Whistleblowing

Staff are the eyes and ears of any organisation but are you always listening to what they have to say? Would you know if something was wrong? An external, independent, confidential whistleblowing service is an essential way of learning about problems in the workplace. Any of the following issues can cause untold damage to an organisation's reputation and harm staff morale:

• Fraud, corruption and other dishonesty
• Bullying
• Health & Safety concerns
• Harassment - sexual, racial, sectarianism and because of disability
• Discrimination - sexual, racial, sectarianism and because of disability
• Equal opportunity, unfair treatment and diversity concerns

The Legal Requirements

Whistleblowing Services were introduced in response to the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1999. The act aims to ensure the highest standard of conduct both in public and business life. It does this by encouraging people to report incidents such as theft, bribe taking, breaches of security, discrimination or other inappropriate practices.

Benefits for Organisations

Employees may have a lot at stake when considering whether and how to blow the whistle. Where malpractice is shown to have occurred, this may reflect badly on management systems, or on individual managers. Whistleblowers may fear that management will be tempted to 'shoot the messenger'. A clear procedure for raising issues will help to reduce the risk that serious concerns are mishandled, whether by the employee or by the organisation.

The existence of a procedure, together with evidence that the employer is concerned to deal effectively with any malpractice, will make it less likely that a tribunal will find that an employee was behaving reasonably by making disclosures to an outside body or person. The employer will usually be the best person to investigate and, if necessary, put matters right. An internal procedure will also help to forestall the serious damage to an employer's business or reputation that can occur as a result of public disclosures.

The accounting scandals at Enron and Worldcom have underlined the damage that fraud and business malpractice can cause. They also highlight the need for organisations to see that whistleblowing procedures are in place and supported by the management culture. Business ethics are increasingly seen as an issue that can build or destroy a company's reputation. If public trust is withheld, the business consequences can be extremely serious.

Nevertheless research shows that many UK companies have so far failed to put in place safeguards for whistle blowers. One problem is the reluctance many employees feel to 'snitch' on colleagues. Despite often showing great courage and determination, whistleblowers are not necessarily popular with their colleagues, particularly where the disclosure threatens people's jobs. HR managers have a duty to support whistleblowers who act in good faith and it is in the long-term interests of the organisation that they should do so.

Key Benefits

• Independent external system working alongside current internal systems
• Potential financial savings as a result of early knowledge of fraud, dishonesty, harassment, discrimination and bad working practices
• Early knowledge of potential problems and therefore more control over matters
• Staff encouraged to voice concerns using a safe external system that reports solely to the employer
• Improved communications regarding Health & Safety issues
• Issues raised kept within employers control
• Staff less likely to report matters to external or inappropriate bodies e.g. media
• Compliance with the Public Interest Disclosure Act
• Protection for managers re Health & Safety issues (Corporate Manslaughter)
• Potential financial savings by preventing or restricting future litigation
• Reduction in liability in Employment Tribunal proceedings
• Assistance and advice on investigating matters
• Better work environment leading to greater productivity
• Overt commitment to staff welfare
• Cost effective

How it Works

When an employee becomes aware of inappropriate behaviour they can call the freephone number and speak to a trained Right Corecare advisor. They will ask them for as much information as possible on the incident so it may be passed for internal investigation. They will be asked for their name, and a contact telephone number, but this will only be passed on to the nominated person within the organisation (most commonly a Board Member) if it is essential to do so and they have agreed that this may occur.

The service is staffed by trained advisors, 24 hours a day and 7 days a week and underlines an organisation's commitment to supporting staff by providing a safe forum in which to discuss concerns about practices at work.