Whistleblowing occurs when a person discloses information about wrongdoing in the workplace.
Examples of whistleblowing include a criminal offence such as fraud, failure to comply with a legal obligation, a miscarriage of justice, or the threat to an individual’s health and safety or the environment.
In these circumstances, the whistleblower will be protected from being dismissed or treated unfairly because of the disclosure. In law, blowing the whistle can also be described as making a “protected disclosure”.
While the law does not require employers to have a whistleblowing policy, having one encourages internal whistleblowing making it easier for management to address concerns early on and avoid more serious regulatory breaches or reputational damage.
Ashtons Employment lawyers are able to advise employers on effective whistleblowing policies and procedures to implement in order to reduce business risk. They can also help to defend any allegations of whistleblowing brought as part of an Employment Tribunal claim. Additionally, they can advise HR Managers on whether a grievance or complaint from an employee contains a protected disclosure and if so, how it should be managed.
They can also provide legal advice on the protections available to whistleblowers and help employees who have been treated unfairly because they have reported unlawful acts at work.