Whistleblowing and the Consequences
Whistleblowing and Its Consequences
Whistleblowing is an act that has become more prevalent in the corporate and private sectors. A whistleblower is described by Liuzzo (2013) as “…a person who reveals to a governmental authority, or to news media, confidential information concerning some wrongdoing or conduct that he or she regards as unethical” (p. 28). Some of the most notable cases in United States history have involved corporations, utility companies and the President. Some cases have been so extensive that they have brought about the collapse of corporate giants and even garnered the resignation of the President prior to his impeachment. The following will outline some notable cases, reasons why some people decide to “blow the whistle” and steps that the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has taken to secure the rights of those who report violations in the workplace. With greater frequency, internal organization constituents such as employees and board members are reporting issues of wrongdoing by their companies, instead of the reports coming from external auditing agencies (Mesmer-Magnus & Viswesvaran, 2005, p. 277). Whistleblowing is further defined as, “the disclosure by organization members (former or current) of illegal, immoral, or illegitimate practices under the control of their employers, to persons or organizations that may be able to effect action’’ (as cited in Mesmer-Magnus & Viswesvaran, 2005). Companies try to anticipate the possibility of unfaithfulness by demanding employees sign an employment contract or non-disclosure agreement, which would render the disclosure of company business a serious offense. Employees who feel an unjust action is taking place within their organization have two channels to approach to address the issues. An internal channel consists of reporting the offense to company management so that they have the opportunity to research and contend with the offense(s). This is the most
Whistleblowing is an act that has become more prevalent in the corporate and private sectors. A whistleblower is described by Liuzzo (2013) as “…a person who reveals to a governmental authority, or to news media, confidential information concerning some wrongdoing or conduct that he or she regards as unethical” (p. 28). Some of the most notable cases in United States history have involved corporations, utility companies and the President. Some cases have been so extensive that they have brought about the collapse of corporate giants and even garnered the resignation of the President prior to his impeachment. The following will outline some notable cases, reasons why some people decide to “blow the whistle” and steps that the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has taken to secure the rights of those who report violations in the workplace. With greater frequency, internal organization constituents such as employees and board members are reporting issues of wrongdoing by their companies, instead of the reports coming from external auditing agencies (Mesmer-Magnus & Viswesvaran, 2005, p. 277). Whistleblowing is further defined as, “the disclosure by organization members (former or current) of illegal, immoral, or illegitimate practices under the control of their employers, to persons or organizations that may be able to effect action’’ (as cited in Mesmer-Magnus & Viswesvaran, 2005). Companies try to anticipate the possibility of unfaithfulness by demanding employees sign an employment contract or non-disclosure agreement, which would render the disclosure of company business a serious offense. Employees who feel an unjust action is taking place within their organization have two channels to approach to address the issues. An internal channel consists of reporting the offense to company management so that they have the opportunity to research and contend with the offense(s). This is the most
References: Arnold, B. (2008). Caslon analytics whistle-blowing cases. Retrieved from http://www.caslon.com.au/whistlecasesnote.htm Association of Certified Fraud Examiners. (2012). 2012 report to the nations - key findings and highlights. Retrieved from http://www.acfe.com/rttn-highlights.aspx Eaton, T., & Akers, M. (2007, June). Whistleblowing and good governance "policies for universities, government entities, and nonprofit organizations". Retrieved from http://www.nysscpa.org/cpajournal/2007/607/essentials/p58.htm Liuzzo, A. L. (2013). Essentials of Business Law (8th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. ISBN: 9780073511856 McLean, B. & Elkind, P. (2004). The Smartest Guys in the Room. pp. 132–133. ISBN 1-59184-008-2 Mesmer-Magnus, J., & Viswesvaran, C. (2005). Whistleblowing in organizations: An examination of correlates of whistleblowing intentions, actions, and retaliation. Journal of Business Ethics, 62(3), 277-297. doi: 10.1007/s10551-005-0849-1 Occupational Safety & Health Administration. (2012, 07 16). The whistleblower protection program. Retrieved from http://www.whistleblowers.gov/index.html This website contains all the information on OSHA, the employee welfare-governing arm of the United States Department of Labor. The site outlines the standards, training and assistance that are a part of the OSH Act 1970 to protect workers. Salter, C. (2002, April 30). Jeffrey Wigand: The whistle-blower. Retrieved from http://www.fastcompany.com/65027/jeffrey-wigand-whistle-blower