Frequently Asked Questions for Employers


Below we reproduce the FAQs for employers from our previous website. As explained on the previous page, we are now asking for your help to improve this new site.

If
– there is information you cannot find on this site,
– you have a question that remains unanswered,
– you would like to suggest an issue to appear in these FAQs, or
– you would like us to keep any or all of the FAQs below,

please email us at faq@pcaw.co.uk and we will email you back with an answer as best we can.

Old FAQ’s

Why should I encourage my staff to blow the whistle?
Every organisation faces the risk that something will go seriously wrong. Whenever such a risk arises, the first people to know about it will usually be those who work in or with the organisation. Yet while employees are the people best placed to raise the concern and so enable the risk to be removed or reduced, they are also the people who have the most to lose if they do. It is vital for effective risk management that employees are confident that they can raise their concerns with their employer without suffering any detriment. Without this confidence, employees may stay silent where there is a threat, even a grave one, to the employer or its stakeholders. Such silence denies organisations a fail-safe opportunity to deal with a serious problem before it causes real damage. The cost of such a missed opportunity can be huge - fines, compensation, higher insurance premiums, damaged reputation, regulatory investigation, lost jobs, and even lost lives.

A positive whistleblowing culture has numerous advantages. It:

  • detects and deters wrongdoing;
  • gets to managers the information they need to make decisions and control risk;
  • demonstrates to stakeholders and regulators that you are serious about good governance;
  • reduces the chance of anonymous or malicious leaks (including to the media); and
  • reduces the chance of legal claims against your organisation.

What is whistleblowing?
Whistleblowing occurs when a worker raises a concern about dangerous or illegal activity that they are aware of through their work. If it has a good policy and culture, the concern will be raised with the employer in the first instance. As the Committee on Standards in Public Life has explained:

“The essence of a whistleblowing system is that staff should be able to by-pass the direct management line because that may well be the area about which their concerns arise, and that they should be able to go outside the organisation if they feel the overall management is engaged in an improper course.”

Whistleblowing is an early warning system that can alert employers to such things as:

  • an employee defrauding your organisation;
  • the physical or emotional abuse of elderly residents in a care home;
  • faulty machinery that puts the safety of your employees or customers at risk;
  • medical negligence in a hospital;
  • misselling of pensions or personal loans;
  • the taking of payments in exchange for awarding contracts; or
  • the dumping of dangerous chemicals into a river.

What is the difference between blowing the whistle and making a complaint?
In practical terms, whistleblowing occurs when a worker raises a concern about danger or illegality that affects others (e.g. customers, members of the public, or their employer). The person blowing the whistle is usually not directly, personally affected by the danger or illegality. Consequently, the whistleblower rarely has a personal interest in the outcome of any investigation into their concerns. As a result, the whistleblower should not be expected to prove their case; rather he or she raises the concern so others can address it.

This is different from a complaint. When someone complains, they are saying that they have personally been poorly treated. This poor treatment could involve a breach of their individual employment rights or bullying and the complainant is seeking redress or justice for themselves. The person making the complaint therefore has a vested interest in the outcome of the complaint and, for this reason, is expected to be able to prove their case.

Therefore, your organisation's policy on - and response to - whistleblowing should be different from its policy on and response to a grievance.

Do we need to introduce a whistleblowing policy?
There are many reasons why it is in the interests of all organisations to establish and promote an effective whistleblowing policy.

A whistleblowing policy is a statement of your organisation's commitment to good governance and a guide for employees on how to raise a concern responsibly. It can help create an environment in which employees understand their responsibilities and management can demonstrate their accountability. Without such a safe alternative to silence, a concerned employee may feel their only other option is to say nothing or to disclose or anonymously leak information outside the organisation.

An effective whistleblowing policy will enable you to find out when something is going wrong in time to take the necessary corrective action. It is not a means by which a disgruntled employee can wreak revenge by giving away trade secrets or hold their employer to ransom. A good policy encourages employees to raise concerns responsibly whilst making it clear that those who abuse the scheme by maliciously making untrue allegations will risk their jobs.

Following its public consultation on whistleblowing, the UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) found that:

A whistleblowing policy will improve the trust and confidence among workers by creating what one respondent called a “culture of honesty and openness” by encouraging workers to report internally. This was seen as “good for the morale of workers”, giving them confidence to come forward with concerns. Senior managers will be the first to know of any issues that they may need to address. These can be dealt with internally. This also means that the costs of investigating any problems, such as fraud, are reduced as problems can be caught quickly. The management time and resources saved mean that whistleblowing procedures are a cost-effective early warning system for firms. One respondent highlighted that firms with procedures perceive that they create a better working environment, while also reducing risk, so giving them a competitive advantage.

Respondents to the FSA consultation reported that the costs of implementing and reassessing a whistleblowing policy were minimal.

Please read more about how Public Concern at Work can help your organisation establish an effective whistleblowing policy.

Does the Public Interest Disclosure Act require an employer to have a whistleblowing policy?
It is not a legal requirement under PIDA for an employer to have a whistleblowing policy, though organisations in some sectors may be under separate requirements to have such a policy. However, it is clearly good practice for an employer to have such a policy and PIDA does encourage employers to have one. In the absence of an effective policy, workers may have reason to fear reprisal and may not know the employer will deal with the matter properly – two triggers for protection for wider disclosures. Additionally, whether an employer has an effective whistleblowing policy is one of several factors that an Employment Tribunal will consider when deciding if a wider disclosure (e.g. to the media, the police or an MP) is reasonable and so protected by the Act. As this website demonstrates, there are other very good, practical reasons why you should have a whistleblowing policy.

Other countries have different requirements for employers operating in their jurisdiction and, if your organisation operates internationally, you will need to check with your legal advisers about the legal requirements to which you are subject. The USA's Sarbanes-Oxley Act, for instance, requires audit committees of companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange to have a means by which concerns can be raised with them. Public Concern at Work's Bespoke Support Package can assist UK companies covered by Sarbanes-Oxley with meeting this requirement.

My organisation uses a lot of outside contractors. Should we let them use our whistleblowing policy?
The employees of external contractors may encounter wrongdoing that affects your organisation - for instance, fraud, breach of contract, or a threat to health and safety. Organisations should discuss with contractors what routes are available for the contractors' employees to raise concerns and, if they are not good enough, make sure that your policy is also open to employees of your contractors.

Isn't whistleblowing just troublemaking?
No. Many leading companies and public bodies find whistleblowing works. To understand why, click here.

Is there any guidance on how my company's audit committee can comply with the whistleblowing provision in the Combined Code of Corporate Governance?
The Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales (ICAEW) has produced a guide for audit committees of publicly listed companies on how to meet the whistleblowing requirements of the Combined Code of Corporate Governance. This guide can be ordered by calling the ICAEW on 020 7920 8634. It is summarised along with the recent official guidance endorsed by Government in our Best Practice Guide. To help demonstrate compliance with these obligations, we offer bespoke subscribers a range of services, including surveys and comparator data.

What do I do if a whistleblower raises a concern with me?
There are a number of things you should bear in mind.

  • Thank the worker for raising the matter, even if the concern proves to be mistaken.
  • Remember there are two sides to every story.
  • Respect and heed a whistleblower's concerns about their own position or career.
  • Avoid any unrealistic expectations.
  • Report back to the worker about the outcome of any enquiry and any remedial action you propose to take.
  • Always remember you may have to explain how you handled the concern.
  • Emphasise to managers and workers that victimising people who raise genuine concerns is a disciplinary offence.
  • Deal properly with any malpractice that you do find.

Does the Public Interest Disclosure Act require an employer to keep a whistleblower's identity secret?
Employers are not required by PIDA to keep the identity of a worker who raises a concern about potential malpractice confidential. However, you need to consider your obligations under data protection legislation and, as a matter of common sense, because some of your workers may be reluctant to raise a concern with you unless they offer them the option of keeping their identity secret. It is therefore a good idea to offer confidentiality to any worker who asks for it. In doing so it is worthwhile being clear about the limits of confidentiality, i.e. let the worker know of the circumstances when their identity might have to be revealed and speak to them if this situation arises. Having given an assurance of confidentiality, you should honour it unless the person releases you from it or a court orders otherwise. If you do breach an obligation of confidentiality you have promised an employee and he suffers as a result, you can be liable under PIDA and / or common law.

How can Public Concern at Work help my organisation gain the benefits of whistleblowing?
Public Concern at Work is an independent charity founded in 1993 and is uniquely placed to help organisations make whistleblowing work. The professional support we offer draws on our work with hundreds of organisations of all sizes and is also informed by over 6,000 whistleblowing concerns which we have dealt with on our helpline.

We provide highly regarded support to leading companies, government departments, the NHS and organisations from all sectors. This support is tailored to each organisation's needs and can include consultancy, policy reviews and audits, in-house training, staff briefing, guidance on handling concerns and communication support. Our legal team are the leading trainers in this field.

Our toolkit, the policy pack, is the authoritative guide to complying with the Public Interest Disclosure Act. It is a step-by-step guide to producing, implementing and promoting an effective whistleblowing policy. Recommended by organisations around the world, the new, updated pack is available on CD Rom.

In addition, our package for small and medium sized employers offers truly exceptional value. As organisations with a very small number of employees (up to 10) may feel it is not necessary to set up a full whistleblowing policy, we have developed some practical hints.

To help you reassure your staff that there is a safe alternative to silence and promote the right culture, we also offer subscriptions to our helpline. Importantly, referring your workers to a source of independent advice, such as our helpline, was recommended by the Committee on Standards in Public Life as a key element in a good whistleblowing policy.

For further information on our professional services or for orders or additional information, please contact us on 020 7404 6609 or at services@pcaw.co.uk.

What is the difference between Public Concern at Work's helpline and a hotline?
Public Concern at Work provides something that a commercial hotline can not - advice on how to raise a concern responsibly. It is not a souped-up answering service. Our advice puts things in perspective for employees and gets them to focus on the message. Employees can also feel confident about following this advice about how to raise their concern responsibly because of its clear independence and confidentiality. Your endorsement of our service will demonstrate to your employees, stakeholders and regulators that you are serious about whistleblowing and good governance.

What is the difference between anonymity and confidentiality?
A worker raises a concern confidentially if he or she gives their name only on condition that it is not revealed without their consent. A worker raises a concern anonymously if he or she does not give his or her name. With a good policy and culture, you will find people will raise their concerns openly - which is the best way.

Do whistleblowers have legal protection?
Workers and police officers in the United Kingdom are protected by the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998 (PIDA). It is probably the only piece of employment law to have the support of both employers' organisations (e.g. CBI, IoD) and unions (e.g. TUC). This is because, in the words of Lord Nolan, it succeeds in “skilfully achieving the essential but delicate balance between the public interest and the interest of employers.” This balance is achieved through a framework that provides workers with a safe alternative to silence, encouraging them to raise their concerns responsibly but not protecting workers who act irresponsibly.

PIDA protects workers who raise concerns about wrongdoing internally and, in most cases, with a regulator. It also protects wider disclosures where there is a valid reason to go wider and the particular disclosure is reasonable.

Other countries have whistleblower protection laws, including the United States of America, South Africa and Australia. We have provided some links to organisations in these countries that help whistleblowers.

What are the safeguards against abuse?
The purpose of PIDA's protection is that a concern is raised so that it can be addressed, and any wrongdoing corrected. If the sole or main reason the worker blows the whistle is to pursue a personal vendetta (or some other ulterior motive) then the protection may well be lost.

Does the Public Interest Disclosure Act say that a worker must raise a concern about possible wrongdoing with their employer in the first instance?
PIDA does not require a worker to raise a concern about wrongdoing with their employer before they speak to anyone else. Rather, PIDA encourages workers to approach their employer first by:

  • making this the easiest way to obtain legal protection; and
  • making it more likely that a subsequent disclosure of the same information to an outside body will be protected.

However, it is not mandatory to go to your employer first. As there can be legitimate reasons why a worker in a particular organisation would need or want to raise their concern first outside their workplace (either before or after going to their employer), PIDA protects such disclosures providing the worker acts in the responsible ways set out in the Act.

This approach of PIDA promotes accountability and good internal governance by:

  • encouraging employers to solicit and be open to whistleblowing concerns;
  • reassuring employees there is a safe alternative to silence; and
  • helping employers to address any wrongdoing properly, in the knowledge that if they don not the concern can readily be raised outside in an appropriate way.

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