone for it is retaliation.
- Complaints about ordinary performance criticism are not protected.
- Delaware adds sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, and domestic violence or stalking victim status to the federal list.
- Delaware's whistleblower statute protects employees who report their employer's legal violations.
- A firing right after a report is timing that can itself be evidence.
Which complaints are protected
Not every complaint is legally protected. A boss riding an employee about missed deadlines is not harassment in the legal sense unless the treatment is tied to a protected category such as sex, race, age, religion or disability.
A report of sexual harassment, or of harassment tied to race, gender, religion, age or disability, is protected. Take an employee who tells HR that a supervisor is making sexual comments and is let go a week later. That is retaliation, which the firm takes on as part of its discrimination and retaliation work for employees.
The same rule reaches social media. A post saying that the employee reported sexual harassment and nothing happened can be protected, and firing the employee afterward can cross the line into illegal retaliation.
Delaware's added protections
Delaware law goes further than federal law. In Delaware, a report tied to any of these categories is protected:
| Report tied to | Protected under |
| Sex, race, religion, age, disability | Federal law |
| Sexual orientation, gender identity | Delaware law |
| Marital status | Delaware law |
| Domestic violence or stalking victim status | Delaware law |
| The employer's legal violations | Delaware whistleblower statute |
Delaware is an at-will state, but punishing an employee for a protected report is illegal, and a firing for that reason is one form of wrongful termination for an illegal reason. Pennsylvania largely follows the federal categories.
How to protect yourself after reporting
- Put it in writing. Emails, texts and HR forms create a paper trail.
- Keep a timeline. Dates matter. If the firing came right after the report, that timing can be powerful evidence.
- Save policy documents. Many company manuals contain anti-retaliation language.
- Talk to a lawyer early. Understanding the protections sooner helps keep the case strong.
Adam F. Wasserman, the firm's managing partner, advises anyone unsure whether their situation qualifies to get legal advice before the employer convinces them it is all in their head.
How Ciconte Wasserman handles retaliation cases
The case starts with a free consultation, directly with an attorney. The employee doesn't need to know whether the report was legally protected or whether the firing was retaliation; working that out is the attorney's job.
Once the employee chooses to go ahead, the firm looks into the facts and pursues the claim through negotiation, settlement or litigation. The firm explains each step of how it handles a case in plain English. Retaliation is one part of its employment law practice, which also covers whistleblower claims.
Who this help is built for
This help is for employees in Delaware and Pennsylvania who spoke up about harassment, discrimination, misconduct or safety problems and then lost their job. Reviews of the firm's employment work mention a call returned the same day and help with work injustices.
Talk to an employment lawyer
Employment claims carry strict deadlines. Call 302-658-7101 or book a free employment consultation with the firm at 1300 N King St, Wilmington, DE 19801.
