Whistleblowing about internal and external malpractices is vital for the functioning and survival of companies. But you need a process that is trusted.
Edward Snowden. Katharine Gun. Antoine Deltour. John Doe. Bradley Birkenfeld. Howard Wilkinson. History shows that whistleblowers rarely get the thanks they deserve.
Yet without them, we might never know about the United States surveillance program (PRISM), the tax deals struck by multinationals (LuxLeaks), the lengths the rich and famous go to conceal their wealth (Panama Papers) or countless other misdemeanours.
Whistleblowers often pay a heavy price for speaking the truth: smear campaigns, financial ruin, untold stress and problems getting another job.
No surprise then that many more choose to remain silent for every person who speaks out - fearing retaliation or reprisal.
Staff are often reluctant to bring misconduct to the attention of management. That's why you need to create an open, transparent and safe environment where workers feel able to speak up.
Fortunately, the law protects whistleblowers. People should not be treated unfairly or lose their jobs because they raised the alarm on corporate misconduct.
A company's whistleblowing policy will depend on the size and nature of the organisation. Large organisations may have a policy where employees can contact their immediate manager or a specific team of trained individuals to handle whistleblowing disclosures. Smaller organisations may not have sufficient resources to do this.
In the UK, workplace whistleblowing policy should establish a company's commitment to safeguarding whistleblowers from detrimental treatment as set out by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998.
It should be simple, easily understood and include:
From December 2021, there are rules to enhance whistleblower protection across the EU. Whilst similar to those in the UK, they are far from identical.
There are also provisions to protect whistleblowers from liability to prevent companies from misusing copyright, defamation, copyright or insider dealing legislation to silence or threaten whistleblowers.
After the employee discloses information, it is good practice to hold a meeting with the whistleblower to gather all the information needed to understand the situation.
In some cases, the parties may reach a suitable conclusion through an initial conversation with a manager. There may be a need for a formal investigation in more serious cases. Your company will need to decide the most appropriate action to take.
Ideally, you'd want your employees to feel they could make a disclosure directly to their organisation. However, there may be circumstances where they feel unable to. In this case, a whistleblower can make an external disclosure to what is referred to as a prescribed person.
Prescribed persons are mainly regulators and professional bodies but can also include other persons and bodies such as MPs. The relevant prescribed person depends on the subject matter of the disclosure, so a disclosure about wrongdoing in a care home could be made to the Care Quality Commission, for example.
A worker might choose to approach the media directly with their concerns. The only issue with this is that they can expect to lose the rights accorded to them by law in most cases.
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