Whistle-blowing

Whistle blowing is an act of conveying information about a significant moral problem by a present or former employee, outside approved channels (or against strong pressure) to someone, in a position to take action on the problem.

The features of Whistle blowing are:

·      Act of Disclosure: Intentionally conveying information outside approved organizational channels when the person is under pressure not to do so from higher-ups.

·      Topic: The information is believed to concern a significant moral problem for the organization.

·      Agent: The person disclosing the information is an employee or former employee.

·      Recipient: The information is conveyed to a person or organization who can act on it.

Types of Whistle Blowing

External Whistle blowing: The act of passing on information outside the organisation.

Internal Whistle blowing: The act of passing on information to someone within the organization but outside the approved channels.

Either type is likely to be considered as disloyalty, but the second one is often seen as less serious than the latter. From corporations‟ point of view both are serious because it leads to distrust, disharmony, and inability of the employees to work together.

Open Whistle blowing: Individuals openly revealing their identity as they convey the information.

Anonymous Whistle blowing: Individual conveying the information conceals his/her identity.

Procedures to be followed before Whistle Blowing

•          Except for extreme emergencies, always try working through normal organizational channels.

•         Be prompt in expressing objections.

•         Proceed in a tactful manner with due consideration to the feelings of others involved.

•         As much as possible, keep supervisors informed of your actions, both informally and formally.

•         Be accurate in observations and claims and keep all formal records documenting relevant events.

•         Consult colleagues for advice and also to avoid isolation.

•         Consult the ethics committee of your professional society before going outside the organization.

•         Consult a lawyer regarding potential legal liabilities.

A great deal of introspection and reflection are required before WB. Motive should neither be for revenge upon fellow employee, supervisor or company nor in the hope of future gains like book contracts or speaking tours etc.

Conditions to be satisfied before Whistle Blowing

Richard T. De George suggests the following:

1.      The harm that will be done by the product to the public is serious and considerable.

2.      The individual makes his/her concern known to his/her superiors

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3.      If one does not get any proper response from immediate superiors, then one should exhaust the channels that are available within the organization including the board of directors.

4.      One must have documented evidence that would convince a reasonable and impartial observer that one‟s view of the situation is correct and the company policy is wrong.

5.      There must be strong evidence that making the information public will in fact prevent the threatened serious harm.

Prevention of Whistle Blowing

The following actions will prevent/reduce whistle blowing:

1.      Giving direct access to higher levels of management by announcing „open door‟ policies with guarantee that there won‟t be retaliation. Instead such employees should be rewarded for fostering ethical behavior in the company.

2.      This gives greater freedom and promotes open communication within the organization.

3.      Creation of an Ethics Review Committee with freedom to investigate complaints and make independent recommendations to top management.

4.      Top priority should be given to promote ethical conduct in the organization by top management.

5.      Engineers should be allowed to discuss in confidence, their moral concerns with the ethics committee of their professional societies.

6.      When there are differences on ethical issues between engineers and management, ethics committee members of the professional societies should be allowed to enter into these discussions.

7.      Changes and updations in law must be explored by engineers, organizations, professional societies and government organizations on a continuous basis.