When Is A Whistleblower Not a Whistleblower?

I get questions like this and they make me cringe:

I wrote a long letter to the CEO complaining about my boss’s incompetence and lack of ethics. I got fired. Can I sue?

Here's what I'd like to say, but am usually more polite:

Probably not. What on earth made you write a letter like that? No, you don’t get to write emails, memoranda, letters, articles, or Facebook entries attacking your boss or the company unless you want to be fired.

Ethical violations and incompetence are not things you can complain about and be a whistleblower. If the ethical violations are also legal violations, you may be a whistleblower. However, if your boss is ripping the company off or going off on her own and breaking the law, you’re still probably not a whistleblower.

To be a whistleblower, you probably have to object to or refuse to participate in an illegal practice or activity of the company. For instance, if you object to discrimination, mortgage fraud, Medicaid fraud, dumping of pollutants, something that is a violation of a law, government regulation or ordinance, that the company knows about and condones or allows, then you may be a whistleblower.

If you’re a whistleblower and the company fires you or demotes you, then you should contact an employment attorney about your rights.

If your boss is incompetent or unethical, put up with it quietly while you look for another job.