What is a whistleblowing claim?

If your employer is acting in a fraudulent or criminal manner, or is breaching health and safety procedures, employees are under a duty to speak out to protect colleagues and customers. If you make a protected disclosure and have faced unfair treatment as a consequence, you may have a whistleblowing claim.

 In a whistleblowing claim, a protected disclosure is when you believe or strongly suspect a wrong has occurred in relation to at least one of the following:

• A criminal offence.
• A breach of a legal duty or obligation.
• A miscarriage of justice.
• Health and safety breaches that endanger people.
• Environmental damage.
• Evidence showing your employer has tried to conceal one of the above.

Some common examples of whistleblowing in the work place are:

• A chef reporting poor hygiene practices that breach health and safety regulations.
• An accountant reporting suspicious financial activity that could evidence money laundering.

Whistleblowing is when an employee speaks out about a practice at work that they know is wrong and in breach of the laws and standards of their industry.

If you think you have witnessed wrongdoing at work, you should make sure you have properly understood the situation and can confirm the act or omission was wrong or illegal. You should also consider the consequences for yourself if you ‘blow the whistle’.

If you decide to speak out, you should report to one of the following people depending on your situation:

• Your Company’s HR department or a manager you trust.
• A legal advisor such as an employment solicitor.
• A regulatory body that sets standards in your industry.
• The police.