Whistleblowing Solicitors
If you believe your employer has treated you unfairly because of whistleblowing, or you are apprehensive about blowing the whistle, our specialist whistleblowing solicitors are here to help.
If you have blown the whistle and have been subjected to unfair treatment, disciplined or dismissed/sacked, our whistleblowing solicitors can talk you through the routes you can go down.
Are you wondering what to do about blowing the whistle? Our employment lawyers can provide common-sense whistleblowing legal advice to guide you through the process so you know exactly where you stand.
Contact our whistleblowing solicitors
Our employment solicitors have the knowledge and expertise with whistleblowing claims to advise you, whatever stage you are at. We can also help you to obtain a settlement agreement if necessary. Call our whistleblowing lawyers in Bristol on 0117 325 2929 or fill out our online enquiry form.
What is whistleblowing?
Whistleblowing is taking action (blowing the whistle) to report wrongdoing at work that affects another person or people. The legal term for whistleblowing is ‘making a disclosure in the public interest’. Such protected disclosures usually involve reporting criminal offences, health and safety concerns and/or breaches of the law.
The law that protects whistleblowers is the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998. This Act makes it unlawful to subject a relevant person to negative treatment and/or sack them because they have blown the whistle.
Who is protected against whistleblowing?
In the UK, whistleblowers are protected if they are:
- Employees
- Workers (including agency workers)
- Apprentices
- Police Officers
- Self-employed NHS workers, including Doctors and Pharmacists
Whistleblowing protection starts from the beginning of your employment and this protection remains even if you no longer work for the employer you are making a disclosure about.
Who is not protected by whistleblowing?
You are not usually protected if you are:
- Self-employed
- A volunteer (without an employment contract)
- A member of the armed forces
- An employee of MI5, MI6 or GCHQ
- A Solicitor or Barrister (if the issue is covered by legal professional privilege)
- A Non-Executive Director
- An external job applicant
If you want to make a whistleblowing claim and you are any of the above, your employer may have a policy that states otherwise, so it is always worth seeking legal advice if you are concerned about whistleblowing protection.
Can I get compensation for whistleblowing?
When making a whistleblowing claim, you must have suffered unfair treatment and/or been dismissed as a result of making your disclosure. The unfair treatment does not have to be at the hands of your employer, either; often, it is from co-workers. If this is the case, you will still be eligible to claim against your employer as an employer is usually liable for the conduct of its workforce.
Common examples of detrimental treatment after whistleblowing include:
- Automatic unfair dismissal
- Constructive dismissal
- Being bullied or harassed at work
- Being demoted
- Not being considered for a promotion
- Been sidelined, excluded and/or isolated
- Unfairly selected from redundancy
Our expertise in whistleblowing claims
Barcan+Kirby’s employment law solicitors have several years of experience advising workers who have experienced unfair treatment after blowing the whistle. We understand it often takes a lot of courage to make a protected disclosure at work, so any subsequent poor treatment or behaviour can be upsetting and stressful.
Our specialist team will support you in claiming against your employer and guide you through the process. Our whistleblowing lawyers advise workers across the UK from our offices in Bristol and the surrounding area in Bedminster, Bishopston, Bristol city centre, Kingswood and Thornbury.
Our priority is to secure the best outcome for you to help and our advice will be practical and tailored to your situation. If we cannot resolve things through early conciliation and your case goes to an employment tribunal or court, we will be at your side to ensure your best interests are represented and protected.
In addition to whistleblowing advice, our lawyers specialise in a range of areas of employment law, including age discrimination, sex discrimination, religious discrimination, maternity discrimination, and constructive dismissal and unfair dismissal. Call us on 0117 325 2929 to find out how we can help you.
Whistleblowing FAQs
In the UK, you have the right not to be subjected to any disadvantage from your employer when you’ve made a protected disclosure.
This includes the right not to be unfairly dismissed or otherwise because of you blowing the whistle.
Other losses you may face once you have made a disclosure can include:
- Being demoted;
- Being denied a promotion;
- Receiving a pay cut;
- Being sidelined;
- Being denied access to work systems;
- Being harassed in the workplace; and/or
- Being disciplined.
It is your employer’s responsibility to ensure this does not happen after making a protected disclosure.
You need to be able to demonstrate that there has been a significant change in your employer’s behaviour before and after you blew the whistle to succeed with a whistleblowing claim.
A protected disclosure is when an employee or worker reports misconduct or wrongdoing that fits into certain categories of ‘failure’. These include:
- A criminal offence;
- A breach of legal obligation;
- A miscarriage of justice;
- A danger to health and safety; and
- Damage to the environment.
To be protected when making a disclosure to your employer, you must have a ‘reasonable belief’ that a wrongdoing has occurred or is likely to occur, that it is in the public interest, and you have reported your concerns appropriately, in accordance with the law. Your disclosure should be made in good faith and if it is not this can affect the level of compensation you could receive even if you were successful in a whistleblowing claim against your employer.
It is important to note that whistleblowing does not protect you or make you immune to disciplinary action if you have also done wrong so you may wish to seek legal advice if this is relevant.
Unfortunately, what counts as being in the public interest is not defined and so is left to the employment courts to interpret this on a case-by-case basis. It is not normally something that would affect just one person. If this is something that just affects you, then usually it is a grievance but it is important to seek legal advice on this point.
There are relevant factors, however, which include:
- The number of those who have been affected by the wrongdoing;
- The nature of the incident or occurrence;
- The nature of the interests affected; and
- The prominence of the organisation at the centre of the allegation, i.e. if it’s a large corporate organisation it’s more likely to be in the public interest.
There is no set period of employment required to make a whistleblowing claim, so your right to bring a claim is a ‘day one‘ right.
If you want to bring a tribunal claim for a whistleblowing claim, you have three months less one day from the date of detriment and/or automatic unfair dismissal.
Contact our whistleblowing solicitors in Bristol
Our employment lawyers are here to help, whether you’ve blown the whistle and are facing disciplinary action, or you are weighing up your options.
We work with employees all over the UK from our offices in Bristol and South Gloucestershire. For whistleblowing legal advice, call us on 0117 325 2929 or fill out our online enquiry form.