Retaliation Claims Against Supervisors

When the Problem Isn’t the Company, It’s Your Boss

Sometimes, the retaliation doesn’t come from a corporate memo or the HR department. It comes from the person you report to every day. A supervisor with power and a grudge can make your work life unbearable, and that’s not just toxic, it’s illegal.

Our employment law attorneys at Horn Wright, LLP, represent workers across New York who were punished by supervisors for asserting their rights. If your manager cut your hours, rewrote your duties, or tried to push you out after you spoke up, that’s retaliation and we’ll help you prove it. 

If you live in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, or New Jersey, your protections may differ slightly. But in New York, supervisors who retaliate can be held personally liable, not just the company. And that changes everything.

Call (855) 465-4622 and let us help you take back control from someone who’s abusing their authority.

What Retaliation by a Supervisor Actually Looks Like

It’s not always a pink slip. Sometimes, it’s one bad assignment after another. Sometimes, it’s tension so thick it makes you dread Monday morning. If your boss made life harder after you spoke up, watch for signs like these:

• You’re excluded or frozen out. You’re not invited to meetings, updates, or decision-making. They’re isolating you on purpose and it hurts both your work and your confidence.
• You’re hit with surprise discipline. Suddenly, everything you do is “wrong,” even if it was fine yesterday. Your once-solid track record is getting buried under petty complaints.
• Your workload becomes unbearable or unrecognizable. You’re either buried in busywork or stripped of the projects that once defined your role. Either way, it’s a warning shot.
• You’re denied raises, promotions, or even feedback. They don’t need to fire you to retaliate. They just block your path forward and wait for you to leave.

Why Supervisor Retaliation Can Be Especially Dangerous

Supervisors have immense power over your daily life at work. They control your hours, influence your reviews, and often decide who gets opportunities or who gets left out. When retaliation starts at the top of your chain of command, it can feel nearly impossible to escape it.

Many workers try to go through HR, only to find their concerns dismissed or minimized. In some cases, HR may side with the supervisor to avoid liability for the company. This creates a toxic cycle where complaints are silenced, evidence is brushed aside, and retaliation continues unchecked.

The law in New York doesn’t let supervisors hide behind corporate policy. They can be named personally in retaliation claims, meaning they’re held financially and legally responsible for what they’ve done. That’s leverage and our employment attorneys know how to use it to your advantage.

Protected Activities That Often Trigger Supervisor Retaliation

Not everything qualifies as retaliation, but when you stand up for yourself or someone else under the law, you’re protected. Here are some of the protected actions that most commonly lead to supervisor blowback:

• Reporting harassment or discrimination. Whether you filed a formal complaint or raised it informally, your supervisor can’t punish you for speaking up. That includes retaliation for someone else’s complaint too.
• Requesting reasonable accommodations. If you asked for disability support, schedule flexibility, or assistive tools, your supervisor can’t punish you for making a lawful request. Ignoring it or acting annoyed is a red flag.
• Filing a wage or labor complaint. If you questioned unpaid overtime, tipped wages, or misclassification, your complaint is protected. Retaliating over it only adds fuel to the fire.
• Helping a coworker assert their rights. You don’t have to be the direct victim. If you spoke up on behalf of someone else or served as a witness, you’re covered by law too.

How We Prove It’s Retaliation and Not Just Management

Proving retaliation by a supervisor doesn’t mean you need a smoking gun. What you need is a pattern and that’s exactly what we build. It often starts with timing: when your protected action and the supervisor’s behavior line up too perfectly, the link becomes clear.

Then we dig into the details. We’ll examine records, compare how others were treated, and interview witnesses when necessary. Supervisors tend to leave behind digital trails, even when they think they’re being subtle.

And if the employer tries to spin it as “just management decisions,” we counter with the full context. The law makes room for bad management, but not for illegal retaliation. And that’s where we draw the line.

What Compensation Could Look Like

Retaliation by a supervisor can derail your entire career. If you’ve been targeted by a boss with a grudge, New York law allows you to recover damages. Depending on what happened, here’s what your compensation could include:

• Lost wages and benefits. If you were demoted, fired, or pushed out, we calculate every dollar you missed—including bonuses, insurance, and paid time off.
• Emotional distress damages. Stress, anxiety, panic attacks, embarrassment—it all counts. And we know how to build a strong case for it.
• Punitive damages. If the supervisor’s actions were malicious or deliberate, the court may award additional damages to send a message. Personal liability often makes this hit even harder.
• Job restoration or references. You may want your position back or leverage to move on with your head held high. We fight for terms that serve your future, not just your past.

Horn Wright, LLP, Doesn’t Let Bad Bosses Get Away with It

Supervisors should lead, not retaliate. If your boss tried to punish you for doing the right thing, our employment law attorneys at Horn Wright, LLP, are here to make it right. You don’t have to endure fear, silence, or career sabotage—not when the law is on your side.

We represent workers across New York and the Northeast who’ve dealt with supervisor abuse and employer cover-ups. We’ve helped others rebuild after retaliation. We can help you, too.

When you’re ready to speak, we’re ready to listen. Contact our office to book your free, no-obligation consultation.