Date post: | 21-Apr-2017 |
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WHISTLEBLOWING AND
WHISTLEBLOWER
PROTECTION ACT
MANVENDRA P.S. BISHT - 140201073 MAYAN TANEJA - 140201074 MAYANK GUPTA - 140201075 MAYANK JAIN - 140201076 MAYANK SITLANI - 140201077 MOHD MOHTASHIM - 140201078
SECTION: B GROUP : 3
WHISTLEBLOWING
Whistleblowing refers to the unauthorized disclosure of the
unethical, illegal or corrupt practices by an employee to protect the
public interest.
The concept of whistleblowing has taken an important stand in the
contemporary world both in public sector and in private sector.
STAGES OF WHISTLEBLOWING
INCIDENT
• Stage One – Is There a Potential Whistle Blowing Scenario ?
• Stage Two – Seriousness Test
• Stage Three – Reality Check
• Stage Four – Becoming Aware of the Big Picture
• Stage Five – Forcing Management Recognition of the Problem
• Stage Six – Taking the Problem to Upper Management
• Stage Seven – Going Outside the Organization
• Stage Eight – Living with The Results
CONDITIONS FOR WHISTLEBLOWING
Richard T. De George
Three conditions that must hold for
whistleblowing to be morally permissible and two
additional conditions that must hold for it to be
morally obligatory.
CONDITIONS FOR WHISTLEBLOWING
CONDITION 1
• The firm is liable to cause serious harm to the public that can be mediated both by its product or its policy, whether an innocent bystander who is basically the person of the user of its product, or the general public
CONDITION 2
• As soon as the employee identifies a serious threat to the product user or to the general public at large, the employee should report it to his immediate superior and make his moral concern known to his senior. The act of Whistle blowing is not justifiable unless it is done.
CONDITION 3
• If the superior takes no action, the employee should take the matter to the higher superiors and if possible to the board of directors.
CONDITIONS FOR WHISTLEBLOWING
ADDITIONAL CONDITION 1
• Whistle-blower must have a proper evidence to justify his case and convince the authority or the general public that the organization’s product or policy poses a serious threat to the product user or to the general public.
ADDITIONAL CONDITION 2
• The employee must understand that necessary changes may be brought about, by him going to the public. The chance of being successful must be worth the risk one takes and danger to which one is exposed.
WHISTLE-BLOWERS IN INDIA
Satyendra Dubey, chief engineer
National Highways Authority of
India (NHAI)
Shanmughan Manjunath
Indian Oil Corporation Officer
Why does someone need protection for
speaking the truth?
Are we ruled by corruption?
ETHICAL DILEMMAS FACED BY A
WHISTLEBLOWER
ETHICAL DILEMMAS OF WHISTLE BLOWER
•Supervisors or the managers feel that the decision making process of the company gets affected with the interruption of the lower level management tattling upon with whistle blowing.
•Due to this many employees refrain from speaking up to avoid the conflict with the upper management.
•The employee also feels the fear of losing the job
Supervisors’ Condemnation
•To avoid losing the trust of the co-workers, the employee refrains from whistle blowing, which could harm his own reputation among his colleagues and as there is a regular communication between the employees in the company.
•Many employees avoid whistle blowing to maintain loyalty and trust with the co-workers.
Colleagues’ Condemnation
•The ethical dilemma of whistle blowing depends on the fact that how loyal a person feels for his company.
•If the person feels vote less or disoriented, the chances of him being the whistle blower increases and if he considers himself as an important member of the company and understands the responsibility, does not speak up against the company.
Loyalty to the company
•No employee would like to wrongly accuse his company or any of the higher authorities of his company of the felony and thus does the double check on the evidence he has as this could affect his credibility.
•He has more chances of coming up if he has the justifiable reason or the evidence.
Evidence against the
felon
WHISTLE BLOWER PROTECTION ACT, INDIA
WHISTLE BLOWERS PROTECTION ACT
Definition- Under the Constitution of India
“An act to establish a mechanism to receive complaints relating to
disclosure on any allegation of corruption or wilful misuse of power
or wilful misuse of discretion against any public servant and to
inquire or cause an inquiry into such disclosure and to provide
adequate safeguards against victimisation of the person making such
complaint and for matters connected therewith and incidental
thereto.”
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BILL
• The provisions of the act may not apply to-
Jammu and Kashmir
Armed forces of the union, being the special protection group constitute
under the special group act, 1988.
• The aim of the bill is to protect the whistle blowers that make a public
interest disclosure. The PID can be made in act of –
Power misused
Corruption
Criminal offence by a Public servant
• The PID must be in writing or electronic mail and in accordance with the
procedure defined.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BILL
• The PID may be made to the competent authority as defined by the bill.
• Then the enquiry is made by the competent authority without revealing
the identity of the whistle blower and verifies his/her facts.
• The competent authority has the authority to ask documents from any
person who shall be able to furnish any useful information.
• The whistle blower if is being victimized or likely to be victimized he may
file an application to the competent authority to look into the matter and
protect him/her.
• The bill penalizes the person who make a PID and the PID is deemed to be
mala fidelity and knowingly that it was incorrect shall be punishable with
imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years and a fine extended
to 50,000 INR.
INTERNATIONAL CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
GUIDELINES ON WHISTLEBLOWING
GUIDELINES SET BY INTERNATIONAL
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE
Enterprises are encouraged to establish, within their Organization
and as an integral part of their integrity programme, a
whistleblowing system, commensurate with their size and
resources.
• The International Chamber of Commerce has given some
guidelines on whistleblowing.
• The ICC guidelines help companies to establish and implement
whistle blowing programs.
• There are guidelines are based on broad experience of ICC
Member companies ranging across various sectors.
GUIDELINES SET BY INTERNATIONAL
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE
Such whistleblowing system should aim to:
• answer, in full confidentiality, all reasonable requests for
advice and guidance on business conduct matters and ethical concerns
raised by the employees of the enterprise and of its subsidiaries or
affiliates and by any of the group’s agents, suppliers and customers; and
to;
• receive and handle, at the earliest stage possible, all reports
made about any occurrence, whether established or soundly suspected,
of a breach of applicable laws and regulations, the enterprise’s code of
conduct or the ICC Combating Extortion and Bribery Rules of Conduct
and Recommendations, which could seriously harm the enterprise or the
group, if no remedial action is taken.
GUIDELINES SET BY INTERNATIONAL
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE
A whistleblowing system, being part and parcel of the enterprises’
voluntary integrity programs, will only be successful if it is not
over-regulated from the outside. Enterprises, however, should be
aware that, in certain jurisdictions and cultural environments and
because of data protection and labour law concerns, legal restrictions
have been imposed on whistleblowing procedures, which they will
have to comply with.
GUIDELINES SET BY INTERNATIONAL
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE
Each individual enterprise may decide, taking into account the
applicable law of every country, in which a whistleblowing system
will be put into place. In deciding to opt for an anonymous
whistleblowing system, a company may take into account its cultural
environment, as well as issues relating to the protection of privacy
and the risk of unfair reporting. If an enterprise considers that
reporting is made on a voluntary basis, its employees may opt to
report a serious occurrence under any other internal or external
procedure available.
GUIDELINES SET BY INTERNATIONAL
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE
All whistle blowers’ reports should be diligently acknowledged,
recorded and screened. If there is abuse of the process, disciplinary
action can be envisaged. As soon as reasonably possible, the main
results of the due diligence examination should be appropriately
communicated as feedback to the whistle blower. The person whose
behaviour has been reported, should also be informed of the main
object of the ongoing procedure, thereby allowing this person to
present objections.
GUIDELINES SET BY INTERNATIONAL
CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE
All employees should be in a position to report serious occurrences
without fear of retaliation or of discriminatory or disciplinary
action. Therefore, the whistle blower’s employment, remuneration
and career opportunities should be protected by the enterprise
during a reasonable period of time.
SHOULDN’T THE BILL BE EXTENDED IN
THE PRIVATE SECTOR AS WELL??
NEED FOR THE BILL
• The corruption or illegal practices not only affects the economy of the
country but also affects the human resources.
• It deteriorates the protection of rights, ethics and hence overall efficiency.
• According to survey conducted by Transparent International, India is at
94th position in the Transparent International’s Corruption Perception
Index. More than 60% of the employees have an experience of influencing
others to get the work done.
• The private companies are secretly involved with different kinds of
agencies and organisations without caring about the economic growth but
their growth.
• Ethical people who wish to reveal the malpractices of the private bodies
but they are unable to do so due to unrefined and incomplete whistle
blower protection act.
HOW WILL THE PRIVATE SECTOR BE
BENEFITTED?
• It gives the right of being equal and gives freedom of information.
• It brings in justice and fairness.
• It also protects employee and consumer health.
• It serves as a check on seniors members.
• It makes the employees more comfortable and they feel free and
independent to raise their issues.
• It saves life hence this act is right
to be implemented.
CONCLUSION…
In the purview of this discussion there are questions posed at
large on a person’s morality and honesty and the repercussions
that follows the fate of the whistle blowers. Hence, once again
it is to be asked that does it suffice to extend protection to
whistle blowers in public sector while denying the same to
those in private sector and leaving the in a precarious state?
Thus, there is indeed a need to make the bill robust by
extending it to the private sector so that the whistle blowers in
the private sector have the same sense of security as is
possessed by the ones in the public sector.
THE FINAL PICTURE..
THANK YOU