Why should whistleblowers be protected in an organization

More resources on the topic. Public Sector Integrity Division. Committing to Effective Whistleblower Protection This report analyses whistleblower protection frameworks in OECD countries, identifies areas for reform and proposes steps to strengthen whistleblower protection laws in both the public and private sectors.

The role of whistleblowers and whistleblower protection in the detection of foreign bribery This report, originally published in the OECD study on The Detection of Foreign Bribery , looks at the key role that whistleblowers and whistleblower protection can play in the detection of foreign bribery when legal frameworks and appropriate channels are in place to report alleged instances to law enforcement authorities. However, there are different sets of rules as to when each of these disclosures will be protected.

For example, the rules covering disclosures 'in other cases' are extremely strict, among other things, you must not be acting for personal gain. If you're unsure, you should always get professional advice before you go ahead and make a disclosure. If you want to complain about malpractice at work you should follow any procedure set down by your employer this will often be found in your employer's grievance procedure.

If you're complaining about a health and safety issue, you can speak to your safety representative, if you have one. If you're blowing the whistle on malpractice or wrongdoing in the workplace you should make the disclosure reveal the information to your employer or to 'a prescribed person' so that your employment rights are protected.

If you're blowing the whistle on malpractice in the workplace you should strongly consider making the disclosure to your employer. If you make a disclosure to your employer it will help to make sure that your concerns are dealt with quickly and by the right person. If you work for a small company, the right person to resolve your concerns, may be the owner or a director of the company.

You should check your employment contract to see if your company has a process to help you make the disclosure. In some situations your employer might adapt the procedure, for example to allow confidential disclosures.

If you feel unable to use your company's disclosure procedure then there are other prescribed people you can make the disclosure to. While you're getting legal advice from a legal adviser you may disclose information about wrongdoing at your work which would be a protected disclosure.

If you're employed in the public sector you may disclose information about wrongdoing to a minister. An Industrial Tribunal must also think it was reasonable for you to make the disclosure. The Industrial Tribunal will take into account:. If you believe you are blowing the whistle on an exceptionally serious failure in a workplace you do not need to go through the normal channels and can publicly blow the whistle straight away. Depending on many factors, both can have varying results.

However, whistleblowing in the public sector organization is more likely to result in criminal charges and possible custodial sentences. A whistleblower who chooses to accuse a private sector organization or agency is more likely to face termination and legal and civil charges.

Deeper questions and theories of whistleblowing and why people choose to do so can be studied through an ethical approach. Whistleblowing is a topic of ongoing ethical debate. Leading arguments in the ideological camp that whistleblowing is ethical maintain that whistleblowing is a form of civil disobedience, and aims to protect the public from government wrongdoing.

In the opposite camp, some see whistleblowing as unethical for breaching confidentiality, especially in industries that handle sensitive client or patient information. Legal protection can also be granted to protect whistleblowers, but that protection is subject to many stipulations. Hundreds of laws grant protection to whistleblowers, but stipulations can easily cloud that protection and leave whistleblowers vulnerable to retaliation and legal trouble.

However, the decision and action has become far more complicated with recent advancements in technology and communication. Whistleblowers frequently face reprisal, sometimes at the hands of the organization or group they have accused, sometimes from related organizations, and sometimes under law.

Questions about the legitimacy of whistleblowing, the moral responsibility of whistleblowing, and the appraisal of the institutions of whistleblowing are part of the field of political ethics. Overview Origin of term U. However, the origins of the word date back to the 19th century. The word is linked to the use of a whistle to alert the public or a crowd about a bad situation, such as the commission of a crime or the breaking of rules during a game.

The phrase whistle blower attached itself to law enforcement officials in the 19th century because they used a whistle to alert the public or fellow police.

Sports referees, who use a whistle to indicate an illegal or foul play, also were called whistle blowers. An story in the Janesville Gazette called a policeman who used his whistle to alert citizens about a riot a whistle blower, without the hyphen. By the year , the phrase had become a hyphenated word, whistle-blower.

The word began to be used by journalists in the s for people who revealed wrongdoing, such as Nader. It eventually evolved into the compound word whistleblower. Internal Most whistleblowers are internal whistleblowers, who report misconduct on a fellow employee or superior within their company through anonymous reporting mechanisms often called hotlines.

One of the most interesting questions with respect to internal whistleblowers is why and under what circumstances do people either act on the spot to stop illegal and otherwise unacceptable behavior or report it. There are some reasons to believe that people are more likely to take action with respect to unacceptable behavior, within an organization, if there are complaint systems that offer not just options dictated by the planning and control organization, but a choice of options for absolute confidentiality.

Anonymous reporting mechanisms, as mentioned previously, help foster a climate whereby employees are more likely to report or seek guidance regarding potential or actual wrongdoing without fear of retaliation. The coming anti-bribery management systems standard, ISO , includes anonymous reporting as one of the criteria for the new standard. External External whistleblowers, however, report misconduct to outside persons or entities. In some cases, external whistleblowing is encouraged by offering monetary reward.

Third party Sometimes it is beneficial for an organization to use an external agency to create a secure and anonymous reporting channel for its employees, often referred to as a whistleblowing hotline. As well as protecting the identity of the whistleblower, these services are designed to inform the individuals at the top of the organizational pyramid of misconduct, usually via integration with specialised case management software. Implementing a third party solution is often the easiest way for an organization to ensure compliance, or to offer a whistleblowing policy where one did not previously exist.

Private sector whistleblowing Private sector whistleblowing, though not as high profile as public sector whistleblowing, is arguably more prevalent and suppressed in society today. Simply because private corporations usually have stricter regulations that suppress potential whistleblowers.

An example of private sector whistleblowing is when an employee reports to someone in a higher position such as a manager, or a third party that is isolated from the individual chapter, such as their lawyer or the police. In the private sector, corporate groups can easily hide wrongdoings by individual branches. It is not until these wrongdoings bleed into the top officials that corporate wrongdoings are seen by the public.

Situations in which a person may blow the whistle are in cases of violated laws or company policy, such as sexual harassment or theft.

These instances, nonetheless, are small compared to money laundering or fraud charges on the stock market. Whistleblowing in the private sector is typically not as high-profile or openly discussed in major news outlets, though occasionally, third parties expose human rights violations and exploitation of workers.

In an effort to overcome those fears, in Dodd—Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was put forth to provide great incentive to whistleblowers. For example, if a whistleblower gave information which could be used to legally recover over one million dollars; then they could receive ten to thirty percent of it.

Despite government efforts to help regulate the private sector, the employees must still weigh their options. They either expose the company and stand the moral and ethical high ground; or expose the company, lose their job, their reputation and potentially the ability to be employed again. According to a study at the University of Pennsylvania, out of three hundred whistleblowers studied, sixty nine percent of them had foregone that exact situation; and they were either fired or were forced to retire after taking the ethical high ground.

It is outcomes like that which makes it all that much harder to accurately track how prevalent whistleblowing is in the private sector. Public sector whistleblowing Recognizing the public value of whistleblowing has been increasing over the last 50 years.

In the United States, both state and Federal statutes have been put in place to protect whistleblowers from retaliation. The potential mistreatment largely surrounds team attitudes.

Whilst whistleblowers are considered by some to be courageous, others see them as "snitches". This can result in whistleblowers being victimised by their teammates and suffering unfair treatment. A large proportion of whistleblowers leave their job in the year following their complaint, be this voluntarily or forced. In order to mitigate this risk, the UK government passed the Public Interest Disclosure Act , preventing detrimental treatment of whistleblowers by their employers.

Though a large proportion of healthcare workers were scared to speak out, the bravery of a few sought to address a multitude of local failings. It is estimated that poor care tragically led to the deaths of between and patients across 50 consecutive months, spanning from to Therefore, a delay in whistleblowing of a single year could have risked hundreds of lives.

This highlights the importance of prompt reporting and individual responsibility. When debating whether to whistleblow, it is important to consider the bigger picture. Whilst it can be a daunting process to enter into, the greater good of the general public must receive priority.

In essence, the benefits outweigh the risks and it is the duty of all workers to remain vigilant for wrongdoing and act on it accordingly. It is important to familiarise yourself, and any employees, with both whistleblower rights and responsibilities. You can promote a whistleblowing culture in your organisation by creating and advertising a whistleblowing policy.