What To Know About The Whistleblower Act

| Saturday, January 26, 2013
By Claudine MacDonald


The Whistleblower Act, also called a protection act, is a law upheld in many countries, including the United States. A whistleblower is one who tells authorities, or the public, the illegal or allegedly dishonest activities taking place in government agencies, or a private organization or company. This legislation is used to protect federal whistleblowers who are employed by the government and report misconduct in the agency.

A federal agency is considered a violator of this act if authorities of the agency threaten, or take, retaliatory action toward the employee or applicant because of their disclosure of information. The whistleblowers are eligible to file any complaints. However, they must present reasonable evidence supporting violation of a rule, regulation or law; mismanagement; waste of funds; abuse of authority; or danger to the public safety or health.

Three federal agencies involved with this in America: Court of Appeals, Merit Systems Protection Board and Special Counsel. The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is the court given the ability to handle appeals that are chosen by the merit board. The Merit Systems Protection Board must serve as a mock judicial system that adjudicates. Investigation of cases reported by blowers is done by the Office of Special Counsel.

The amount of legal protection that is offered with range by country and related to the place where activity was done, how and where details were revealed, and how it came to be publicized or published. A handful of countries have drafted protection laws for these people and provide mechanisms for reporting. Over 50 countries offer limited protection in cases involving anti-corruption, employment and freedom of information.

A whistleblower may be referred to as internal or external. Internal ones are those who report the misconduct of a superior or fellow employee in their workplace. The external blowers are ones who report misconduct of outside entities or persons. In these situations, depending on the nature and sensitivity of the released information, the whistleblowers may report misconduct of the media, lawyers, watchdogs or law enforcement, or other federal, local, or state agencies. Sometimes the offering of a monetary reward encourages this type of action.

Some view these informants as people who are selfless people acting as martyrs for public interest and the accountability of organizations. Then are those who believe these informants are nothing more than tattle tales and snitches who only want personal glory or fame to arise from their actions. The reality is that many do not even consider disclosing such information because there is fear of retaliation and other consequences.

The persecution of whistleblowers has become an issue in some countries. Laws are supposed to protect individuals from retaliation by the employer. Still, there have been instances in which punishments for blowing the whistle have included termination, wage garnishment, demotion, suspension and mistreatment by fellow employees.

Whistleblower Act is a law followed in many countries that protects individuals who have blown the whistle on the allegedly wrong or illegal activities of a private organization or company, or even a government agency. The regulations put in place will vary by country. Whistleblowers may be known as external or internal.




About the Author:



0 comments:

Post a Comment